LitterMaid Elite Mega Automatic Self-Cleaning Litter Box
Review by ' Groovin' guy "music historian" : My Cats and I Are Both Pleased with Freshness

Length:: 0:38 MinsThree of my six cats have been using the LitterMaid LME9000MB Self Cleaning Edition.Aside from it being somewhat loud, both my cats and myself are not put off by the murmur when the litter is being sifted clean. In fact my cats love the litter box so clean and fresh.It does use LitterMaid litter and other more expensive brands of high clumping litter. The litter I'm currently using for this is Arm & Hammer Super Scoop, which is more than I pay for my regular litter, but since only half of my cats use this box, it lasts pretty well.I recommend this to anyone needing or wanting a little break in cleaning their cats' litter box.

LitterMaid Elite Mega Automatic Self-Cleaning Litter Box
Review by Simple Stuff "3siamesecats" : Magnificent! A true Masterpiece... Don't hesitate to buy

So many confusing reviews, I waited and studied up on these units over a year before buying one to try. I have 2 of the original design and they are still working fine. But I have 3 cats. It was taking an hour twice a week to clean the old ones. I bought one of these Elite Ultimate to test out. The feature I cannot live without now is the Ionizer! It works sooo great! No smell whatsoever! And I now spend maybe 15 minutes to tidy one up, if necessary. I am so amazed at how little maintenance it takes, and the included forked-edge-scooper is just perfect to quickly clean the tines of the rake. None of the reviews seem to be accurate in describing how well-made and wonderful this littermaid is; I hope this review helps set the record straight. I loved this so much, I moved the 2 old units to the garage, and I bought 2 more to add to this one for my cats to use in the house. So I now have 3 perfectly working units, with so little maintenance that I can't believe it!! It doesn't hurt to check them every couple days and just tidy up a bit, but there is no major cleaning or worry. And the Ionizer keeps the rooms completely fresh. I had one shipment from Amazon where the Ionizer stopped working after a week; I called Littermaid. We tried the reset button on the bottom front track, but it did not restart, so they sent me a new one. All 3 that I have are working fine. It is really freeing and my cats just love them. I prefer them with the wonderful cabana top that you can quickly lift off and put back on. I keep the shiny slick bottom free of debris, and avoid scratching it, and that seems to help keep everything working smoothly...nothing sticking or getting gummed up. These units are wonderful. Do not hesitate to get one and try it...the black one is the Ultimate version with the Ionizer. I have only found it online; I have not found it in the stores. I am soo glad I got this particular unit and am soo happy with all 3 that I have! Best purchase I have ever made! Sorry it took so long :)

LitterMaid Elite Mega Automatic Self-Cleaning Litter Box
Review by R. Phillips : Love LitterMaid, this model not as much

I'll start out by saying that I love LitterMaid and over the years when one has broken I have bought a replacement immediately. It makes life a lot simpler, espeically when you have a couple of fat cats as I do.This is by far the best looking and most advanced model out there. It has a timer and sleep settings and odor control ionizer. However, this is the first model that I can recall having to assemble. It feels a little flimsy compared to the other models as well. Also, it does not rake the waste quite as well as the 900 model. I have them running side by side right now and you can clearly see that difference. Usually there is no debris left at all in my 900 mega model.So, I think when choosing your littermaid, you should decide which factors are most important to you. If it's features and appearance, choose this 9000 model. If it's easy out of the box usage, virtually no scooping at all, and sturdiness, I would choose the 900 model (it definitely feels like it is more durable and like it would last longer; the motor seems to be stronger as well). Know this, if you are sick of scooping all the time, you will quickly learn that having a littermaid becomes a necessity in your life.UPDATE: Okay, I've been using this for a few months now and it just isn't nearly as good as the "lesser" model. It just doesn't scrape well enough and I find myself hoping the cats won't use this one as much as the older one because I don't want to scoop. I'm thinking of just putting this one away permanently.

LitterMaid Elite Mega Automatic Self-Cleaning Litter Box
Review by kdea473 : No more scooping!

