Automatic Litterbox Central

We bought the Littersweep litterbox a few weeks ago - after ,like others, we saw it at petsmart and the price was just too good.

Here are my comments:

1. The rake does not tilt enough into the container, so sometimes clumps return to the box! I sometimes go to it when running and gently tap it to make the clumps fall off. I might try the non stick spray ides, maybe it will help.

2. The Box is noisy, but since it sits in our laundry room, it is not a problem.

3. The sensors appear to be weight sensors. If you put too much litter in, it will go red, or if too much is in the box, not evenly distributed. Having 7 cats this is a problem, as in 30 minutes it could get pretty full..

4. Two things the box does very well:

Easy to clean - It comes apart in seconds and you can wash with a hose.
The container seals well, so there is very little smell in the room!

5. The Bags are not a problem, I re-use the current bag several time, just dumping into a trash bag. The container slides out easily. If needed, I can use other bags, I think a small trash bag would do fine.

Overall I give the box an 8 out of 10. If the mechanism would be fixed so that the rake tilts enough into the box, and from a higher position, and the box would run more often, it would get a 9.

Jonathan

shay wrote:I purchased a Litter Sweep from Pet Smart on 1/14/05 and my cats are using it fine. I see the problem with the break up. I am wondering also about the hard clumping litter. Let me know if it works. I had a LitterMaid for 11 months and it broke two days ago. The rake bar locked up over the receptacle and I can't budge it. I am planning to send it back since it is still under warranty. Has anyone sent one back for replacement? If so what was the reply? I would love to try the litter robot too but the price is definately holding me back. What about the Purrforma, how does it measure up?

I purchased my LM in April of last year. all of a sudden last Sunday it stopped. i think that the motor just died. I called, they made me do all the hoops which included unplugging and calling back in 5 mins. I did, and the rep said that he would send me a new one. he asked if i had the receipt which i didn't, but he waived it. he asked that i mail the batter cover, and 6in of the cord and a $10 check to cover S&H. he said that once they receive that i would receive a replacement in 7-10 days...guess what? 2 days later it showed up and i hadn't even mailed the requirements in! I mailed them in anyway. the new one is working fine now. Just call them up and explain and you should get a new one too!

The bags for this thing bear an amazing resemblance to Saran Quick Covers. I'm going to try them and see if they make an adequate substitute. Does anyone know where to buy the hooded dome cover? My cat likes her privacy.

I recently purchased the LitterSweep Ultra and it is okay but has some flaws. The biggest for me is that if a cat goes to cover and piles litter up on one side, it throws the sensors off balance and the rotation won't come on to sweep it clean. Either you have to balance the litter out or wait until a cat goes in and hopefully scratches the mound down so it will come on in 30 minutes. We all know that it is a common thing for cats to scratch up a mound to cover. Also, when the rake goes into the tray to dump the clumps, if there are too many clumps already in the tray, the rake can't bend down enough so that the clumps it has on it will fall into the tray. I have no big problem with the clumps falling apart so it may be because the litter I am using in it clumps well. The noise is a little loud but my cats have no problem using it. I have had a Littermaid for about four years but it is about to quit on me and I am really wanting to try the LitterRobot, but the price is holding me back. I am giving it some thought.

I also bought a Litter Roundup Ultra. The Ultra sweeps automatically every 30 minutes, whereas the regular one a human has to push the button to move the litter. The first few days, my 1 year old Bengal thought it was great fun to ride around in the litter tray. Every time he heard it he ran into the room and jumped in. He has since found other things to get into so overall it's working ok. It has the same problem with the litter clumps staying in the tray.
I haven't had to replace the disposal bag. I just pull out the whole tray and dump it in the litter trash.
I do like the fact that most of the unit comes apart for cleaning because some of my cats aren't all that neat. The instructions mentioned that there are optional accessories which includes a cover. That might solve some of my issues.
But even with the minor issues I haven't noticed any odors.

I have bought the Littersweep Ultra. So far I do like it. It recognizes the cat has used and then 30 minutes later, it starts to clean it. This keeps the cat from being scared by it. Every now and then, my cat will make a mound too high and then I have to push the button to make it manually operate.

