Litter Boxes 101: Best Procedure For Fully Emptying The Box?

[graphitepaddle]

Have a Nature's Miracle triangular-shaped box, and fully dumping it was a pain because of the weight of the litter:

1. Line a 5 gallon pail w. a large plastic bag.
2. Pick up the litter box & dump the full contents into the plastic bag.
3. Tie up plastic bag & cap the pail.
4. Wipe down the litter box w. a litter box wipe (yes, there are such things). And this wasn't necessary, because I could smell any odor from the empty litter box.
5. Wipe down the litter box again w. wet paper towel, followed by a dry one, to remove any perfumy smell from the litter box wipe.
6. Refill the litter box w. 3" of litter.
7. Strap the pail onto a stair-climbing cart.
8. Lower the cart the down the stairs to the main level of the house.
9. Carry to pail into the garage where the garbage can is & carefully slide out bag into the garbage can.

Concerns about the above process:

• Did this after 2 1/2 weeks of getting 2 kittens --> Think I could have waited at least a week or 2 longer.
• 5 gallons of litter is heavy, but within reason to carry for an adult male. Seems heavy for a sizeable portion of cat-owning population. Suspect I'm being an idiot about this!
• Murphy's Law say that if I tried to carry the entire litter box down the stairs, I would spill it at some point. Carrying an open litter box up or down stairs, seems like trouble in the making.

Anyone have a better procedure for cleaning an upstairs litter box?

 

[IndyJones]

I usually use liners with drawstring so to clean I just pull the strings and tie it up just toss into household trash.
Then take box outside and spray with the power washer setting on the hose

 

[tabbytom]

I fill up the litter into several plastic bags, tied up and put each bag into the several boxes that came with my boy's canned food, those 24 can 3oz box. Then throw them into the dumpster.

Soaked the box for half a day in soapy water and scrap off any hard remains. After that rinse and dry. I have two boxes and I rotate them between wash.

 

[graphitepaddle]

I usually use liners with drawstring so to clean I just pull the strings and tie it up just toss into household trash.
Then take box outside and spray with the power washer setting on the hose

Thanks IndyJones: Do you have a feel for the amount of litter that you are throwing away during a full cleaning? Either in lbs or gallons.

 

[graphitepaddle]

I fill up the litter into several plastic bags, tied up and put each bag into the several boxes that came with my boy's canned food, those 24 can 3oz box. Then throw them into the dumpster.

Soaked the box for half a day in soapy water and scrap off any hard remains. After that rinse and dry. I have two boxes and I rotate them between wash.

So tabbytom, instead dumping the litter box into a single plastic bag, you are splitting it into multiple bags? How many lbs / gallons per bag?

Using the canned boxes is smart, because they are strong enough to hold the weight. But they are also open, so if you trip on the stairs, mess time.

 

[IndyJones]

Fairly light but I use tidy cats light weight with glade. If you use a heavier litter it will feel different. For me it's about the weight of a black garbage bag (household waste). For two bags of litter it's heavy but manageable.

 

[IndyJones]

We have a history of bad backs so the lightweight is better for that.

 

[graphitepaddle]

Thank again IndyJones. Using Dr. Elsey's, and wondering if during the course adding new after each semi-daily scooping, went way over 3" depth.

 

[tabbytom]

So tabbytom, instead dumping the litter box into a single plastic bag, you are splitting it into multiple bags? How many lbs / gallons per bag?

Using the canned boxes is smart, because they are strong enough to hold the weight. But they are also open, so if you trip on the stairs, mess time.

Total weight per box is roughly around 4.5lbs. I make sure I don't over fill the bags and I cross cross the covers of the box so that they fold down flat and tight.

It all depends on how much litter you are fiscarding from the whole box.

 

[graphitepaddle]

4 1/2 lbs? That's nothing. Picking up the litter box, to empty it, strained but didn't kill my back. I have to be doing something wrong.

 

[tabbytom]

4 1/2 lbs? That's nothing. Picking up the litter box, to empty it, strained but didn't kill my back. I have to be doing something wrong.

