If you are a cat lover who loves having a clean and tidy home, you have probably wondered more than once if you can vacuum cat litter and will ruin your vacuum.
The majority of cat lovers use cat litter as a method of dealing with their cat’s waste and for this it works perfectly for its purpose.
But with cats having a mind of their own, it is not uncommon for cat litter to trail itself out of the cat litter tray and to get into other rooms of your house.
Of course, you do not want to keep this stray litter in other rooms of your house, and with it usually ending up in your carpet or floor, you have probably assumed that it is safe to vacuum with the rest of the similar debris that ends up on these surfaces.
This article will answer if you can vacuum your cat litter, as well as give you alternatives on how to clean it up as well as displaying what types of vacuum cleaners will let you hoover this waste, and those which do not.
If you have any questions or concerns if you can vacuum cat litter, this is the place to get your answers.
So Is It Possible To Vacuum Cat Litter?
It is heavily recommended that with a standard vacuum cleaner you should not be vacuuming cat litter. There are quite a few reasons why this is not recommended:
– Most cat litter tends to be sharp and because of this it will slowly destroy the hose and filter inside your vacuum.
– The urine and feces of the cat will also end up getting into the litter which will then end up clogging inside your vacuum which can begin to form a cement like structure which will cling and dry to the walls inside the vacuum.
– The dust from cat litter will end up clogging your vacuum filter.
– The feces and urine of the cat will end up getting trapped in the brush attached to the end of the hose, this will spread it around your house and end up doing the opposite of cleaning your house.
– It is more likely that the brush attached to a vacuum will end up flinging the cat litter further away from your litter box. If there is any cat waste which was attached to this litter it will end up clumping and ending up anywhere.
As you can see clearly from these points, attempting to clean up cat litter using a standard vacuum cleaner will not benefit you.
All you will end up doing is spreading the litter and any attached waste further around your house, and you will also likely speed up any damage being done to your vacuum and lead to it breaking prematurely.
The cat litter will end up getting stuck very easily as it begins to act like concrete once it is wet and the small rocks it makes can do significant damage to your vacuum.
These will not just damage your vacuum but also the carpet as well.
So you are probably wondering if you can not clean up kitty litter through vacuuming, what is the preferred method of cleaning up cat litter?
What Is The Best Way To Clean Cat Litter?
You may have noticed if you were reading the previous section closely that we mentioned not using a standard regular vacuum cleaner for cleaning cat litter.
This is because vacuums exist which are designed specifically to clean up problems like this.
You can get shop vacuums which are significantly different from standard vacuums and will work much better at getting rid of mess from kitty litter.
Getting a shop vacuum means that you can clean up a wider variety of messes in your house, of course, including issues like cat litter.
They are great for sucking up water, and will be great for avoiding breaking your nice standard vacuum cleaner.
When using a shop vacuum to clean up cat litter it is best to remove the filter to make it so no cat waste gets stuck to it as this will mean you will have to put significant effort into cleaning it.
The best way to use the shop vacuum is with no attachments or maybe a crevice tool depending on the surface you are working with.
There are a variety of vacuum attachments to try so try the ones which seem like they will best suit your situation.
How To Get Cat Litter Out From The Carpet?
If you do not want to invest in a shop vacuum, and you consistently suffer from cat litter in the carpet, you can purchase a carpet rake and this will be a much more efficient method than not having one.
Using a carpet rake will save your hoover from having to deal with the damage that comes with hoovering up cat litter.
Of course a shop vacuum works amazingly but if you do not have the budget, consider a carpet rake.
Preventing Mess From Cat Litter
Of course, to save the issue of cleaning up cat litter, a potentially more productive question is to ask the best method of stopping cat litter from making any mess in the first place.
The two most recommended methods are using a litter mat or an automatic litter box.
A cat litter mat will stop the litter from spreading too far away from the litter box, they will catch litter before it makes it too far and will make it easier to clean up after it has fallen.
An automatic litter box is a slightly more expensive option, and it will do most of the cleaning process for you.
If you are tired of cleaning up litter as well as constantly changing it, getting one of these will make the whole process easier.
So, no, do not vacuum cat litter unless you have a specific tool for cleaning it, but if you do, make sure to use it properly.