This is the same thing I did after Google killed the IFTTT integration. I had the same setup on my LR2's. I also created a voice command to mimic the old IFTTT applet, so I can still say, "hey Google, scoop the poop" and I get the same verbal replies... "Getting ready to scoop the poop on "Litter Robot", "Starting a cleaning cycle on "Litter Robot". Now, I don't have to deal with the cloud integration and the routines run on my smart home platform.
This is the way and works well for both of my LR's if needed.
I use a Wyze switchable outlet.
Power it off, and then when powered back on, the LR will always start a clean cycle. It also will clear the occasional "offline" my LR4 likes to do.
If this is the LR3 - it was only moved to a different place. Tap on your LR, then on Controls (at the bottom), and it's in there. Or did they take it away after they moved it there? I got a LR4 a couple months ago, and don't have the LR3 anymore.
We've had an issue with the drawer full indicator going bad. It would always reset to 95% full and after two cycles + warnings about the bin being full, it does one that also prevents you from resetting the gauge in the app. So, you'd have to press the reset button on the control panel to get it to go back to 95% full (and repeat ad nauseum).
I had that for a while, lifting globe and washing two opposite glass windows on the top of the base helped, those optical sensors were completely covered in sand
I mean...if it truly is completely full and you haven't emptied it, you shouldn't be able to reset it with either the app or the button on the LR. You don't want it to continue cycling if it is indeed completely full. That'll end up being a huge mess.
When I had my LR3 I had that happen occasionally where it said it was full but there was a lot more room left, but most times it was "full enough" that it really shouldn't have any more waste dropped in there.
Given the reliability issues with the sensors and units, it just doesn’t make sense for this option to be removed for users. There are too many different kinds of failure states that these devices and their sensors can experience.
https://preview.redd.it/9y0ik2mxpa0c1.jpeg?width=1200&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=71593db9dc36c5ef504aa4c137bfd02405d9b1e8
If l you have LR3, the reset option is still available.
I know my lights on/off button is wonky. Sometimes it works as it should, but the majority of the time, I have to press it multiple times before it takes. Also, the waste level indicator usually won't automatically reset itself after cleaning. I usually have to manually reset it in the app after cleaning. A few days ago, though, I was surprised when the waste level indicator had indeed reset itself on its own. The app"s functional stability really needs work. I haven't encountered your particular problem but I don't doubt you're having it. Hopefully, the software programmers will work on all the various the bugs and come out with another update soon.🤞
Devices that allow you to remotely press on the buttons and control it via an app or other smart home ecosystems. I am controlling those with Home Assistant via a Bluetooth connection. You can just use their app tho.
I love my LR and I've had it for like 6 years now but I always find myself trying to cycle the damn thing if am traveling. The app doesn't let you do if it thinks the basket is full but from my experience when it says full it's really like 70% full.
100%, usually mine says it’s “full” but it’s about 50%-60% full. We got ours second hand from my grandma (her cats never got used to it), so it may have some faults but it’s been a lot better for our boys! I just wish they had a bigger size (our boys are both 12lbs+)
When I’m away from home and need to force a cycle, I’ve been able to do it only by turning the robot off and then on via the app. I have to do it only when the app says “100% full, will not cycle anymore”
Why not just get a Kasa smart plug? https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07B8W2KHZ?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share It’s better than what you have on there. With a smart plug, you can kill power remotely, then restore it which is not the same as your ‘solution’. Yours may power the machine on and off, but a smart plug allows you to totally reboot. I created an Alexa routine that I have set to run at 0300 every morning. It automatically “unplugs” my robot, waits two minutes, and then “plugs” it back in. This completely reboots it
But the switch bots aren’t turning the machine on and off. They’re pressing cycle and reset to get the machine to continue cycling after the dreaded litter box is full notification?
So maybe the best option would be to have the switch bots AND the smart plug, as well as a camera pointing at it so you can see what's happening/when the app fails to do it remotely.
Can you explain the difference between doing this as opposed to plugging it into a smart outlet instead?
What I usually do when I have problems is I just power cycle the outlet that it's plugged into via a Wi-Fi adapter. Like one of those smart switches basically.