Sorry, I did not make meself clear. Each box is roughly 4.5lbs. I discard 5 - 6 boxes I have a very large litter box for me boy. I fill up to about 4ins of litter.
So picking up and throwing box by box is ok. I criss cross (not cross cross), (interlock) the box flaps. It's quite secured as long as it's not over packed.

To lift up the whole litter box is nuts

 

[Willowy]

I use 20 pounds of regular weight clay clumping litter per box. I feel like that's manageable. I only dump one box per garbage bag. If I try to dump 2 boxes in one bag, 40 pounds usually results in a sore back the next day if I try it, plus sometimes the bag rips. I have fairly large boxes and 20 pounds fills them to about 3 or 4 inches. So if your box is holding more than that, it must be really big!

With clumping clay litter, you can usually go 1-3 months in between full changes. It depends on the cats (how much they dig around and break up the clumps) and how well and how often you scoop. Just give it a good whiff after you scoop---if it's not-so-fresh after scooping, it's time for a change. (That's assuming 1 box per cat, plus 1 extra, as recommended. If you have fewer boxes they'll need to be changed more often.)

 

[graphitepaddle]

Sorry, I did not make meself clear. Each box is roughly 4.5lbs. I discard 5 - 6 boxes I have a very large litter box for me boy. I fill up to about 4ins of litter.
So picking up and throwing box by box is ok. I criss cross (not cross cross), (interlock) the box flaps. It's quite secured as long as it's not over packed.

To lift up the whole litter box is nuts

Thanks TabbyTom,

27 lbs makes much more sense.

 

[graphitepaddle]

Thank you Willowy,

Thought that was using 3 inches, but doing the math (5 gallon of used litter / surface area of the litter box = depth of litter), I had 4 inches.

What brand of plastic bag are you using? What size?

 

[IndyJones]

I just use the van ness litter liners and a glad garbage badge.

 

[graphitepaddle]

The Glad ForceFlex bags?

 

[maggiedemi]

graphitepaddle- I use the jumbo litter boxes and they hold about 25 pounds each if I keep it at 3 inches. I just dump it in a garbage bag. Do you have 40 pounds of litter in just one box? That would be heavy to lift.

 

[artiemom]

I use Dr Elsey's Precious Cat litter. I keep it at a good depth for my guy. The 'junk' does not stick to the litter box if it is at least 3 inches deep.

Depending on how strong I feel (bad shoulder, back), I dump the used litter into either 2 or 3 Hefty Tall kitchen bags. I squeeze all the air out of the bag, tie it at the top and then a knot near the litter. It keeps it more compact and easier to pick up.

I live in an apartment building and have to use a dumpster for trash.
I put an old Chewy box in the bottom of my granny cart. It keeps the bag from falling between the wires, thus tearing.

Separating the litter into 2 or 3 bags makes it much more manageable for me to lift up to throw in the dumpster.

I also try to let the litter, in the litter box, go down to a lower depth before I do a complete clean out.

I use about an 18 lb box of litter when replacing.

 

[Freedom]

I use clumping litter, not clay. So I fill the litter box; as time goes by, usage and scooping daily, the box gets low and needs more litter added. I scoop, then dump the small amount into another litter box; clean the now empty box, and refill. My vet said she will dump the small amount into a pail, clean the box, refill, then add the pail back on top so the cats have 'their' smell. So that's another option.

I agree, you do NOT want to carry a litter box on stairs, it will spill at some point. So you need to get it into a better container.

As for cleaning the empty box, I MUCH prefer doing this in Spring / Summer / Autumn as I can take it outdoors and use the hose. In Winter I have to use the sink or tub, which means I really do have to get it scraped out well; I do not need my drains plugged up! I use bleach as part of the cleaning process. And I know some folks will spray the clean dry box with PAM or other non stick cooking spray prior to putting in the new, clean litter.

 

[IndyJones]

I'm iffy about spraying anything in the box Kabby is picky about the box and will hold it until he wets himself if it's not just right. He never sprays outside the box though.