A popular topic question among our readers is “how to deep clean litter robot?”
Today, I’ll make sure this question never pops up inside your head again.
I’ll walk you through the entire process to answer all your questions.
You’ll soon know everything needed to maintain and clean a litter robot.
HOW TO DEEP CLEAN the LITTER-ROBOT?
So deep cleaning a litter robot, such as the Litter-Robot 3 Core, is more involved than people assume. There are many moving parts when ensuring this automatic litter box becomes clean.
After all, the Litter-Robot is a self-cleaning litter box “that uses a rotating globe to sift and separate
clumps from the clean cat litter.” [1] It’s a complex machine.
But there’s no need to worry. I’ve got you covered with this 8-step guide that’ll keep everything straightforward and effortless.
STEP 1: LOCATE AND PRESS THE LITTER ROBOT’S EMPTY BUTTON
Your first step will be locating and pressing the “empty” button on the litter robot. Once pressed, it’ll cause all the litter to be released from the globe into this device’s waste bin.
It’ll also allow users to remove the globe from the device’s base for better cleaning. This placement helps keep things a lot more organized for future steps.
Here’s a video to learn about how to locate and work each button on your Robot 3 litter box. It’ll do wonders for anyone who finds themselves a little confused by their litter robot.
TRY CHECKING: Litter Robot 4 Review
STEP 2: NEWER MODEL USERS NEED TO REMOVE THE BONNET
The manufacturer upgraded litter robots with a bonnet on their newer models. You’ll notice these components wrapping around the globe.
If you see a bonnet, it needs removal before doing our next steps. Users will have to press the release buttons on both sides of the bonnet, lift, and rotate.
The entire process is depicted within this video. It should help any cat owner who feels a little overwhelmed by the bonnet removing process.
Proceed to remove it from the globe and set it somewhere safe nearby.
STEP 3: DEAL WITH ANY EXCESS LITTER
This automatic litter box might have some excess litter within it. If it does, use something to brush it out/away, or there could be difficulties when doing future cleaning.
After all, every cat owner knows what a nightmare wet litter can be to clean. It’ll end up turning into a messy clay clump that’s a nuisance to remove.
STEP 4. WASH THE LITTER ROBOT’S GLOBE
One massive benefit to the litter robot’s globe is its lack of electrical components. Therefore, it becomes easier to clean as you can get the globe wet.
I’d recommend using mild soap and a wet rag to clean the globe effectively. Submerging the globe into soapy water can also work if you think it’s necessary.
But please don’t submerge the base in water. The base piece of this automatic litter box features electronic components, which don’t mix with water at all.
It’ll only lead to them becoming destroyed or ineffective.
READ MORE: What to Do With Used Litter Robot?
STEP 5: LET THE GLOBE DRY
Given its electronic parts, don’t return the globe to the base too quickly. You’ll want the globe completely dry to avoid putting the base in water.
So make sure to wipe the globe down with a dry paper towel to remove any excess moisture. From there, let it air dry a bit before returning to the base.
STEP 6: EMPTY AND WIPE DOWN THE WASTE DRAWER
Each litter robot will have a waste drawer within its design. It’ll be located on the base’s bottom position as the noticeable large drawer.
You’ll want to open the drawer and remove its trash bag. From there, it’s a simple matter of throwing it away. The entire process is detailed fully within this well-crafted YouTube video.
Next, you’ll need to wipe down the waste drawer. But make sure to separate it from the base component of this automatic litter box entirely.
After separating it, wipe the drawer down with water and soap. Then, dry it off with a separate clean rag or towel.
STEP 7: PLACE A NEW TRASH BAG INTO THE WASTE DRAWER
Since the waste drawer’s now clean, it’s okay to reinstall a trash bag into it. Open your chosen brand of 10-gallon trash bag and wrap it around the waste drawer’s sides.
You’ll notice four or five rubber pieces on the waste drawer, which are liftable. Slide your trash bag underneath them to secure it into the litter robot’s waste drawer.
If there’s any issues, please check this excellent video that’ll walk you through the process.
I should also note that it doesn’t have to be a 10-gallon bag. Litter robots were designed for them, but 8-gallon or 13-gallon options will fit.
STEP 8: CLEAN THE BASE’S EXTERIOR
Your last step is cleaning the base’s exterior with a wet rag. Make sure to use this rag and soap to clean it without any missed portions thoroughly.
But remember, don’t clean the interior of this base portion. It’ll only mess up the internal electronic components, which isn’t what anyone wants.
The litter robot should now be more than clean enough for your cat’s bathroom visits. We’ll dive into how often this process needs doing in our next section.
Read on for more self cleaning litter box hacks.
HOW OFTEN SHOULD YOU WASH THE LITTER-ROBOT?
I recommend doing a deep cleaning of a litter robot every 30 days. Honestly, doing our 8-step process each month could do wonders in creating a much better bathroom area for your cat.
Furthermore, washing the unit will help prevent long-term exposure of the globe’s bottom rubber liner to urine residue. If left unchecked, it could lead the liner to deteriorate over time.
You also don’t want the pungent odor of cat urine to adhere itself to the rubber. If you let months go by without proper cleaning, this odor will never disappear.