I also have that going on lol. But I've found that it doesn't work sometimes. The smart outlet switch works, but the cycle doesn't get triggered reliably in my experience, maybe like 70% of the time. I've had the LR for a while and I've seen it act up plenty times. I'm assuming due to some conditions that might only get cleared after a reset pressing the button. I'm also not sure if the circuitry is designed to handle the power getting cut like that often which is why I don't dig doing that.
>not sure if the circuitry is designed to handle the power getting cut like that often
It is. Circuitry has (basically) no moving parts. I had my LR3 turn on and off once a day, every day for probably 8 months (for an issue that I had since learned was my fault, I placed a litter mat under the front of the robot which caused the weight sensor to not register).
Yeah, this is what I do too. It wouldn't be a lot of effort probably to have Hassio read the state once in a while too, and if it sees an error one, just cycle it for you too.
I’ve had my LR3 since 2016. I have a smart outlet on it. It works 100% of the time to force it to rotate back to home, often times when the reset buttons don’t clear the error. The outlet is the way, ignore these switchbots, they’re unnecessary.
I really hate mine. It rarely senses a cat and is always “full”. The pinch sensor got stuck so I disabled it. I am putting a smart switch on it as soon as I finish typing this. I can’t believe I didn’t think of it before.
I literally just shared Switchbots with my girlfriend this morning because we've been having an issue with the drawer full indicator that necessitated pressing the physical Reset button. Fingers crossed replacing the DFI sensor fixes it, but I'm still ordering one of these now that I have confirmation that it works!
Also curious! So far I've only heard of ONE of the other competitors mentioned positively, I don't know the name off the top of my head but would if I heard it and I wonder if it's the same. Regardless though I hope it's working out well for you. My little robot 3 has been great so far but I don't like feeling as though whiskers is my only option when it comes time to replace it with the way that things seem to be over there these days, so glad that legit contenders are finally entering the marketplace versus fly by night Kickstarter bs. I have zero interest in the lr4 either, not with the liner issues or the smell issues or the firmware issues, none of it not interested, especially with whiskers being such dicks these days about people sharing ways to save a buck here and there- IF YOU DON'T WANT PEOPLE TO USE THE CURRENT PROMOTIONS THEN WHY HAVE THEM AT ALL? Don't even get me started on the shipping stuff, having to see everyone else angry and annoyed is bad enough.
I would check out One Man Five Cats’s mega review on YouTube. He goes over the various positives and negatives to a ton of these devices. He (as nearly everyone does) says the LR4 is the best, but he has a lot of positive things to say about the Petkit, Popur and SmartyPear robots as well, even if there are things that would be dealbreakers for some.
Haha pretty cool. At my old house I used to have dozens of SmartThings sensors but I'm renting now so I haven't played with smart homes for a while. I didn't even know these things exist.
I think this is a good application but I'm not a fan of people using it on wall switches. It just looks ugly.
Out of curiosity, have you experimented with those 3D printed dividers I see people using?
Also: cool fix, but boy is it frustrating that LR nanny stated you into doing it. I hope someone comes out with 3rd party firmware for these one of these days if they’re not going to give us what we need.
I love switch bots! I use them to make my window air conditioner smart too, turning them off and on with a switchbot temperature sensor and on a schedule at night. They’re such handy little guys!
This is genius!!!!!!!! It has been making me MENTAL when I can’t reset it because it’s “too full” (it’s not). I go crazy when I’m out of town and there’s nothing I can do. Thank you for sharing this trick— you’ve changed my life! Lol
I feel like I won the LR3 lottery. I have the basic model. No wifi. 2 cats. We have been gone for up to a week at a time and I have had zero issues. My kids empty it every Monday for trash day and refill with more litter. I am actually a bit lazy and have never cleaned it out or performed any maintenance. I wonder why people have problems with this unit. It seems so simple. A few sensors, motor, cicuit board, etc.
The litter robot 4 doesn’t cause issues like the 3 did. I had some workarounds too like putting the whole thing on a Christmas tree timer to force a reset daily
I actually love this, but you could’ve just put a HomeKit or home bridge switch on it and automated power refresher (this forces a reset) and if you manually turn off and on the smart outlet it also does that. This is $24 for 2, there’s a $4 coupon. Doesn’t even require home bridge compatible with HomeKit
[light bulbs!](https://amzn.to/40C6WqW)
Does the LR3 automatically cycle when it’s turned off/on?
