How do you wash the litterbox?

meow meow

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I have had my kitten for 1 month now so I thought I'd better change the litter and wash the box. I am using Fresh Step scoopable and I must say, there is very little odor (other then the carbon smell).

Anyhow, is it ok to wash it out with dish soap and water? Is the bleach step really necessary? I always manage to ruin my clothes and towels when using bleach.

Please advise.
 

annasmom

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I use the bleach cleaner stuff (generic Clorox Clean-Up) and it doesn't seem to bleach out clothes as much as regular bleach. I think the bleach is very important to kill any bacteria or viruses that may have gotten deep into the plastic of the box.
 

natalie_ca

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When it comes time to clean the litter pan, I dump the residual old litter into a garbage bag. Scrape the inside bottom of any cat litter that may have stuck. Then I put the pan into the bathtub and fill it with hot water and with about 3/4 of a cup of regular bleach (IE: Javex). Then I use the toilet brush to wash inside and outside, then I dump the water out. And rinse really well with hot water and the hand held shower. I dry it with a cloth and then refill with new litter.

If I am out of bleach, I use Mr. Clean and do all of the above and rinse a bit more.
 

zissou'smom

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This may seem odd to us hyper-clean people... but when I took a stray in to the shelter here, he peed all over the carrier and was pretty obviously ill with something.

The vet said I should clean the carrier with hot water and regular old dishsoap. I was amazed, and asked if that was all needed between two cats who never had contact with each other, one of dubious circumstances, and he said yea, bleach is unnecessary. And this is a vet who runs a shelter.

For a litterbox, that's certainly all you need, there aren't even any strange cats using it. Especially after all the weird reactions to bleach smell I've heard about.
 

purrfectcatlove

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I use Simple Green or regular Dishwash liquit and then let it sun dry out in the sun . The sun naturally desinfect and has no chemicals . I used to use bleach all the time , but since my husband (seperated) fixed a sink in the house and cleant after with bleach , I don't use bleach any more . I had to rush "Myst" 2 days later in the hospital with kiddney failiar and praise God she was saved . The Dr and I only come up with the bleach for a reason why her kiddney failed and recovered so quickly with no damage .
 

natalie_ca

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Originally Posted by Zissou'sMom

The vet said I should clean the carrier with hot water and regular old dishsoap. I was amazed, and asked if that was all needed between two cats who never had contact with each other, one of dubious circumstances, and he said yea, bleach is unnecessary. And this is a vet who runs a shelter.
Dish soap works fine too. But I don't have the patience to rinse off soap and then try and get the suds down the drain. With Bleach there is no sudsing and with Mr. Clean, minimal. Plus I feel better knowing that it's disinfected between litter changes.

I don't clean my toilet with dishsoap because I want my toilet disinfected and the e coli killed off so that I don't get sick. I love my kitties and want their potty to be disinfected too
 

ocicat_steph

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Pet Smart carries a litter pan cleaner spray with all the disinfectant stuff.
 

mirinae

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I use vinegar and baking soda once a week. (As a note, I pretty much use this combination to clean everything.) I can't use bleach because I start feeling light-headed even in an open room with the windows open and a fan on, and most other cleaning products have chemicals in them that I'm allergic to. I let the vinegar and bleach sit in the litterbox for a few minutes before rinsing it out, and it always gets everything clean.
 

cearbhaill

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I just wipe 'em out with the Chlorox disinfectant pop up wipes that come in a can. Once in a while I take them outside and spray them with Chlorox Clean Up and hose them out, but they stay pretty clean most of the time.
 

katiemae1277

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I would think dish soap and hot/warm water would be sufficient, you wash your dishes with dish soap and don't bleach them, right? eeeew I wouldn't even wanna think about bleach on my dishes
I use one of the scrubby pads/sponges when i clean them to give it a good cleaning, I think Scotch makes 'em
 

eagleeye

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Originally Posted by Mirinae

I use vinegar and baking soda once a week. (As a note, I pretty much use this combination to clean everything.) I can't use bleach because I start feeling light-headed even in an open room with the windows open and a fan on, and most other cleaning products have chemicals in them that I'm allergic to. I let the vinegar and bleach sit in the litterbox for a few minutes before rinsing it out, and it always gets everything clean.
Bleach and a lot of commercial cleaners have the same effect on me, so I make my own with vinegar, castille soap, and borax. Vinegar has an antiseptic property, and borax is a good deodorizer/scrubbing agent. Both are quite inexpensive. I use vinegar and baking soda to clean the drains in my sinks.

Do you have a recipe for your litter box cleaner, or just add a bit of each?
 

jenny82

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Originally Posted by Cearbhaill

I just wipe 'em out with the Chlorox disinfectant pop up wipes that come in a can.
I do this too, and once in awhile I will wash it out with dish soap. Are the Chlorox disinfectant wipes safe to use? I never thought before that they might not be.
 

phenomsmom

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I use 409 or bleach spray and take the box out side and rinse it with the hose very well. then I dry it out and set it back up. I haven't had any problems with this method.
 

purrpaws

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I dump out the old litter, then toss the box in the tub. I spray it down thoroughly with Nature's Mircacle. Scrub with a sponge, then rinse. Sponge goes in the dishwasher to disinfect it. I'm too lazy to dry the litterbox, so I usually let it dry overnight in the tub.

Nature's Miracle has alcohol in it, so that will disinfect.
 

momto3cats

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Originally Posted by Mirinae

I use vinegar and baking soda once a week. (As a note, I pretty much use this combination to clean everything.) I can't use bleach because I start feeling light-headed even in an open room with the windows open and a fan on, and most other cleaning products have chemicals in them that I'm allergic to. I let the vinegar and bleach sit in the litterbox for a few minutes before rinsing it out, and it always gets everything clean.
I have the same problem with bleach, and most commercial cleaners. I've always used dish soap and warm water to clean the boxes, but the soap is hard to rinse off. Your method sounds much easier! How much of each do you use?
 

stormysmom

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I really have no idea what DF uses for that. I have puppy patrol and he has the kittie boxes. I'm not even sure if he does clean them out when changing the litter. I will have to ask. I do know for sure that we use extra baking soda mixed with the litter.
 

stephanietx

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My DH can't handle bleach or most other chemical cleansers as it sets off his asthma, so I pretty much use baking soda, vinegar, and borax to clean everything in my house.

After emptying out the old litter (we use World's Best, so it gets sprinkled over the back yard and hosed down to decompose), I put it in the tub and rinse it out. Then I shake some baking soda in it, pour on some vinegar and let it bubble. When it's finished bubbling, I scrub the box and rinse. Then, I lean it against the wall on an old towel to air dry.

OT-I use Borax to clean my toilet, baking soda to clean the bathtub and sink, and a vinegar/water combination to clean the mirror.

Stephanie
 

gardenandcats

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I usually take mine outside once a week. Pour in some bleach and use the hose to fill them up let them soak for awhile then use the hose to spray them really well to get the bleach smell out. I do this even in the winter when theres a foot of snow on the ground!
 
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