I had seen these fancy litter boxes before but had resisted because of the high price tag and the uncertainty of whether they would work. When this litter box was offered as part of the Vine program, I jumped at it.The litter box is a lot larger than I had anticipated (I hadn't actually measured out the dimensions given on the item description). The assembly took about 20 minutes. The manual says to use "premium" scoopable litter; I filled it with Tidy Cats scoopable.When the unit was powered on, it made its first pass. My younger cat got in, sniffed around, and exited. I knew that would trip the motion sensor, so I waited 10 minutes for the scoop cycle. Unfortunately, the rake moved to the dump position, then stopped. Following the troubleshooting directions, I couldn't get it to work. I cringed as I realized I would have to call the 800-number for help. After about 5 minutes on hold, I was connected with an agent with a firm command of the English language. She was able to give me an alternate fix, and the unit worked again.The noise of the unit sounds like an electric can opener. My cats (age 9 months and 2.5 years) do not seem to be afraid of it. In fact, the younger one comes running when he hears it start so that he can watch the rake.I have been impressed with the overall performance of the unit. After reading the previous review where the unit did not scoop anything, I was worried. The rake is able to scoop and dump all but the smallest of clumps (the ones that are so small they fit between the tines of the rake). I add a little bit more litter every couple of days to keep it filled to the right level.A few negative things (that keep it from getting a five-star review):-The waste receptacle fills up about every two days with two cats. Replacing them will get expensive, so I am hoping that I can empty a receptacle and reuse it at least once.-The unit is noisy when in cleaning mode. I have activated the 8-hour sleep timer, but if you're trying to get some extra sleep in the morning when the 8 hours is up, you'll probably hear the motor.-The price of the unit. The standard recommendation for the number of litter boxes in your home is the number of cats plus one (meaning I need 3 litter boxes). While I like this litter box, there is no way I could afford to have 3 of them, so I have to stick with my existing standard boxes.Overall, I am more impressed than I thought I would be. Each time I check on the box, I am relieved that it has been scooped without me having to do the dirty work. If anything changes, I will update the review.

LitterMaid Elite Mega Automatic Self-Cleaning Litter Box
Review by Daffy Du : A mixed review from the cats

We have three cats and four litter boxes--this one makes five--so I know a thing or two about scooping. I've been intrigued by the idea of these self-cleaning boxes for some time, especially since my significant other can't seem to clean the litter boxes with any regularity if I'm out of town. More recently, one cat's sudden penchant for peeing in inappropriate places for no apparent reason has inspired me to explore new approaches to the feline toilette. (And yes, she's been to the vet multiple times, and they can't find anything wrong.)This is basically a good idea that could use some refinement. The unit was a little confusing to assemble, mainly because the instructions weren't great. But I eventually figured it out. It does perform mostly as advertised, but I have two main gripes with it. First, as other reviewers have noted, it makes a bloody racket when it's raking the detritus into the receptacle. The first few times, I thought someone was shredding a document, as it sounds almost exactly like a paper shredder, only the growling/whining noise goes on considerably longer. Fortunately, it's located clear across the house, but for people who keep the litter box in the bathroom near the bedroom, it's really a problem. Second, the unit is designed with thin disposable plastic receptacles and air cleaners that cost a fortune for what they are and don't hold very much. The box comes with four of each, and while I'll probably get some more because there's really no choice if I want to keep using the box, the pricing is outrageous. (I'm reminded of the old Gillette marketing strategy, where they were more focused on selling razor blades than razors. Same thing here, I fear.) A more minor issue is that the unit seems fairly flimsy, but only time will tell if that's actually a problem. Also, the rake mechanism speared a clump on one of the passes, and I'm not sure why, as the litter level seemed okay. Be forewarned that the tolerances for the litter levels are fairly narrow, and if you fill it too full, it sweeps perfectly good litter into the receptacle, wasting litter and precious space.Of the three cats, only one seems to be using it. She is on medication for some digestive issues and drinks huge amounts of water, which then comes out the other end with more frequency than normal. So she's been generating a lot of clumps in the litter box, and these have nearly filled the receptacle in just one day. The other two cats have been freaked when the rake motor does its thing and have continued to use the other boxes. I don't know if they'll overcome their fear and start to use it or not.We have also noticed a stronger than usual urine smell in the room where we keep the litter boxes, and this may be from the accumulation of clumps in the receptacle. I've emptied it, but it really smelled worse than if I'd just skipped a day of scooping all the litter boxes. So time will tell about that as well.Before buying this, you should carefully check the dimensions because the whole unit takes up a lot of space, especially with the ramp. If I decide to keep using it, I may get the cover, as all our cats prefer covered litter boxes. I'm also hoping that just maybe it will cut down on the noise a bit.

