Automatic Litterbox Central

I am anxiously awaiting on my simply clean. I bought it for an Amazing price, but alas it is currently on backorder, Its been almost a month now and I am getting anxious. I don't want to cancel the order because I haven't found another deal like it , but the wait is driving me crazy! I had also read the tip about spraying the non-stick spray. what is everyone's thoughts on this? has it worked for anyone? how often does it need it? does it cause problems with the gears or any of the other parts?

thanks!

~ Joodles

Bella, Ely, Ellie, & Dixie

Joodles,
There are 2 uses for non-stick spray. One is to prevent the litter from sticking to the bottom of the pan, and the other is to prevent the unit from squeaking. For the squeaking, I've found that I can use a spray teflon, or powdered graphite. I apply it to the bottom of the pan including inside the center hole, and to the base where the pan rubs against. I have heard of problems occurring if you spray the more internal gears, where it can end up attracting litter. I usually apply the spray whenever I clean the box, or if it starts squeaking again, which hasn't happened in a while.

I have no idea where you ordered your box from, but sometimes I will search the web for reviews on the seller to get a feeling about it they are going to ship my order, or just have it on backorder forever. Hopefully they will ship it soon.
Bill

Joodles, I haven't received my replacement that I called for yet, so they probably are a little back logged. I'll post when it finally arrives, thankfully the one I have is still working fine just clicks like crazy when it's on. I'm going to clean it again tomorrow and check it again to make sure I didn't miss anything.

Carol

Joodles, did you get your Simply Clean yet? I received my replacement unit today so maybe yours is on the way.

I've also changed my litter some, I've been using 1/3 WBCL for multi cats and 2/3 Arm & Hammer High Performance, I'm very pleased with this mixture, so much so that I almost forgot to empty the container because I didn't smell anything. The thing was completely full and still no smell from the container. I asked my husband who has a very sensitive nose if he noticed that litter box smell this week and he said no. I also don't seem to be getting the flat clumps on the bottom like I did with just the WBCL. I'm still thrilled with this litter box, the only thing I think they could do to improve it would be to make the ring you attach go all the way around so you don't get that little pile of litter if you have too much in the box. Also if they could make the sides a little higher so there isn't so much scatter, one of my boys is a real digger.

I am contemplating one of these units again since one of my cats refuses to use either of the two Cat Genies I have set up. Does anyone have in depth pictures of the box, conveyor, and waste area they could post? We are thinking of adapting it so that it would have a big waste area as we have 6 cats right now. If it can't be adapted, it would be pretty pointless for so many cats. I will still have the Cat Genies up, but figure they will use the clay a lot even so. Also, some of you who have had this box for a long time now, is it still working as well as it was and how is the cleanliness of the box over time. Thanks for any help.

Dawn

Dawn,
Taking photos shouldn't be a problem. I'm still very happy with how the Simply Clean operates (almost been a whole year now). It is basically performing as well as when I first got it. The litter stays cleaner than any other box I have owned, and if I am using a good enough litter, I don't feel like I need to do complete litter changes. There are a couple of easy mods that I have done to the boxes that I have mentioned in previous posts, and still think are good ideas, I can repost them if that is clear, or you aren't sure what I am referring to.

It sounds like you may want to somehow add additional bagging area to the unit? The unit as it is will use plastic grocery bags and completely fill the bucket it comes with, and if you happen to wait way too long, like twice as long as I should have it does a good job of stacking the overflow in such a way that it doesn't make a mess, and is easily scooted into a bag. If you are looking at putting the unit on top of a box with a large tray underneath like I have seen people do for LitterMaids, that should be doable. The plastic that the bucket rests on could be cut away, and some sort of tube could be fashioned from the top of the ramp to direct stuff where every you wanted.

Here are 2 quick shots I took, let me know if there is more information, or photos that would help.

The bucket is about 6.5" wide x 6.5" deep x 6" tall, and the ramp cover comes down to the top of the Bucket and follows its outer edge when in place. Bag that is normally in the bucket has been removed.

There is nothing under the lower plastic. The black tape disables the bucket sensor.


Bill

I've had my Simply Clean since Aug and I still love it and what counts most is the boys still love it. Like Bill has found, it still works like it did the day I set it up quiet and dependable. I've found WBCL for multi cats seems to work the best with a little charcol sprinkled in the waste bin for odor control. The pan it self stays relatively clean, once a week I take my scoop and just run it along the bottom in case anything has stuck but it's been fine lately. I sprinkle baking soda on the conveyor and that seems to keep it clean and also absorb odors. I've only done 3 complete litter changes and one of those was because I had a problem I thought it would cure. Things have stayed so clean and odor free that I have to remind myself to empty the bin, last night it was right to the top and still no odors (hubby would have let me know if there was). I have two 8 month old boys and they took to it immediately.

Carol

Thanks for the pictures, they gave me a much better idea of how it is put together. I never fully understood the conveyor till just now. By the way, does the conveyor come off completely and is it all plastic for easy cleaning? I was picturing gears, metal parts, and maybe even cloth like areas so this is a pleasant surprise. As for the waste area, yes we are thinking about making it much larger since we have the 6 cats right now and they produce enough waste to fill that little bucket up in half a day!!! The way that is designed, you might not even have to cut it, but could make a bucket with a ramp going out the back to ferry the waste into a lower receptacle. I will have to discuss it with my husband and see what ideas we can come up with before we decide. I am just so tired of cleaning up pee and poo 2 to 3 times a day for the last year...

