LitterMaid Automatic Litter Box LM920

by LITTERMAID

Product Details

• ASIN: B000634MNW
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (45 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #178,066 in Kitchen & Dining (See Top 100 in Kitchen & Dining)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

113 of 115 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Makes life easier!, August 25, 2005

By 

B. Charlwood (Goshen, IN, United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: LitterMaid Automatic Litter Box LM920 (Misc.)

I have owned a number of LitterMaids, and I highly recommend them. Below are the reasons I love having one and tips to make it as economical and efficient as possible.

You can't tell when you walk into my house that I have two cats, because the LitterMaid rakes the waste into the receptacle shortly after the cat leaves the box.

One of my cats is a timid, nervous type, and she was able to adjust to the sight and sound of the Littermaid's raking action within a few days. I followed the instructions in the manual about how to acclimate your cat to the new Littermaid, and I think that significantly helped my cats get used to it. In fact, within a day of it being here, my cats got excited whenever they heard the LitterMaid start raking and would run downstairs to watch it work. We keep our LitterMaid in the basement and can only barely hear it when we're on the first floor of the house, and that's WITHOUT having a basement door to block any sound out. (We can't hear it at all from the second floor of the house, and even from parts of the first floor.) So, I don't think it's loud at all.

I used to have to scoop our two large litter boxes twice a day in order to keep up with the waste habits of our two cats. Now, I just check the LitterMaid once every day or two to make sure nothing has gotten stuck in the rack, and I just add a little more litter to bring it up to the "fill to here" line. (Notice that I used the singular term for our LitterMaid: we went from two large, regular litter boxes to just one LitterMaid. I know that some households may require more than one LitterMaid, but our cats are fine with one.) When the waste receptacle is full, I just tie up the bag lining it, toss the bag, and re-line the receptacle. (See Money-Saving Tip below.)

You don't use very much cat litter with a LitterMaid. (I used to go through A LOT more with my standard boxes.) You DO need to buy the premium litter, but you use so little in the box at a time that it doesn't cost more. I generally use Fresh Step premium clumping litter, which isn't expensive at all, when compared to other premium litters. Speaking of which, LitterMaid makes its own litter (which I've bought at Target and Petsmart), and some people think it's better than the rest (at not sticking to the rake, etc.). I thought it did a good job, but when comparing the price for the LitterMaid litter to the Fresh Step, I thought the Fresh Step one was more economical for similar performance. I personally would not try any litters with crystals or those pearl-type things. I think anything other than standard premium clumping litter is asking for possible mechanical problems. I believe another brand that LitterMaid has recommended in the past is the EverClean premium litter. In case you are considering buying the cheap litter: I once tried store-brand clumping litter in my LitterMaid and will never do it again. It didn't clump well enough for the raking action.

DON'T OVERFILL the litter past the line marked on the LitterMaid's tray. It will confuse the rake when it's trying to rake what it thinks is waste out. A confused rake is an inefficient waste remover. Also, just to keep the machine in tip-top shape, make a habit of smoothing the cat litter out after you add more, so that one side is not drastically fuller than the other. Reason: same as before, it confuses the machine's raking action if the litter isn't at least reasonably level. It doesn't take but a few seconds, and it ensures that the LitterMaid can keep doing its job. Which is the whole point of this machine: to make things easier for you and happier for the cats.

Money-saving tip:
One way to reduce how often you buy the plastic waste receptacles is to line them with plastic grocery bags. (I use two plastic bags at a time, so that the receptacle is double-lined.) Then, when the receptacle is filled, pull the bags out, tie them shut, and throw them in the trash. I love that this gives all of those plastic bags a second purpose, once you'ved used them to carry home your groceries. Another way to reduce your having to buy the waste receptacles is to buy the Petmate Purrforma Self-Cleaning Litter Appliance Easy-tie Wastebags and line the receptacle with them. (These are availabe here on Amazon in the Kitchen & Housewares section or in large pet stores, like Petsmart.) These wastebags obviously weren't DESIGNED to be used on a LitterMaid (since the two items are made by different companies), but they do work. I bought one package after having heard that they work on Littermaid, and they did fine. However, since the grocery bags are free and already here in my house, I just use the grocery bags.

