How to use a cracked FP litter box...

So I broke down and ordered one, but it came cracked (looks like it was stepped on with a diagonal crack and a "chunk" missing out of the corner of the grid).
Needless to say, I contacted customer service via email of the online retailer I ordered it from. After sending two emails and finally getting a reply a week after the first email they've credited my card. I have ordered a replacement from a different company.

That said, I didn't want to toss the cracked box (some call me cheap, but I like to say I'm frugal)... I thought I'd post what I came up with (to use it) for those that might run into this, or those that have stopped using their FP box and don't want to toss it.

At first, I thought that I'd toss the grided layer part and use the bottom "tub" as a water soaking tray for printmaking paper (I make prints from time to time and soaking tubes are pricey).

I also thought about using the bottom tub as a storage container.

Finally, I was struck with an obvious use (maybe the fever from my current cold is actually helping me think better).... While I'm waiting on my new (hopefully uncracked) FP litter box to arrive, I can use the cracked one as a giant sifting tray instead of hand-sifting their current covered box using a scoop. I couldn't believe that I hadn't thought of this sooner I just spent 5 minutes hand-sifting their covered box (removing the pellets from the sawdust) yesterday.

although the cracked grid will no longer support the weight of a cat, with a little duct tape to cover the "hole" in the corner, it worked like a charm to sift the pellets from the dust. All I had to do was dump the entire contents of the covered box into the FP box, shake a few times and dump the pellets back into the original box. All of this in under 1 minute

I suppose you could also use an uncracked FP box in the same way for sifting regular clumping litter, if you were so-inclined. Or you could use it to sift dirt from plant bulbs, etc.

Art

I've created a similar design for a litter box... actually three boxes, with slots in their bottoms, which lock together so the slots are covered while the box is in use. (The slots are in different places on the boxes... when they nest, the slots are covered.) To change the litter, you unlock the top box, sift and dump, and relock it onto the bottom of the stack. It really only works with clumping litter, and would probably get messed up if you had a cat that liked to pee directly on the bottom of the box, after having moved the litter out of the way. It'll probably never be produced, but it's an idea...