Product Description

For multiple cat homes the "mega" size of the LME9000 is the perfect solution. The unit comes with 4 waste receptacles and 4 carbon filters and an ionic air cleaner to eliminate odor. The paw cleaning ramp reduced the amount of litter tracked outside the box. Light sleepers will appreciate the sleep timer that can be set to prevent the unit from activating during the night.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #5215 in Pet Products
• Color: Blue
• Brand: LitterMaid
• Model: LME9000
• Released on: 2006-05-01
• Dimensions: 28.00" h x 8.50" w x 20.00" l, 9.00 pounds

Features

• Self-cleaning litter box for extra-large cats or multiple-cat households
• Infrared sensor detects and rakes waste away 10 minutes after cat leaves
• Timer automatically resets upon re-entry; paw-cleaning ramp; "on/off" switch
• 4 carbon filters, 4 waste receptacles, and ionic air cleaner for reduced odor
• Measures 28 by 20 by 8-1/2 inches

Amazon.com Product Description
Designed for extra-large cats or multiple-cat households, this litter box actually cleans itself, depositing waste into the disposable container, which seals away the waste and odors. When the container is full, just throw it away and replace with a fresh one (replacements sold separately). The litter box's infrared sensor detects waste deposits and rakes them away 10 minutes after the cat leaves the litter box. If the cat re-enters and leaves the litter box before the initial 10 minutes have elapsed, the timer will automatically reset and delay the beginning of the cleaning cycle for an additional 10 minutes. The unit's safety bar automatically stops the cleaning rake at the slightest touch, and its paw-cleaning ramp traps litter when the cat exits the box. The steel rake can be removed and the litter tray detaches for easy cleaning. Other highlights include an "on/off" switch and indicator light, a sleep timer for nighttime use, and a sensor-activated ionic air cleaner to minimize odors between cycles. Accessories include four easy-to-install carbon filters and four disposable, sealable, waste receptacles for a virtually odor-free environment. The unit's quiet motor uses a low-voltage AC adapter (included) or batteries (8 standard "AA" batteries, which are not included). The litter box measures 28 by 20 by 8-1/2 inches.

Customer Reviews

Littermaid elite's little secret - UPDATED!!
I bought this item after having two previous littermaids that lasted me three years and three months respectfully. Unfortunately, this machine is the best of a bad lot, and the "new" elite IS made a lot flimsier than the prior ones, at least insofar as the top and bottom shell are concerned.

BUT, I was having the same problems as some of the other reviewers, and really disgusted with the elite when I reread the little manual that comes with it again. I noted that the manual said to fill the pan to the fill line of the hand scooper provided. When I looked at the hand scooper, I saw that the line on it was higher than I thought. I filled the pan to the line - a good 1-2 inches, and it has worked fine ever since.

The secret that they don't tell you is that, unlike the prior machine where you always had to worry about overfilling the pan, with the elite you have to not underfill it. I realized that the long thin tines of the automatic scooper are made to go throught a thick layer of litter. If you don't fill it to the fill line indicated on the hand scooper, the rake will glide over the solid waste and not deposit it in the pan. Try it. It worked for me, at least up till this point.

UPDATE: Well that point didn't last long. I spend as much time scooping as when I didn't have an "automatic" litter box. What a piece of #@&^%. I have now ordered one of the older models from Amazon. They were bad, but not as bad as this. A good auto litter box is an invention that needs an inventor. In the meantime, stay away from this one.

Further update: The older LM900 model is still a far better machine to the point where I bought another from Amazon for $69 to keep in reserve in case I can't find them in the future.
PS. I threw the "new advanced" hunk of junk out in the trash.

Not worth the money
I would've rated this at zero stars if I could. After having it for about one month, I have come to the conclusion that this is one of the WORST products I have ever purchased.

Prior to purchasing the Elite Mega, I owned an LM500 Basic model. While it didn't work as well as I liked, it was 100% better than the Elite Mega.

