The
Litter-Robot Review
By Judie Lipsett
Gear Diary
March 20th, 2008
Of all the gadgets which I have ever reviewed, I
think that the Litter-Robot would definitely win the
title of most offbeat, but it was well worth doing.
In late January, I unboxed the Litter-Robot, set it
up, and then sat back to see whether Avah would accept
this “spaceship” as her litter box.
It will have been two months tomorrow, and we have
both lived to tell about it, so that should immediately
tell you that things went well.
But lets go back to the beginning…
As a refresher, you can watch this video of the
Litter-Robot’s unboxing…
…and this video of its easy set up.
You’ll notice that the bag used in the bottom
tray during setup is nothing special, just a typical
kitchen bag. The Litter-Robot came with five or so
of them, and when those included were gone (at the
rate of about one per week), I started using plain
old white tall kitchen garbage bags.
When I first set up the LR, I couldn’t put
it in the same spot where her old box used to be,
because I needed access to a wall socket. I also
needed a larger spot to accommodate the approximately
30? tall x 24? deep robot. Furthermore, it was important
that nothing be right next to the top half, because
it had to be able to spin without dragging against
anything. Fortunately I was able to place the Litter-Robot
in our middle bathroom.
I purchased a brand new 35 pound bucket of the cheapest
clumping kitty litter sold at Sam’s, which
happened to be their store brand. It took a little
less than a third of the bucket to fill the Litter-Robot,
or approximately nine pounds. After two months of
use, I still have over half of the bucket left. Every
time I empty the drawer, I look to see if I need
to add anymore - usually it’s still just fine.
So right there, you see that there are no special
or proprietary supplies which need to be purchased
to keep the Litter Robot working from the first day
of purchase. Because of that, there is no fear that
you might one day be unable to find special solutions
or accessories based on where you live or the company’s
circumstances. I’m just saying…
There are several tricks listed to help you acclimate
your cat to this new system, but from the beginning,
getting Avah to use the Litter-Robot was surprisingly
easy. I took one piece of solid matter from her old
litter box, put it in the new one, and then threw
away her old box.
After her initial photo set, in which she was exploring
her new space, Avah understood that the Litter-Robot
was not a playpen; she never again used it for anything
but how it was intended.
Here’s the important thing to remember before
trying to use a Litter-Robot: your cat must weigh
at least five pounds for safe use. If you have kittens
or a really petite chatte, then you should stick
with a regular litter box until they are larger.
But if you have a cat who weighs over five pounds
you’ll be good to go. Their site says “The
Litter-Robot accommodates cats up to 15 lbs, but
according to our customers larger cats have adapted
to the Litter-Robot without problems.”
Before we watch the video of Avah demonstrating
the Litter-Robot, I want to tell you about the Cat
Sensor, which is built into the front step. The basic
purpose of this sensor is to let the LR know that
a cat has been in the drum, and that the drum needs
to tumble. The minute your cat leaves the Litter-Robot,
a seven minute countdown starts. As you will see
in this video, cats sometimes come back to check “their
business,” and the seven minute window gives
them time to do this as well as time to get away.
If the cat steps on the Cat Sensor again, the seven
minute sensor is once again tripped, and in this
manner there is no chance of the cat being inside
the drum when it starts to rotate.
Okay, here is Avah, ready to give a demonstration
of the Litter-Robot…
I thought about adding some cool background music
to this video, but in the end I decided that it was
best to leave the audio alone; I thought it important
for you to be able to hear the mechanical sound made
as the globe rotates in an otherwise perfectly quiet
room. We have ours set up in the middle bathroom,
and we have grown used to the sound it makes when
tripped. Realize that this is a room with no carpet
and very little furniture (other than porcelain,
heh!), so yours may sound quieter if it is in a different
environment. If the tumbling sounds are going to
bother you, then the robot might be best placed in
a laundry room or basement.
So when the Cat Sensor has been tripped and the
globe’s rotating, I bet you are wondering what’s
actually happening, right?
Here’s a video showing it in detail…
If you are truly worried that your cat won’t
take to the Litter-Robot, you can give one a try,
basically risk free for 60 days. Right now they are
offering FREE shipping, so the worst case scenario
is that if things don’t work out, you’ll
only be short the $40 or so it will take to send
the huge box back. After seeing how quickly Avah
took to her Litter-Robot, my mother bought one for
her older Persian; mom will not be taking advantage
of the return policy. ;-)
According to their site, “The Litter-Robot
waste drawer was designed to prevent mold growth,
eliminating that typical cat box smell. However,
we do recommend that you empty the waste drawer at
least once a week - after all, there are limits.”
Well…yeah. ;-)
Worth noting before you take a good hard look at
the picture coming up - I have gone as long as a
week and a half without cleaning out the drawer,
and not once did the Litter-Robot start to smell.
To be honest, I just forgot to clean it because it
didn’t. :oops:
Granted, I only have one cat; those of you with
more than one will have to figure out for yourself
whether you can go a few days or a little bit longer.
But no matter what, I guarantee the cleanup will
be preferable to scooping…period.
Anyway, here’s a look at what one cat can
produce in a week; I hope you haven’t just
eaten. ;-)
Scary, huh?!
What I noticed is that unlike Avah’s old box,
where…how can I say this delicately? Okay,
I can’t. She had this spot where she would
pee, and it would just create the nastiest, smelliest,
wettest mess - even with the clumping litter. I absolutely
dreaded cleaning her box because of that mess. This
no longer happens with the Litter-Robot. Because
her waste is not allowed to sit, and it is instead
immediately rotated, coated in gravel, and dumped,
there are no “toxic spots” in the drum.
One other thing I should mention is that while you
might think that a spinning drum would kick up unwanted
litter dust (after all, scooping certainly seems
to), I have not found that to be the case at all.
The Litter-Robot rotates so slowly and gently that
dust is not expelled.
I can’t begin to express how spoiled - yes
spoiled, I have become since using this device. Cleanup
is a breeze, and the little bit of litter that gets
tracked off the step is nothing near what used to
be tracked out of Avah’s old box. The Litter-Robot
is an appliance that I can’t imagine owning
a cat without having; I would like to say that the
Litter-Robot was for Avah, but the truth of the matter
is that it was for ME.
Any questions? Check out the FAQ or ask me in the
comments section. :-)
The Litter-Robot is available in black or beige,
directly from the manufacturer and other retailers.
It comes with an 18-month full warranty*.
MSRP:$329.00 (3 Payment Plan option available)
What I Like: Easy to set up; uses ordinary trash
bags and clumping litter - no special supplies needed;
no fear of cat being caught inside; you never touch
the nasty stuff; no sifting; no nasty smells…no
worries!
What Needs Improvement: The tumbling action is a
bit noisy if you have to keep it in a main room of
the house
* “During this warranty period [they] will
repair or replace your Litter-Robot at no charge.
Customers outside the lower 48 US states may incur
some shipping charges.” |