It’ll end up making your life miserable as cat urine odor will waft through the home. This experience isn’t what anyone envisions when buying a litter robot.
Another thing to consider is the sealed waste drawer that holds the urine clumps. Unfortunately, this drawer holding in cat waste for weeks, so the plastic comes into contact with the urine clumps.
Due to this, cleaning the waste drawer and disinfecting it becomes necessary. So please, do it every month to avoid any issues or nastiness.
HOW DO I GET RID OF LITTER-ROBOT SMELL?
Keeping your litter robot from becoming stinky is about a lot more than cleaning it. You’ll also need to stay on top of a couple of things to avoid it becoming an issue.
But if you keep with these three activities, I don’t see why that horrid litter box smell would present itself. So let’s take a look at them to ensure it never does:
RELATED: Why Does My Litter Robot Smell So Bad?
EMPTYING THE WASTE DRAWER WHEN NECESSARY
The litter robot’s waste drawer is combined with infrared sensors and emitters. Both these components work together to detect the drawer’s waste level.
Once it detects the drawer needs emptying, a blue light on its control panel will flash. You should expect this flashing light to appear at least once per week (for a single cat).
Changing the drawer’s trash bag isn’t difficult, either. As I mentioned earlier, it’s a matter of pulling out the drawer, unhooking the bag edges, and disposing of the waste and dirty litter.
You then install a new trash bag by rolling the edges a couple of times and pushing them into the tabs. Honestly, anyone can do it with minimal effort.
As a result, don’t let a full waste drawer linger. It’ll only make the entire room more smelly as the days keep passing by.
Instead, keep a constant eye out for the blue flashing light. It makes everyone’s life inside the house much easier and filled with fewer odors.
ADDING FRESH LITTER WHEN NEEDED
Every time a person empties the waste drawer, make sure to check the globe’s litter levels. If there isn’t enough, fill it up till it meets the “raised “fill line” on the black rubber globe liner.” [2]
But don’t go any further than the Fill Line. Overfilling the globe can lead to a host of issues, such as litter tracking and a harder cleaning process.
Once the globe’s filled to the proper level, don’t forget to press the Reset button. The device will then go back to functioning correctly.
If you’re having any other issues with litter robot, check out this troubleshooting video.
REPLACE THE SEAL STRIPS AND CARBON FILTER
One of the more effective ways to get rid of smells is by trapping them in the waste drawer. In other words, replacing carbon filters and seal strips with new ones.
The frequency of replacement filters will depend on you and the number of cats. But a good rule of thumb is that a replacement will be beneficial whenever the waste drawer starts smelling.
Replacing the carbon filters themselves is usually rather straightforward. But anyone who does find themselves having trouble with it should check out this helpful video.
As for the seal strips, only replace these parts when they’re peeling/worn flat or if you’re convinced excess odor is escaping from the litter robot’s base.
Here’s an excellent video of how to replace the seal strips if anyone needs a little help with it.
HOW MANY CATS CAN USE THE LITTER-ROBOT?
The Litter-Robot was designed to work for “four indoor cats per single litter robot unit.” In some cases, you can even use it for more than four based on the cats’ bathroom needs.
But I’d still recommend keeping the maximum at four per single litter robot unit. After all, the waste drawer has to get emptied more and more for each added cat.
So if I had one cat, I’d probably be fine emptying the drawer once per week. But if a second cat arrives, this frequency would move to twice per week.
It only becomes more frequent as the number of cats increases. Owners will need to account for this issue before deciding how many of these self-cleaning litter boxes are necessary.
FAQS
DOES THE LITTER-ROBOT REQUIRE SPECIAL LITTER?
The litter robot doesn’t require special type of litter. In fact, it can work with any standard clay-clumping litter. But don’t ever use non-clumping, absorbent wood pellet or newspaper-based litters.
DOES THE LITTERROBOT REQUIRE SPECIAL GARBAGE BAGS?
No, the litter robot doesn’t need any special liners or bags for its waste drawer. Your only guideline is that it needs to fit. If it does, you can use it without issue.
WHY IS MY LITTER-ROBOT DUMPING CLEAN LITTER?
Your litter robot is dumping clean litter because there’s too much litter inside the globe. Remember, the Fill Line of the globe’s black rubber liner indicates the correct level.
Conclusion
After reading our article, I hope these discussions answered all your questions about deep cleaning the litter robot. But if you have a few more, don’t hesitate to ask in our comment section.
I’ll make sure to answer each post as soon as possible. You can even let me know whether or not the litter robot has met your expectations. Thanks for reading!
Do you have more tips on how to deep clean the litter robot? Let us know below!
Resources
- 1. Munekata N, Tsujimoto M, Ono T. Robot behavior control system based on user’s attitude using SCL [Internet]. IEEE Xplore. 2015 [cited 2022 Feb 27]. p. 197–201. Available from: https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/7333595/
- 2. Litter-Robot Support Community [Internet]. support-litter-robot.force.com. [cited 2022 Feb 27]. Available from: https://support-litter-robot.force.com/s/article/How-much-litter-do-I-put-in-the-Litter-Robot?language=en_US
Ben is an animal lover, blogger, and all around geek. He divides his love equally between his family, his animals, and his video games. In his spare time he is attempting to get a blog off the ground. Boy, are they heavy!
