Tidy Cats Purina Non Clumping Litter System Breeze XL All-in-One Odor Control & Easy Clean Multi Cat Box

I've been using this system for 3 years now. There are some flaws which I'll mention but I've been through so many different setups over the years and haven't found anything I like more. With that said, just looking at the negative reviews it's clear that part of why I love my setup is due to other things I've done as well so I'll outline that in case it helps anyone else.I've placed this inside an IKEA drawer unit on wheels (I think it's the SMÅSTAD unit) for easy cleaning. I cut out a portion of the back for the cats to enter. I use a puppy pad underneath the front side and I have a Litter Genie off to the side.To clean, I simply scoop the poop into the litter pale and rotate the litter pad tray. I set it up on top of the drawer unit so I can pull the tray out on bottom and rotate it or replace it. It's very easy to dump everything into the garbage and start fresh when needed.The drawer helps to contain any smell and the pellets. It's easy to sweep anything that doesn't stay on the puppy pad. The main reason for the puppy pad underneath is because there have been a few times a cat has peed, pooped, or puked over the edge (mainly our two elderly cats that have now passed). It just really simplifies cleanup.You will know you have waited too long to replace the litter pellets if it really starts to smell bad when you pull out the drawer to clean. I exclusively use the multi-cat litter pads because they hold so much more than the regular ones. I tried some different ones on Amazon and they all suck. I found that only the official ones actually contain the smell or absorb as much. I also buy the 7 lb bags of pellets because it's more cost effective and allows me to add a little extra or top off as needed.So far my biggest complaint is that you have to make sure you place the litter pad perfectly centered with the edges on all four sides sticking up against the side walls of the tray. If you don't, you will end up with pee underneath the litter pad. I really wish it had a locking mechanism to clamp onto the sides. But I've gotten pretty good at it and have only had that particular problem probably 4 times. Somehow it's also been possible for pee to end up in the little dips next to the handles a couple of times.Another small issue is that if the cats pee too much in one area of the multi-cat litter pad it will swell up big enough to press against the bottom of the grated area, soaking anything above it which can make things nasty. A tiny bit more height or less absorbent litter pads would avoid that.My final complaint is that over time some powder from the pellets along with specks of feces do build up in the grate on bottom. When I go to dump the pellets into the garbage can and put new ones in, a bunch of it falls to the floor which can be a bit gross. I've tried taking the whole bottom in along with the tray but then the litter pad slides forward, bunches up, and jams the tray. Then it's a mess on a whole other level. Thinking about this again, I might try just holding a small trash liner or a piece of cardboard underneath next time and see if that solves it.In the end, this works better than anything else I've tried to contain mess from litter, contain the smell, and simplify cleaning. Every time I've done the math this ends up cheaper than anything else I've tried so that's just the icing on top.

Short answer: This is the BEST litter system you can have in your home for ALL of the issues you face with litter boxes: Cost/Urine Smell/Tracking.I will start out by saying that we have 7 cats in the apartment. I personally have 5 and my roommate has 2. I first bought this system on August 13, 2015 and I'm just reviewing now as I like to wait and see how products work for me after a while before I review.I started with one system to see how it would be and kept my traditional litter box for about 4 days. My 3 kittens got big enough where it was clear that I needed another litter box but I was so, so, so, SO over the litter being tracked everywhere with the 2 adult cats and the kittens constantly in and out of it. It felt like all I was doing is sweeping up tracked litter. So, I decided to try this system to see if it helped with that issue. The reviews were excellent, so I went for it. I figured that it may be a little gross but I would return it if it didn't work for me and my cat family-luckily returning it was NEVER an issue because I love this system.The cats were very interested and at first would only poop in the Breeze, I think because they didn't understand how to cover their pee. But the thing is that they don't have to cover their pee with the Breeze, it just goes down the grate into the pad. I was so impressed with the fact that there was NO smell and tracking is just the pellets-easy to pick up and toss back in because no matter what, cats will kick some out. I bought a tiny little dust pan at the 99 cent store to quickly pick up several at a time (and not touch them and have to wash my hands frequently) and pellets on the floor vs little granules is a HUGE improvement. Much more easy to contain and your home doesn't feel like one big litter box with litter all over the place.After about 4 days I removed the old box and ordered by second Breeze. When my new roommate moved in we got a 3rd Breeze and it's a good amount of boxes for the 7 cats. If we did the recommended amount of Breeze boxes for 7 cats we would have about 15+ boxes and that's just NOT necessary. Of course, I work from home and can scoop out the poop consistently (I'l get to the poop situation a little later in my review).If you have lots of cats and are away from home for long periods then you should get extra boxes-I think that the amount that they suggest is overkill but it IS a good idea to add more pellets than what they system comes with. I suggest you buy the system, see what I mean and order extra pellets sooner than later, I should have done that prior to when I really needed more, because the cats seemed happier with extra pellets and they were able to cover poop better.I've tried many brands of litter and my old litter box was the kind with the hood and the swinging door but that didn't stop the tracking issue.The bottom line is that the same things happen with any litter: you get tracking, and one of your hobbies is trying to contain it, because stepping in it SUCKS, having it all over your house SUCKS. Another problem: you may have a few days of a stink free litter box, but no matter how tight clumping litter can be, or how good it is at odor control-you'll get bits that fall off and after a few days you have a pee smell that will only go away when you clean the whole box out, and a few days later you'll