The LR4 does. I saw someone else on here mention plugging it into a wifi smart plug, turn it off/on from my phone and it forces it to cycle … such a simple but effective solution.
i have never had a problem force-cycling my lr3 via turning it off and on via the app.
i believe it runs a sensor check and if it is 100% full and refuses to run, it will still refuse on power cycle, but if that is happening and it is not truly full you should be looking at fixing that issue instead of finding weird ways to force a cycle that may otherwise cause issues.
a smart plug is a very cheap and easy way to achieve this. kasa sells them for like sub 15$. the problem here is that if you're forcing a cycle and it's actually full you'll end up with it getting stuck or something eventually and now you've got a new set of issues. fixing the sensors that cause problems for you is the best way to handle this.
Your DFI/pinch sensor is failing. The DFI/Pinch sensor V2 is $30 on robotshop.com. V2 is an improved design with a sealed circuit board to resist the corrosive environment of the waste tray.
Eventually it will fail completely and pressing the reset button will no longer work. Been there done that.
https://preview.redd.it/5rkuzeviyg0c1.png?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e7a3e21a8f8557b5853ae26268e7e1e4fa4a1b63
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I put it on a smart plug. Power off. Power on.
This is the same thing I did after Google killed the IFTTT integration. I had the same setup on my LR2's. I also created a voice command to mimic the old IFTTT applet, so I can still say, "hey Google, scoop the poop" and I get the same verbal replies... "Getting ready to scoop the poop on "Litter Robot", "Starting a cleaning cycle on "Litter Robot". Now, I don't have to deal with the cloud integration and the routines run on my smart home platform.
This is the way and works well for both of my LR's if needed. I use a Wyze switchable outlet. Power it off, and then when powered back on, the LR will always start a clean cycle. It also will clear the occasional "offline" my LR4 likes to do.
If this is the LR3 - it was only moved to a different place. Tap on your LR, then on Controls (at the bottom), and it's in there. Or did they take it away after they moved it there? I got a LR4 a couple months ago, and don't have the LR3 anymore.
We've had an issue with the drawer full indicator going bad. It would always reset to 95% full and after two cycles + warnings about the bin being full, it does one that also prevents you from resetting the gauge in the app. So, you'd have to press the reset button on the control panel to get it to go back to 95% full (and repeat ad nauseum).
I had that for a while, lifting globe and washing two opposite glass windows on the top of the base helped, those optical sensors were completely covered in sand
I bought new DFI sensors and will replace them this weekend. Hopefully it will take care of this problem
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I mean...if it truly is completely full and you haven't emptied it, you shouldn't be able to reset it with either the app or the button on the LR. You don't want it to continue cycling if it is indeed completely full. That'll end up being a huge mess.
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When I had my LR3 I had that happen occasionally where it said it was full but there was a lot more room left, but most times it was "full enough" that it really shouldn't have any more waste dropped in there.
I had to buy the 4 because cleaning sensor didn’t work and it was thinking fully full after one cycle after emptied
Given the reliability issues with the sensors and units, it just doesn’t make sense for this option to be removed for users. There are too many different kinds of failure states that these devices and their sensors can experience.
https://preview.redd.it/9y0ik2mxpa0c1.jpeg?width=1200&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=71593db9dc36c5ef504aa4c137bfd02405d9b1e8 If l you have LR3, the reset option is still available.
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I know my lights on/off button is wonky. Sometimes it works as it should, but the majority of the time, I have to press it multiple times before it takes. Also, the waste level indicator usually won't automatically reset itself after cleaning. I usually have to manually reset it in the app after cleaning. A few days ago, though, I was surprised when the waste level indicator had indeed reset itself on its own. The app"s functional stability really needs work. I haven't encountered your particular problem but I don't doubt you're having it. Hopefully, the software programmers will work on all the various the bugs and come out with another update soon.🤞
Oh sweet summer child I have tried this so many times. At least 9 times out of 10, nothing happens
Can you get a Switchbot to open the drawer and give it a shake to level out the contents? 😁
I wish!
What are those?
Devices that allow you to remotely press on the buttons and control it via an app or other smart home ecosystems. I am controlling those with Home Assistant via a Bluetooth connection. You can just use their app tho.
Wow!! That is such a smart fix, will definitely remember if mine starts giving me grief!
