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76 of 77 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
An outstanding concept, which delivers far more than the 1st generation, August 22, 2009
First, I must admit I am hooked on this product, despite all of the many problems I USED to have with the 1st generation (see my 3 star review for the 1st generation, Cat Genie [60]) - try it, being forewarned that it might require a bit of effort up front, depending on your hook up connection, and the cats' affinity for using the unit.
However - at least so far - the integrated Genie 120 has few, if any, real problems left.
It is a true, self-cleaning box, unlike every other box on the market. ... for me, the ability to go on short vacations without worrying about or asking someone, to change litter, is a godsend.
They spend a lot of documentation on cat acclimation. For me, it was no problem.
One by one, they fixed some of the core problems of the older design, some I received over time on the old unit, and all (plus a few more) come on the Genie 120:
-improved Hopper (if your cat eats things like plastic, the old unit would clog: the new unit won't)
-improved Claw (the old one had a ridiculously small pin holding the whole thing together: no surprise, under heat and water, it snaps in two after about a year_
-cartridges that might actually be environmentally friendly now (the old ones had chips, contacts... and lasted for a shorter time). The new ones are - well almost ...- just a bag and shell.
-scraper to help keep bone sediment from collecting and "growing" inside the basin
-allegedly, improved Genie Eyes.
-allegedly, improved litter bowl (i.e. over time, the older unit quickly lost a good "seal" between the bowl and rim, allowing tons of granules to fall into the bowl, and gum up the whole works) ... the new one still pops a few through, but I think it's much better
-allegedly, no need to "service" (i.e. nasty complete disassembly and clean of the unit) several times a year: instead, you just drop in a clean cartridge or the same from a bag several times a year.
For those super sensitive to smell, there is no way around the fact that, once in a blue moon, this design will of course miss a few remains ... which means they reach the drying cycle, which generates a most unpleasant smell that most of the negative reviews on the old unit reference.
However, this is rare, esp. with the new "Cat" mode (in this mode, the unit will clean 10 min. after use ... and more frequently, but with less detergent) ... which translates into an almost always, far cleaner bowl.
Customer service is hit and miss: if you reach someone, they are usually well informed and very helpful (this comes from someone who knows the unit better than most tech. service personal at this point). Other days, it's nothing but a black hole into the answering machine.
Still not the holy grail of litter boxes, but I am hard pressed to think of any other automatic unit that comes as close.
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43 of 43 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent, No-Maintenance Solution... Much Improved Over The Original, September 19, 2009
I have had 2 original Catgenies for about 3 years (I would recommend more than 1 Catgenie for any household that has more than 3 cats)... I was one of the first 100 or so owners of it. I had problems here and there over the years, but overall the original Catgenie has allowed me to take care of my 4 cats with my busy schedule and minimal effort. If I were to buy the first generation categnie over again I certainly would despite the problems I had with those units.
Now Enter the Catgeine 120:
I was part of the testing program for the new 120 unit. Petnovations sent me 1 unit awhile back to replace 1 of my original units. I recently sent this test unit back to receive one of the production 120 units. Since receiving the production unit 8 weeks ago I have not had any errors, not a single problem!
About 4 weeks ago, I called Petnovations to upgrade my other original unit to the 120 under the upgrade program they are offering for original owners. This unit has had no problems in the weeks it has been installed as well.
I only thought to post this today because I will be running my first "maintenance routine" on the one that is 8 weeks old. I set an 8 week recurring appointment in my outlook calender when I first got the 120 to make sure I remember to run the maintenance cycle every 2 months. I hope this new maintenance routine prevents me from having to do a thorough cleaning with the hose outside. This in itself is a major improvement over the original design. I always dreaded taking the original Catgenie outside to clean it out... now all I have to do is run a special cycle to "deep-clean" it every 2 months.
Also, when my family comes to visit. They will be very happy that the new 120 unit has the "sleep" mode for 10 hours. My sister slept on the couch the last time they were here and the catgenie would wake her up at night when it ran. This should no longer be a problem.
I am very happy with my 2 new 120 units and I wanted to share my experience with the new model in case anyone is considering upgrading or buying one for the first time. I understand these litter boxes are not for everyone, I am an engineer and feel I am able to deal with any problems that arise with new technology... but I feel Petnovations has come a long way with the Catgenie 120 and it is a very valuable and reliable product.
I would like to note that I have not yet replaced the original 120 cartridge in the 8 weeks of ownership. I have it run on the automatic cat activation cycle. If 1 cartridge will continue to last me 2+ months, the cost of ownership on the 120 units will be much less than my original units (I used to run the original Catgenie 4 times a day, at 60 cycles that is only a 2 week lifespan of 1 cartridge). The Catgenie 120 cartridge has lasted me more than 4 times the length of the old cartridge!
