Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I have had the Petsafe Simply Clean litter box for over a year. I purchased this product from the vendor vice Amazon. How this is a game changer: -Bottom line up front - I can't see myself with any other litter box. This is a great addition to our household. It does the job, and does it great! -I use plastic grocery bags when I go grocery shopping, and save them for the container that deposits are dropped into. This is cheaper and easier than purchasing proprietary bags or containers sold by many other manufactures of automatic litter boxes. -Because cleaning takes place on a regular basis (four times a day, for one hour - according to my timer presets), the litter contamination by deposits over a period of a month is significantly less than regular litter boxes. I find myself doing complete change-outs of the litter on a 45-60 day basis. I replenish on a weekly basis with just a little bit of litter and some Arm and Hammer Cat Litter Deodorizer with Baking Soda (available in your pet isle). This saves me money and time and makes the cats happy. -I have gone on a 7 day cruise with my wife - which actually involved myself and my wife being away for nearly 10 days if you take into consideration transit time and hotel stays. I had a friend visit once to make sure cat food and water were well stocked for the cats. She didn't once need to check on the litter box - because it did it's job. Upon our return, the bag was full, but still had room for a day or two more. This box gives me the confidence to leave my cats alone for long periods of time with little supervision, cleanup, or maintenance of the litter box. Maintenance, Nuances, and Customizations: -The unit runs continuously. Fix: Purchase an electronic timer that you can purchase from your local Wal-Mart or Lowes. Make sure it's a sturdy unit so that the heave AC power adapter does not stress the timer and render it useless. This happened to me - so I bought a higher quality timer that is doing the job quite well. -The unit operates based on three conditions: There is power, the conveyor cover is on, and the collection tub is in place. On occasion, I noticed that the lid would become dislodged and the unit would not operate. This would aggravate both my cats and I. Fix: I took the tip of a regular Bic pen and removed the thin sliver that is supposed to hang onto your clothes. I then placed said pen cap into the hole that has the switch that is normally pressed down by the conveyor cover. I trimmed it such that it was flush with the surface of the unit, and gorilla glued that bad boy right on in there. Finally, I trimmed the part of the conveyor cover that normally pressed in the switch. Now, the unit operates with the lid on, loose, or completely off. -The unit will sometimes begin to squeak. Fix: I broke down the unit, carefully noting the location of gears, components, and enclosures and applied graphite lubricant liberally to the moving components (be careful this stuff is messy and hard to get off of carpets). The last time I did this was a year ago. The unit continues to run squeak free. -As the unit rotates, and the cats bury their deposits, loose litter falls under the rotating unit. Fix: When I completely clean the litter out on a 45-60 day basis (as said above), I place a garbage bag on the ground, and tilt the unit such that the deposits fall into the bag. -On two occasions, an extremely hard and dry clump of fecal matter got stuck between the conveyor unit and the conveyor frame as the unit was brushing the clump into the collection tub. This resulted in very loud clicks caused by the motor being unable to move conveyor unit. Fix: I unplugged the unit, and forced the clump out. -The box is not deep enough to keep my cats from kicking litter out. Fix: I purchased a few rubber collection pads from Wal-Mart to have to keep from vacuuming often. Alternatively, you may extend the vertical reach of the "shield" that is affixed to the rotating tub with any material such as flexible plastic or a portion of a thick folder (as I did - and it worked). -While large clumps of urine and fecal matter are collected with ease, there will be those smaller chunks that simply pass through the conveyor and go back "into rotation" with the rest of the clean litter. Fix: I clean the small chunks out with the "pooper scooper" when I replace the bag and add litter. -The unit can and will get litter dust and, on a bad day, fecal matter on it. Fix: Clean it. Conclusion: All things taking into consideration, this is a fantastic unit that like all things mechanical and electronic in nature, require maintenance and modifications as you see fit. The customer service is fantastic. I had to have a replacement unit sent because the unit in the original failed. They did this without any questions after I described the symptoms. If you're tired of cleaning your litter box and you set aside a few hours to perform my suggestions and fixes above, I am confident that you won't regret this purchase.