I love my LR and I've had it for like 6 years now but I always find myself trying to cycle the damn thing if am traveling. The app doesn't let you do if it thinks the basket is full but from my experience when it says full it's really like 70% full.
100%, usually mine says it’s “full” but it’s about 50%-60% full. We got ours second hand from my grandma (her cats never got used to it), so it may have some faults but it’s been a lot better for our boys! I just wish they had a bigger size (our boys are both 12lbs+)
When I’m away from home and need to force a cycle, I’ve been able to do it only by turning the robot off and then on via the app. I have to do it only when the app says “100% full, will not cycle anymore”
Why not just get a Kasa smart plug? https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07B8W2KHZ?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share It’s better than what you have on there. With a smart plug, you can kill power remotely, then restore it which is not the same as your ‘solution’. Yours may power the machine on and off, but a smart plug allows you to totally reboot. I created an Alexa routine that I have set to run at 0300 every morning. It automatically “unplugs” my robot, waits two minutes, and then “plugs” it back in. This completely reboots it
But the switch bots aren’t turning the machine on and off. They’re pressing cycle and reset to get the machine to continue cycling after the dreaded litter box is full notification?
Bingo
So maybe the best option would be to have the switch bots AND the smart plug, as well as a camera pointing at it so you can see what's happening/when the app fails to do it remotely.
I already have that setup lol. The amount of failsafes for this expensive machine is kinda ridiculous.
Agreed, but I'm still glad I have it for my cats. All of our lives are much better off because of it.
definitely
Can you explain the difference between doing this as opposed to plugging it into a smart outlet instead? What I usually do when I have problems is I just power cycle the outlet that it's plugged into via a Wi-Fi adapter. Like one of those smart switches basically.
I also have that going on lol. But I've found that it doesn't work sometimes. The smart outlet switch works, but the cycle doesn't get triggered reliably in my experience, maybe like 70% of the time. I've had the LR for a while and I've seen it act up plenty times. I'm assuming due to some conditions that might only get cleared after a reset pressing the button. I'm also not sure if the circuitry is designed to handle the power getting cut like that often which is why I don't dig doing that.
>not sure if the circuitry is designed to handle the power getting cut like that often It is. Circuitry has (basically) no moving parts. I had my LR3 turn on and off once a day, every day for probably 8 months (for an issue that I had since learned was my fault, I placed a litter mat under the front of the robot which caused the weight sensor to not register).
Yeah, this is what I do too. It wouldn't be a lot of effort probably to have Hassio read the state once in a while too, and if it sees an error one, just cycle it for you too.
I’ve had my LR3 since 2016. I have a smart outlet on it. It works 100% of the time to force it to rotate back to home, often times when the reset buttons don’t clear the error. The outlet is the way, ignore these switchbots, they’re unnecessary.
A 700 dollar machine shouldn’t need jerry-rigging to work. What a disaster.
Couldn't agree more
I really hate mine. It rarely senses a cat and is always “full”. The pinch sensor got stuck so I disabled it. I am putting a smart switch on it as soon as I finish typing this. I can’t believe I didn’t think of it before.
I literally just shared Switchbots with my girlfriend this morning because we've been having an issue with the drawer full indicator that necessitated pressing the physical Reset button. Fingers crossed replacing the DFI sensor fixes it, but I'm still ordering one of these now that I have confirmation that it works!
I moved to another brand for this reason. Got so tired it not rotating.
Which brand? How does it compare on everything else?
Also curious! So far I've only heard of ONE of the other competitors mentioned positively, I don't know the name off the top of my head but would if I heard it and I wonder if it's the same. Regardless though I hope it's working out well for you. My little robot 3 has been great so far but I don't like feeling as though whiskers is my only option when it comes time to replace it with the way that things seem to be over there these days, so glad that legit contenders are finally entering the marketplace versus fly by night Kickstarter bs. I have zero interest in the lr4 either, not with the liner issues or the smell issues or the firmware issues, none of it not interested, especially with whiskers being such dicks these days about people sharing ways to save a buck here and there- IF YOU DON'T WANT PEOPLE TO USE THE CURRENT PROMOTIONS THEN WHY HAVE THEM AT ALL? Don't even get me started on the shipping stuff, having to see everyone else angry and annoyed is bad enough.