I am able to get by with completely emptying out the litter and washing out the tray just a few times a year, but if you have more time than I do, it wouldn't hurt to do it more often. MAJOR WARNING: DO NOT SUBMERGE THE MECHANICAL HOUSING WHICH OPERATES THE RAKE IN WATER, NOR SPRAY IT WITH WATER. (I ruined a LitterMaid because I forgot that important warning.) The litter tray that sits below the housing is easily detached from the mechanical housing; THAT can be washed any old way you choose. (I prefer to wash it in a large laundry sink, or with a garden hose out in my driveway, with some liquid dishwashing detergent.) JUST DON'T GET THE MECHANICAL PART WET! It's best to clean any soiled surface of that housing with a soapy cloth or paper towel (being careful to keep the moisture away from the inside workings of the motor). Those antibacterial wipes that people use to clean bathroom and kitchen surfaces would work also, and I've used baby wipes to clean my LitterMaid in the past. Before you set up the LitterMaid for its first use (and again each time after you wash the litter tray out), I recommend you spray anywhere that waste may touch (the rake, the litter tray, the inside walls, etc.) with silicone spray. (I have tried using baby oil instead, and I know some people use non-stick cooking spray. You will find what works best in your opinion through your own personal experience.) The spray (or baby oil) will make it easier to do the necessary tidy-ups when the waste occasionally sticks to that surface (or the cat pees on the inside wall of the LitterMaid, as one of my cats does sometimes). You WILL have to help the LitterMaid along at times, by unwedging poop or clumps that have gotten stuck between the tines of the rake. But, I imagine that the more often you clean the tray and the rake with the soapy rag or antibacterial wipe (and follow that with the silicone or nonstick spray or baby oil application), the less waste that will stick to the rake or the litter tray. (I work two jobs, so I don't get it washed out as much as I might prefer to.) Still with this minor maintenance, you can keep the LitterMaid handling most of the "hands-on" contact with the waste for you.

In the past, I have had problems with the motor on a previous LitterMaid (so that it started raking slower and with greater reluctance--kind of like a wind-up toy that is winding down). But, that didn't put me off LitterMaids, and I have not encountered that with all of the models I've owned. The cost-benefit ratio of how much it costs versus how much easier it makes my life makes it worthwhile to have around. Also, with the number of times cats can go to the bathroom in your average day, many years of use adds up to a lot of raking that machine has been put through.

So, I recommend LitterMaids to my family and friends, and I hope you give them a shot also. Life is easier when it's there 24/7 to scoop the waste for you.

42 of 43 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars You scratch its back, it scratches yours., May 5, 2005

By 

B. Nordquist (MN) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: LitterMaid Automatic Litter Box LM920 (Misc.)

This is not a set-it and forget-it tool. If you let litter get into the rake's track and don't clean it out for a long time, it gets jammed. I bought ONE of these, 5 years ago, for my THREE cats, and it still works. If you don't think it has enough oomph, you can get a cord that increases the juice to the rake. I have used a name brand clumping litter for the entire time I have had the unit...I didn't even know Litter Maid made litter. And you know what? If your unit breaks, you can use the thing as a regular cat box until your replacement arrives. In conclusion...buy this, clean it (and not just taking the waste out...you have to CLEAN IT) take care of it and change the litter, and you've got a friend for a long time. If you neglect it, you'll have a regular catbox that weighs 9 times as much, but has a swell paw-cleaning ramp.

PS
If your kitty is afraid of noise, I think it's your cat's problem, not the producers of this item. What does your cat do when you vaccuum? This thing makes ahout as much noise as any other small electonic motor...less than an electric toothbrush or pencil sharpener.

40 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Why did I wait so long?, January 14, 2005

By 

D "dray e gone" (Redding, CA, United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: LitterMaid Automatic Litter Box LM920 (Misc.)

I really did not think it would work as good as it did in the TV commercial. Boy was I wrong. We have three cat's and they all love it. The old type of litter box had to be cleaned almost every night or the cats would pick other places. With this now in place yes I have to dump the tray but that is no biggie. It saves litter and it keeps the house smelling much nicer with this system. Why did I put this off for so long? After having had this for a month it has been the best thing we could have done for our cats and my back. Dont you put it off try it and you will not look back. ::: Almost Two months and it is still the greatest since sliced bread. Not once kitty accident since it has been setup. Cats took to it like ducks to water. :::

dray