The Elite Mega is poorly and cheaply constructed. The rake doesn't lift the lid of the receptacle high enough for the waste to go in. The rake doesn't go all the way back and lift out of the litter allowing the cat to urinate into the litter behind the rake which keeps the waste from being raked out. The attachment points for the receptacles are extremely hard to work, don't fit well and are often knocked loose by the rake.

For $150, I expect a lot more from this product. The LitterMaid Elite is not nearly as good as the old model.

A $&!% Box !
This automated monstrosity is just about as valuable as the stuff it's supposed to scoop away. After a severe back problem flared up I purchased one to avoid potential injury from more years of bending and scooping.

In short order I found myself bending and scooping. This LitterMaid advertises itself as effective for multi-cat households, but after using it for several months I've decided that that claim is true only if the other cats are constipated or suffering UTIs.

The LitterMaid is a great concept but has several problems:

(1) It works when it wants to work: Although the supposedly clever sensor system is supposed to activate the mechanism ten minutes after your cat has departed, it often doesn't. Sometimes it works spontaneously, whether the cat's stopped by or not. Cleaning the electric eye makes no appreciable difference to whether it works. Ditto the ionizer, which should be called an "ironyizer". The irony is that it seems to have no effect at all on the surrounding miasma of eau de chat.

(2) It sounds like an earth-moving machine: Which is, I suppose, what it is, but given the fact that it moves clumps of litter and stuff a grand distance of about twenty inches, it shouldn't have to sound like a backhoe busting up concrete. Which leads us to

(3) The motor isn't strong enough: The instructions say to use "premium clumping litter" but the rake, with its long, thin tines, frequently has trouble pushing the often mudlike clumped litter toward the receptacle. There's a very slight upgrade that needs to be climbed as the rake reaches the receptacle. The motor is frequently not up to it. If the thing has to sound like a bulldozer, it should work like one, too.

(4) The "Reset" feature frequently doesn't (Part One): The instructions say that if the scooper can't push it's rakings along, it will stop, return to point A, and retry the task five times before shutting off to spare the motor excess strain. Unfortunately, the scooper often gets stuck mid-scoop and grinds away fruitlessly trying to push the stuff along. It's a sign of mechanical dedication for sure, but it reduces the motor's lifespan by large fractions each time. If it does by chance reset, there's an even chance it will retry the task ten or fifteen times. The only solution at that point is to turn it off before the motor shorts out, potentially cooking your cat and burning your house down in the process.

(5) The "Reset" feature frequently doesn't (Part Two): Woe betide the machine when there's anything---a clump, a bump, or an overly large air molecule---trapped behind the scooper as it goes to its home base. If it can't get all the way back to Point A, the thing sets up a rapid, loud, clack-clack-clack-ing that sounds like a Lewis Submachine Gun and makes it necessary for the cat owner to run to his own litterbox as a result of a fright-flight reaction to the noise. Especially at three AM.

(6) It hates litter: Use too little, the LitterMaid goes on strike. Use too much, the LitterMaid goes on strike. Use just enough, and the LitterMaid might work properly half the time. The LitterMaid seems to work best when the pan has no litter in it, which pretty much defeats the purpose it was designed for. Now if the LitterMaid only came with her own mop . . .

(7) The litter receptacles are expensive: The gifts the cat leaves are supposed to be pushed into a bin at the back of the machine. The bins are made of thin, bendable plastic. A carton of six bins will have you saying farewell to your friend Andy. Fortunately, they can be reused several times (as long as your cat doesn't have a tummyache). Unfortunately, the bins and the machine don't always make a snug fit, so particles of dirty litter can drop between the two not-quite adjoining edges, leaving you to clean up the mess under the machine.

(8) It makes YOU the biggest LitterMaid of all: Cleaning the thing is a pain in the arse. Between the unplugging, the litter dumping, the disassembly, the cleaning, the reassembly, and the litter filling, you'll spend more time with the LitterMaid than your cat will.

Like I said at the outset, the mechanical litterbox is a great concept, and it should/would work if the design team at LitterMaid spent more time raking in the poolah, and less time raking in the moolah. Nobody should have to babysit a litterbox, especially one designed to be left alone, and especially at this price. A plain old plastic litter pan, kept clean, is still your best bet.