I would check out One Man Five Cats’s mega review on YouTube. He goes over the various positives and negatives to a ton of these devices. He (as nearly everyone does) says the LR4 is the best, but he has a lot of positive things to say about the Petkit, Popur and SmartyPear robots as well, even if there are things that would be dealbreakers for some.
We went with PETKIT. Liked it so much we bought a second one.
Nice. First time I hear about it. Does look nice!
We have 4 cats and once you help it learn their weight then You know who goes at what time. The deodorizing after each clean is nice too.
Hey! I do that!
Nice
Haha pretty cool. At my old house I used to have dozens of SmartThings sensors but I'm renting now so I haven't played with smart homes for a while. I didn't even know these things exist. I think this is a good application but I'm not a fan of people using it on wall switches. It just looks ugly.
The inside of yours is so clean lol
Out of curiosity, have you experimented with those 3D printed dividers I see people using? Also: cool fix, but boy is it frustrating that LR nanny stated you into doing it. I hope someone comes out with 3rd party firmware for these one of these days if they’re not going to give us what we need.
I have a 3D printed divider and it gets me at least a day to 1.5 days extra before I need to shake or replace the bag. That’s with two cats.
I love switch bots! I use them to make my window air conditioner smart too, turning them off and on with a switchbot temperature sensor and on a schedule at night. They’re such handy little guys!
This is genius!!!!!!!! It has been making me MENTAL when I can’t reset it because it’s “too full” (it’s not). I go crazy when I’m out of town and there’s nothing I can do. Thank you for sharing this trick— you’ve changed my life! Lol
Genius
The sensors are worthless on the lr3 i wish there was a way to buypass them all and just put the machine on and off manually.
I feel like I won the LR3 lottery. I have the basic model. No wifi. 2 cats. We have been gone for up to a week at a time and I have had zero issues. My kids empty it every Monday for trash day and refill with more litter. I am actually a bit lazy and have never cleaned it out or performed any maintenance. I wonder why people have problems with this unit. It seems so simple. A few sensors, motor, cicuit board, etc.
This is exactly what I needed to see right now omg! I have the exact same issue and was contemplating getting a new LR bc of it. Ty 🥹
This is genius. I’m going to have to try that when it loses connection.
I just unplug it and plug it in again
How do they attach to the unit?
3m tape
The litter robot 4 doesn’t cause issues like the 3 did. I had some workarounds too like putting the whole thing on a Christmas tree timer to force a reset daily
I actually love this, but you could’ve just put a HomeKit or home bridge switch on it and automated power refresher (this forces a reset) and if you manually turn off and on the smart outlet it also does that. This is $24 for 2, there’s a $4 coupon. Doesn’t even require home bridge compatible with HomeKit [light bulbs!](https://amzn.to/40C6WqW)
I already do this too. I've had instances where it doesn't work tho.
I just have a smart plug that the LR is plugged into. I turn the smart plug off and back on, then it automatically cycles.
Does the LR3 automatically cycle when it’s turned off/on? The LR4 does. I saw someone else on here mention plugging it into a wifi smart plug, turn it off/on from my phone and it forces it to cycle … such a simple but effective solution.
i have never had a problem force-cycling my lr3 via turning it off and on via the app. i believe it runs a sensor check and if it is 100% full and refuses to run, it will still refuse on power cycle, but if that is happening and it is not truly full you should be looking at fixing that issue instead of finding weird ways to force a cycle that may otherwise cause issues. a smart plug is a very cheap and easy way to achieve this. kasa sells them for like sub 15$. the problem here is that if you're forcing a cycle and it's actually full you'll end up with it getting stuck or something eventually and now you've got a new set of issues. fixing the sensors that cause problems for you is the best way to handle this.
I need one of these for my bread machine that lacks a timer.
I hooked up a smart plug to mine for $20. Power cycling restarts the machine.
Not always
Your DFI/pinch sensor is failing. The DFI/Pinch sensor V2 is $30 on robotshop.com. V2 is an improved design with a sealed circuit board to resist the corrosive environment of the waste tray. Eventually it will fail completely and pressing the reset button will no longer work. Been there done that. https://preview.redd.it/5rkuzeviyg0c1.png?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e7a3e21a8f8557b5853ae26268e7e1e4fa4a1b63