Storage Bin litter box questions

Hi everyone. I'm not satisfied with the sizes of even the largest available litter boxes. I'm ready to convert a storage bin. I'm concerned about the plastic on these bins not being smooth enough and also about the bottoms of the bins. The bottoms are usually grooved, which must make it hard to pick up any clumps that are stuck to the bottom.  I know we've been told that if you use enough litter that urine will clump before reaching bottom, and I do use 3 inches, but sometimes my cats are practically digging to the bottom before they do their duty. And wouldn't having stuff stuck in these grooves present health issues? Can anyone recommend a storage box that is close to ideal for litter usage?

One other thing I'm wondering is about dust inhalation on high sided boxes, that may convince me to not go this route. Thanks.

Hmmm I know what you mean about the ridges on the bottom. What about a hard plastic dog bed, I know they're more of a round shape, but they have a flat bottom are made of hard wearing plastic and they have the cut out bits so the animal can get in and out easily. you could still get a few inches of litter in there. With regards to the dust, you could mix a couple of litters to get the balance to be absorbent and less dusty. IMO the non clumping litters are alot less dusty but... I like the clumping because they absorb that poopy smell peew.  There's the option of wood chip litter but I have no experience with his.

Might be a bit pricy, but you could get a rabbit or guinea pig enclosure, and take the cage part off. That's huge and made of nice smooth plastic. I reckon you could even get one second hand bleach it out and use it. They range to about 4 foot long.

I use puppy litterboxes the large one is nice and big.
Petco sells them.

Pazzo said:

 
 The bottoms are usually grooved, which must make it hard to pick up any clumps that are stuck to the bottom. 

Click to expand...

There are storage container with smooth inside bottoms. Have you looked to see what is available at your local stores (WalMart, Target, hardware stores, etc)? The clear Rubbermaid and Sterilite brand of containers have smooth inside bottoms. Some of hte solid colored containers have smooth inside bottoms, too. The Container Store has a few suitable containers (clear and solid colored) with smooth inside bottoms for possible litter box use but they're kind of pricey. If there's a store near you, check out the clearance section (usually hidden away in a back corner somewhere) for bins that are still usuable. I've found bins there that were marked down because of htings like missing lid (didn't need a lid anyways) or slightly dented side (still works to hold stuff).

How about cement tubs? They're inexpensive and have smooth bottoms and sides. They're generally sturdier than storage bins, too.

Thanks for the replies. The cement tub and puppy boxes have low sides, they're not going to work.

It's hard for me to get out to those stores, so I'm looking to order online, unfortunately it's hard to find a seller that sells 'em single. I better get my butt outside and start looking or  I'm going to  have to order a 6-pk. I'd like to try this storage bin from Walmart. It's clear and although there is no bottom view on the web page, chances are that clear plastic is going to have a flat bottom. It's only 10 bucks for one. Worth a shot.

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Sterilite-30-Gallon-Tote-Box/20699652

If anyone is interested I found some great Litter info on this site:

http://www.catinfo.org/?link=litterbox#Cleaning_the_Litter_Box:

Some years ago I did a clear one and then promptly had trouble with my cat peeing out the door!  But the clear ones are usually smoother on the inside than the color ones, and most importantly, they have smoother ends and corners.  That said, the clear plastic is a little different and more brittle.  I had a hard time cutting a door opening and ruined at least one bin with that cut.

Later I made a shelter out of storage bins and I got better at cutting the hole.  If you have a heat gun this will help immensely.  Heat up the plastic a little before you try to cut it.  But in that case I was cutting the solid color plastic.  I haven't cut a clear bin with the heat treatment, but I think it will still help somewhat.

If you're using enough clumping litter in there it really shouldn't ever stick to the bottom anyway.  I see you mentioned that originally but if 3" is not enough I'd go for more and see if it helps.  Although it will mean filling the thing with even more litter, the less it sticks, the less you will ever have to change out the litter and waste it.  (In other words, filling it more might actually lead to using less litter over the long run.)  But the corners are important; many bins tend to be indented funny at the handle ends and such, making for nasty corners that get in the way of scooping well.  

Yes, I did come to realize that a clear plastic is harder and would be more difficult to cut although the smoothness of it is ideal. I still would have given the clear bin a try but as I was going to order online instead of going to a store I seen a lot of people complaining that the bins were arriving damaged. I got tired of over thinking the whole thing and just ordered a Rubbermaid 30 gallon. After a few days I'm very happy, nothing has stuck to the bottom. I put in 4" of litter. The cats aren't digging to the bottom and I believe going to the bathroom has become less stressful for them. Two of them are big guys and even the largest litter boxes I could find still barely gave them enough room to maneuver.

Storage bins are definitely the way to go. Now if I can just get one of them to stop peeing on the side of the box.