Dawn

The whole unit is almost painfully simple. I would guess that the bucket holds about what a single cat produces in a week. So if all 6 cats were exclusively using this box, you would fill it in a day. With the other boxes you have you will probably get at least a couple of days out of it.

The ramp, can be easily separated from the rest of the unit. It is held on by 2 thumb screws, and then you can unplug the motor. The ramp motor is attached to the ramp, so you can't just throw it in a dishwasher, but I am sure you could wash the ramp if you wanted to. I haven't done so in the time I have had the unit. The ramp is mostly hard plastic with a couple of metal pieces as interconnection pieces.

Once the ramp is removed (or rotated into a vertical position) the bowl can just be lifted away from the rest of the base, and easily cleaned if you want.

There is a second motor located in the base behind the black tape you can see in my earlier picture. It turns a large plastic gear, which then turns the bowl.

The Ramp is basically 2 interleaved rows of plastic. One that is stationary, and one that slowly moves is a circular up/down top/bottom motion, such that it lifts stuff up, moves it a little way towards the top of the ramp, sets it down on the stationary part, and then cycles down to do it again, and again...

This is a view of the under side of the ramp, so you can seen the motor, and the mechanism that is used to move the ramp. It is directly driven with no gears or other flimsy components.

I did purchase one of these systems but ended up returning it due to the fact that it was noisy. What happens is litter ends up in the base and creates a grinding noise. You can clean the base, but that lasts until your cat starts sweeping it over the edges. I tried putting a barrier to stop this from happening, but the litter still manages to fall under the base.

The system works well, but because I have a small unit the grinding was too irritating. If it was in a basement or somewhere where I wouldn't hear it, I recommend this unit.

Is one or more of the plastic teeth supposed to be directly attached to the metal bar that attaches to the motor? I noticed this evening that my unit was no longer moving litter up the ramp. It was just bunching up near the ramp. I tried clearing it away a couple of times, but it kept happening. I finally decided to take it apart to try to figure out what is going on. It does look fairly simple, but I can't figure out what that motor powers on the ramp to make it move. Nothing is attached. The two outer teeth arm things look as if they should attach to that bar as it is rotated by the engine, but when I do that they pop off about halfway through the cycle.

I love this thing, but I've already replaced one when the motor simply died. I really don't want to have to replace another especially since everything appears to be functional. The litter pan rotates. The motor on the ramp works. The ramp itself just doesn't appear to move. Any help or some really close up shots of a working unit would be greatly appreciated. I hope someone is still reading this after three years.

dcartwright wrote:Is one or more of the plastic teeth supposed to be directly attached to the metal bar that attaches to the motor?

I'm not sure how easy it is to see in the pictures I have in my previous post, but all the teeth should be clipped onto the metal bar. Usually they will just snap back on if they have popped off. I had one unit where there had been enough wear that they would only stay clipped for a couple of days, fortunately there were little holes in the bottom of each, and I was able to add a 4-40 x 1/2" screw with 2 plastic #4 washers to each of the teeth and that held them in place.

dcartwright wrote:I hope someone is still reading this after three years.

I still read it when I get notifications, which may take a couple of days it would seem. I am still using the Simply Clean litter boxes as well, although I have replaced each of the two I have earlier this year. So I probably got 3.5 years of life out of them, which I attribute to putting them on timers and keeping litter out of the base.

Has anyone tried using crystal litter with this box? I have the PetSafe and I do love it, aside from the occasional crazy cat that stands on top of it and knocks it off balance so it does not rake. I have had to put a mirror behind the unit, on the wall, so when I look in the direction of the litterbox, I can see the green light. I use this unit with 5 cats. Pretty big cats at that. I know it says not to use for more than 12# cat but well I have 5 cats and only 1 of them is less than 12#. I do get very annoyed at how much the clumping litter gets kicked around. Sometimes the waste will clump up at the base of the conveyor and we will have to take it apart and clean it up but again, I have 5 cats, one litter box. I think I am doing very well. I wanted to try to put the crystal litter in it and see if that works but Im afraid to break the unit so, has anyone given it a shot?

I am hoping that one of you SC geniuses can help me out before I go crazy trying to fix my litter box.
It was working fine until I had my mom help me out with my kitties while I was out of town. I get home to find the box with too much litter in it and it not turning. My first thought was that it had too much weight in it so I dumped out enough litter to get it to the fill line. It worked for about 5min and then quit turning again. I unplugged it and then today I completely emptied the box, that’s when I realized there was a ton of dust in the gear and maybe the motor. I shook out the dust and plugged it back in and it worked until one of the kitties used it and then it quit turning again. I’ve taken the thing apart 3 times today and can’t get it to work for more than a few minutes.

I have two kitties that refuse to use a dirty litter box. Does anyone know what I can try?

Thanks!

I'm suspecting that litter has gotten packed into the gears. If you turn the unit over, there should be 2 screws holding a motor assembly in place. I would remove those and unplug the motor wires. You should now see a large plastic gear and a motor. 2 more screws should be holding the motor and 1 should be holding the gear. You can take this apart and clean the teeth of both the motor gear and the plastic gear with a something like a toothbrush. If the teeth have gotten too worn down, then it will have to be replaced.
Sorry about the delayed response. One of my cat's heath failed.
Bill