have the same problem. But you know this.With The Breeze System you don't have these problems.First off, the pad that goes underneath holds A LOT of urine and it contains the urine smell almost TOO WELL. If you want a litter box that makes you forget what it's like to have a smelly pee box-this is the only solution. It will ONLY smell once it is beyond full, so try to remember to check the pad every couple of days. It's not the end of the world if it gets over full. Just put on gloves and drain into your toilet or a bathtub. It's not the funnest thing in the world but it's not THAT bad either. I think I push it by forgetting until I start to smell it, but I can't seem to get to it before it's beyond full! And I'm a bit ashamed to say that with all of these cats I'll change the pads probably every 2 weeks! But I have never had an over flow problem...I haven't pushed it THAT far. However, I do have an out-of-sight/out-of-mind issue with changing the pad, and that's just because it doesn't smell. So, having extra pee to deal with draining if you forget to change it and not smelling pee is FAR better than CONSTANTLY smelling pee (like you do now). =/As far as the pellets go, they are like rocks. They will not disintegrate and probably last forever. The only reason you'll need more is because the pellets stick to the poop. What I do is scoop up the poop and shake it in the scooper so the loose pellets fall off so they aren't wasted.One reviewer said that she washed the pellets after a few weeks. I have done this three times since I have had this system. What I do is dump the pellets into a the plain litter box that I used for when the kittens got to the "litter box" stage of their lives. Then I soak them in hot water in the tub for about 20 minutes, then I add Natures Miracle and let it soak some more. Then I rinse, dump them back into the Breeze box and leave outside in the sun so it can drain and dry. The pellets are like new, and smell like Natures Miracle. I'm sure you can do this same thing with any other cleaner, or none at all. The point is to get the old poop that is stuck to the pellets is removed and you have good-as-new pellets and saved money.DA POOP!Now, the issue with poop is that the cats will cover it but because it's not like traditional litter, it cannot be completely covered up due to the nature of the pellets, so if your cat dumps an extra nasty, smelly pile-you will smell it, the smell WILL travel. But that can also happen with traditional litter. Like I said before, extra pellets in the box is the way to go, and helps in this regard. A good thing is that you (and your cats) will have a cleaner litter box because you will be getting rid of the poop much more frequently than you are now.If you're interested in any "cons" here they are:-The pellets are loud when the cats are kicking it around. If you're a light sleeper and the box is close to your bedroom (or in it) and you have an energetic cat who likes to really go to town on kicking or covering-it will probably wake you up. BUT I will also say that I am a light sleeper and at first it did startle me when they were in the bathroom, but I pretty much got used to the new noise.-The pellets do come out of the litter box when the cats jump out. I have a couple of cats who act like their pee or poop will jump up and attack them so they jump out so they won't be killed. When my more tempered cats use the boxes; hardly any come out. To help with flying pellets I turned my box around, so the big opening faces the tub and left a couple of inches for them to walk on that side, if they choose to instead of climbing over the high part, but they can step in easily that way too. Turning the litter box will drastically reduce how many pellets fly out of the box. I would also recommend that you put something under the box (I use a throw rug from IKEA) and leave some room between the box and the wall/tub. I have my 2 boxes on one and that plus turning the boxes around really help with the amount of pellets that get on the floor. I do wish they would come up with a hood you could buy, THAT would make this system pretty much perfect.-Kittens just LOVE to play with the rolling pellets-especially if they get in the tub. Keep your tub's drain covered so they don't fall in. Do not encourage them to play with them, and pick them up from your tub/floor quickly.-It's a fact that at first your cats will wonder what the hell is going on with their litter, maybe they'll look at you and think, "Is this that Newspaper crap???" NOPE kitty, not even close.They like to dig, they like to cover (the nice ones do anyway) and the pellets are very different from what they are used to. They won't like it so much at first, they will act weird when stepping in them, but they are round and won't hurt their feet. Trust me, they will get used to it. My adult cats were much less excited about the new litter, but within a few days they were on board. And I'm pretty sure that they are happier with this. How could they not be? Their litter doesn't stink, they aren't standing in old pee (and not walking all over your floors, counters, beds with urine on their feet and dirty kitty paw prints will never be seen again!!!) and their poop gets picked up because it's not buried under litter...And even if the little brats don't like it, I DO. I LOVE IT! I will NEVER EVER, EVER go back to a traditional litter box...And since THEY don't work or PAY or CLEAN up after themselves, I GET THE FINAL VOTE!-Trying to purchase the pellets or pads in a store is impossible, and I have NO idea why...However, I'm sure even if stores did sell them that they would be way more expensive than purchasing on Amazon anyway! So WHO CARES about this little issue??? Buy the 6 pack of pellets, buy the 2 or 4 pack of pads here on Amazon and you're good for many months. The first time I bought more it was the 6 pack of pellets and 4 pack of pads (16 pads) and it was $65 for 3 months for 7 cats and I still have a couple of pads left. Try and beat that with all of the other positives I've listed. You just won't be able to.I'm just now purchasing my 2nd round of 6 pack pellets and this time I'm buying the 2 pack of pad (8 total pads) for $15 instead of 16 as they last a long time, but buying the 6 pack of pellets is the most economical way to go as single packs are about $10 each.Enjoy your new Breeze System...Oh, and one last and final tip...Each system comes with a $7 coupon for another system. If you're planning on getting more than one, wait for the first one and buy your additional ones with your coupon. Amazon is the best company and have gone BEYOND in many ways to make my life easier...I called Amazon to apply the credit because when ordering as there isn't a way to add this type of coupon on your own.