LitterMaid Elite Mega Automatic Self-Cleaning Litter Box
Review by Tamara Thorne : It's a litter box! No, it's a monster! No, it's a toy!

I keep several old-fashioned litter boxes for our 3 cats (4, counting one we're catsitting for a couple months) and all the felines have their own preferences and styles. We have, with our guest cat, the requisite five boxes - one per cat plus 'one for the pot' as it were. Two cats, bless 'em, use pine litter in their boxes. The others get clumping Tidy Cat since it isn't gaggingly full of perfume and works fairly well.And then came the LitterMaid LME9000MB Self Cleaning Elite Mega Ultimate Edition. The name scares me for some reason. Kind of sounds like the title of a Sci Fi Channel original horror movie or something.I read the directions and eventually cobbled the box together correctly, then left it empty and went to buy Scoop Away, one of the 'hard clumping' brands they recommend you use.While I was out, one of the cats peed in the empty box. A peculiar, but good sign. I mopped that up to keep my review fair, then added the Scoop Away. After the perfumy powder settled and I stopped coughing and swearing, we were good to go. Also in interest of reviewing, I set the box up in the foyer leading into the living room. We could not only watch TV, we could watch cats use their toilet. Wheee!The noise and movement absolutely terrified Elliott -- he used it once, then returned to the 'normal' boxes in other rooms. Every time the box starts cleaning, depending on where he is, Elliott either climbs my husband's back, eliciting screams of pain that cover up the noise, or runs into the kitchen and cowers on top of the refrigerator. Elliott, seven, is a bit high strung. He gives the box negative-1 star.Ricky, on the other hand, thinks the new box is great in every way. He's 11 years old and has always considered the Dust Buster to be the height of feline entertainment. Until now. With this box, he can not only use it, he can then sit and wait for it, head cocked like the old RCA Victrola dog, until it begins to growl and move. Then, watch out - Ricky's on the attack, completely wired, slapping and jumping and pyloerecting his tail like a kitten. Ricky would give the box 6 stars if he could type.Youthful Japanese bobtail Billy, also loves the box. But his play methods involve flinging sand out of the box behind the tines as they move forward. He likes pine litter, but will occasionally use this box, too -- He never uses the regular Tidy Cat box, so I think he uses this one to set it off. So, he gives it 5 stars. He nicknamed the Mega Ultra Elite yada yada the "Poop and Play." Bobtails are wicked-smart.And then there's Henry. He's three and the cat Edgar Allen Poe warned you about. He thinks the box is pretty good -- he uses it, but he's a powerful beastie and still buries his leavings, sometimes with extreme prejudice -- that means he tosses sand all over the floor about half the time. He's doing it far more than usual though -- I think it's because the box is cleaner. Henry may have his faults, but he doesn't play with dirty sand. I think he gives it 4 stars.Me? When the box starts cleaning, the TV volume is turned up. It's annoying, but then, it's no big deal. The box is also wonderful because things are whisked away, never to be smelled again. I mean, I've got this thing in sight of the living area and it's not causing us a problem except for the cats who like to throw sand, but the Dust Buster takes care of that and makes Ricky twice as happy.Drawbacks - the cost of the refill bags. Will I keep using it? I'm going to move it out of the living area, back with a couple of other boxes, and we'll see how it goes. If they start using it more and more and I have less box-work to do, the cost may be worth it. Or not. I'm sticking with three stars for now since I'm not at all sure it can stand up to all the work it has to do - but if it does, I'll gleefully up the rating.