Now if they could only prevent the plastic granules from getting tracked out of the unit by the cats it would be a near-perfect solution (those things hurt under bare feet!), but I think this is something that has to be dealt with even owning a traditional litterbox.
I would highly recommend the new Catgenie 120 to anyone, I have recommended the original Catgenie in the past to my coworkers and friends... and with the new units better price and performance it is a an easy recommendation to make.
UPDATE 11/04/09:
I am still extremely happy with both 120 units, I still have not heard a single error beep out of either one. They do their job every day and all I have to do is vacuum up the granules that get kicked out of the box. Since the last review I have completed a "deep-clean" cycle on both units, it is sooooooo much easier than the old catgenie where you had to take the entire box outside, take it apart, and scrub it down. Every 2 months I pour warm water into the bowl combined with a special cleaning solution packet and let it sit for 2 hours before letting the unit automatically drain it out. I found that taking an ordinary toilet bowl brush and LIGHTLY cleaning around the bowl and hopper during this cleaning helps make everything look brand new (Warning: The toilet brush may or may not be recommended by Petnovations, it is my own idea). Also, the 120 has proven much more economical than the original, the automatic cycle combined with the sleep cycle and the increased number of cleanings in each cartridge has helped tremendously. I have found each cartridge to be lasting me 2 months (the old catgenie I replaced the cartridge every 2 weeks). The savings alone were worth the upgrade, but I am also very pleasantly surprised by the increase in reliability.
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34 of 34 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A MUST for cat owners, November 9, 2009
First things first: I was a bit reluctant to try the CatGenie because of the mixed reviews of the first model. If I make a large purchase (anything over 50 bucks), I'm researching the HELL out of it first. Usually I check reviews from Amazon, Yahoo Shopping, Consumer Search, epinions, you name it. I live by this method - in the (almost) decade that I have been using the internet to aid in my product searches, I have not yet made a purchase that I regret. This goes triple for the CatGenie 120. They don't sell the older model anymore, which I think is good; I might have been tempted to save a few bucks, but I'm glad that I didn't. The 120 has given me no problems at all.
A little background: I have 3 adult cats (two female, one male, all "fixed") and a smallish house (2 bedrooms - one I use as an office - and one bath), and not a ton of space, which means that the cat box 'thing' was always an issue. If I wasn't extra diligent in cleaning the cat boxes (three of them) at least once, but more often, twice a day, you knew it the minute that you opened the door. Short of getting rid of my cats, I didn't know what to do. I bought a litter maid, the cats hated it, and the clumps would get stuck in the rake. Switched to crystals, which did a good job at desiccating the poop, but it irritated my cat's paws. I didn't mind the pine pellets, but ended up with sawdust all over, and in particular between the boards of my hardwood floors, which I could never fully clean out, no matter how much I vacuumed. Considered the litter Robot, but you still have to use clumping litter, and if I'm dropping over 300 bucks for something, I don't like that I have to stick to my $45-month-for-litter habit, AND the litter still can get tracked, AND you still have to use plastic bags (environment, anyone?) AND not all the reviews were all that favorable. Enter the CatGenie. The price was somewhat steep, yes, but here is where my super internet sleuthing skills came in handy: you never have to purchase litter - it uses washable, recycled granules that are sanitized by the unit every time you run it, it costs less than the robot, and it hooks up to your water line, so you don't have to dispose of anything. You have the option to set it to run on a timer, do it manually (push a button and walk away), or set it to be cat-activated. I do mine manually, because with 3 cats, I like to be sure that none of the kitties is kept from using the box because it's in clean mode. But it's nice that the options are there. You can either hook it up to the toilet, or do what I did - hook it up to your laundry line. It comes with a T-shaped adaptor that makes this really easy. I don't have a basement, I have a laundry closet with a sink, so the waste just gets flushed out with the dirty laundry water. I have had my CatGenie 120 since July, and haven't had to purchase litter since, so my upfront costs are definitely evening out. It will have paid for itself in a few more months.
Here are my pros and cons:
PROS: no more litter (permanent granules)
it sanitizes, so I'm not worried about the cats spreading germs
no scooping
no plastic bags or waste removal - everything is liquified by the unit and flushed into the sewer
my cats took to it right away, and they dig in the granules just like they did with regular litter
VERY easy to set up
big enough to accommodate cat; not so bit as to take up too much room
CONS: the price upfront seemed a bit scary (but, as I mentioned, I haven't been shoveling out cash for litter)
not ultra-silent, but since I have it set to manual, it doesn't go off when I'm not expecting it.
you have to purchase refills of the sani-solution, but it's pretty economical, and each cartridge lasts for 2-3 months, depending on how often you run the unit.
BOTTOM LINE: this is the best cat box out there. It's self-cleaning, super efficient, and clean. Definitely worth the money, and I recommend it.
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