The difference between the Litter Round Up and the Litter Sweep Ultra is pretty obvious if you read the back of the box. The Round Up is activated by a human pushing a button to start the cleaning cycle. The Litter Sweep Ultra is activated by a timer which is controlled by motion sensors, much like the LM.

I was examining this product and I am pretty concerned about how tiny the litter pan is. I just don't think that most cats would use something that small and never miss.

we picked up the littersweep ultra a few weeks ago when we saw it at petsmart. figured we'd get it, then come home and research it before opening it. i found this thread and was actually quite pleased with what i read.. so we set it up!

i like the styling of it! i LOVE that the soiled litter area actually closes and keeps the smell in! as a former littermaid owner... that was a big gripe of mine!

as other's have said.. the motor IS loud.. but i take care of that by just shutting it off when we go to bed (i have the cord plugged into a switch.

i've noticed the same "complaints" as others that the clumps sometimes stay on the forks or won't dump if the holding pan is too full. it's still a lot better to deal with than the littermaid that used to leave stuff every time IF it would complete the cycle!

i have found that you cannot overfill or it will think a cat is in there (red light stays on). again.. nothing different than the littermaid (ok.. better cuz you can fill the littersweep to it's line.. the littermaid you could only add the tiny bit of litter to the pan.

bailey is a large cat and i was worried about his big butt using the littersweep.. it looked small.. he does just fine.. they both fling litter all over.. but that's not a littersweep issue (i need to get back to petsmart and see if they ever got any hood in that are shown as accessories on the box!)

all in all i'm please... if i were going from manual to littersweep i would be thrilled.. but going from a littermaid to the littersweep.. i'm even more thrilled! it's worth every penny of the 79.99!!!

I wonder of there is a way to modify the rake so that the slots in it are smaller - maybe fit a teflon screen over it....

Hmmmmm - I will see what I can do after I pick up one.

charly1980 wrote:I also bought a Litter Roundup Ultra. The Ultra sweeps automatically every 30 minutes, whereas the regular one a human has to push the button to move the litter. The first few days, my 1 year old Bengal thought it was great fun to ride around in the litter tray. Every time he heard it he ran into the room and jumped in. He has since found other things to get into so overall it's working ok. It has the same problem with the litter clumps staying in the tray.
I haven't had to replace the disposal bag. I just pull out the whole tray and dump it in the litter trash.
I do like the fact that most of the unit comes apart for cleaning because some of my cats aren't all that neat. The instructions mentioned that there are optional accessories which includes a cover. That might solve some of my issues.
But even with the minor issues I haven't noticed any odors.

Just picked mine up. I will go to the hardware store this weekend to see what I can find to modify the rake to improve the scoopability of the litter and waste. Right now with my cat having stomach issues, it will scoop up slop and make a mess of that rake.

Success! Walter used it BEFORE his regular box about 20 minutes ago!

Now to see what happens in a few minutes...

Called the Stylette hotline and asked for a new rake and they are sending me one for free. I was shocked that they would send one for free just like that.

My plan is to weld horizontal wires across the back face of the rake to make a waffle pattern and allow for greater scooping with smaller particles. This may also help in the crushing effect of the waste.

I will post up when I get the rake and get it done.

Walter's Owner wrote:My plan is to weld horizontal wires across the back face of the rake to make a waffle pattern and allow for greater scooping with smaller particles. This may also help in the crushing effect of the waste.

Can't wait to see how this goes! I've been reading this thread with great curiosity. Anyone want to share what litter they've been using that clumps very well (and doesn't break apart)?

I use the Petsmart brand - 40 lbs for $9.99.

Its a premium litter but the main problem still stands that the rake wont pick up the small nuggets. They were smart for making the sensor wait 25-30 minutes to start the cycle so as to let the waste dry a bit. I am waiting for my second rake before modifying it. I have the wire already.

I gave up on this project. I am cleaning this thing as if it was a regular litter box. The rake movement is ALWAYS going to break the clumps up regardless of what I do to it. I sold the unit and ordered a Litter Robot.