Merry Pet Cat Washroom/Night Stand Pet House, Espresso - MPS007

I love this. It is a beautiful piece of furniture. The color is darker than the picture, but lovely. It is more of a dark deep cherry or mahogany color. It is not a flat color, it has grains in it if you look closely. From far away though, it is a deep chocolate, almost black. It definitely is NOT the color in the picture.Putting this together was tricky, and I never have trouble assembling items. I will try to walk you through it. Make sure you keep the instructions that come with it and read them along with what I am writing. My instructions were stapled incorrectly and it took me a little while to figure out that step one was on page 3...so read very carefully.Step 1 First you can attach the towel rod to either the right or left. I chose not to, because mine is sitting in my bedroom. If you want the rod on the right (as you are facing the product, then attach it to panel B. If you want the rod on the left, then attach it to panel A. The side with the paneling in the wood is the outside. It is easy to attach. Put the rod through the wood, (paneling side out), then put on a washer and then use the nuts.Now to put the box together.Step 2 Attach locking bolts into the two outside holes on the inside of panel B at the end that has the curve to it. The inside is the side without the paneling. Screw them in using your hands and then use a Philips screwdriver to screw them in. Then put the wooden dowel in the hole in the middle.Then take panel D and turn it so the side with the little groove in it lines up next to the same groove in panel B. (D is the bottom panel, and the part that hangs down is the front...it is easiest to line them up so the grooves will be next to each other) The legs of B stick up in the air (the aren't really legs, they are the top section of B and that really confused me for a bit). You attach the two pieces by sliding D onto the two locking bolts and the dowel. (The dowel doesn't fit in tightly, so be careful not to let it fall out). Once you have the two pieces together, take the SMALL cams and then twist them so the part of the locking bolt that sticks out, fits into the notch in the cam. BE CAREFUL TO USE THE RIGHT CAM! I didn't realize until I had to undo the whole thing, that there were different size cams. Turn the cam until you find the point where it feels like it sits in over the bolt. Once the cam is in, turn it gently with your screwdriver until it is tight. It doesn't take many rotations until it is tight. I think, one to one and a half rotations. Don't over tighten. Tightening too much doesn't make it stronger. You aren't screwing something in, you are twisting the cam so it covers the locking bolt. You do have to get it in snugly, but be gentle.Then put the little brown screw covers into the cams. You don't have to, the screws are only seen from the inside, up to you.Step 3 The instructions then say to take panel G and slide it in the groove. It won't stay in there very well, don't worry, panel A will hold it in better.Step 4 Put the locking pins and the dowels into panel A the same way as you did to B. Attach A to panel D the same way you did with B. The section with the little groove will be lined up with the grooves on panel D. Before you put in the cams (Use the small cams!) and snug it all down, adjust it so you have panel G in the groove properly. It is a little tricky to get it in there, as it keeps trying to jump out. I did it myself, but another pair of hands would have made it easier. You certainly don't need anyone else to help if you don't have a person handy. Part G is the back of the unit, and the side with the sticker on it is the inside. Look at the instructions to see how it all slides together.Put the screw (cam) covers into the cams if you want, again, this is the inside and you won't see those screws.Step 5 was on the back of page two...so again, read carefully. Attach the knob to the outside of Panel E. The outside is the side with the paneling.Step 6 insert 4 locking bolts into part C. Do NOT put the dowels in part C. If you do, when you try to put part C down, they will fall out and you will have to crawl under the couch to find them. Instead, put the dowels in the top of parts A and B. Then, put panel C down over the dowels and lining up the 4 locking bolts into the holes. The notches are there so the C fits around the little legs. (I thought this was all going to be the bottom of the thing, but actually it is the top of the unit). The magnet on part C is the front.After you have part C in place, and BEFORE you put in the cams, attach the door, part E. It is easy, you just have to line up the little pegs in the holes, but if you snug down part C, you can't get the door in. Make sure the magnet on part C lines up with the metal piece on part E.Step 7 insert the SMALL cams and snug them down. This time it is a little harder because you have to reach into the box and do it by feel. But, you have down a bunch of these cams by now and you are a pro! It won't be that hard. Just make sure you twist them right so they can be screwed down. Up to you about those pesky brown cam screw covers.Step 8. (Almost done and it is easier from here.) Put the locking bolts into panel F. This is the top of the unit. The instructions don't say, but there are three sides that have a little lip on part F and one side that is flat. I chose to put the flat side in the back, but it would work either way. If you don't put the flat side in the back, the unit will stick out a little from the wall. Ok...got those locking bolts in place...now put F into the little legs that stick up. NOW, it is time to use the BIG cams. If you got this far, you should have 2 small cams and 5 large cams left. (The 2 small cams are extras and there is an extra large cam too.) Put the large cams into the legs, turn, and tighten. NOW, you want to be sure to use those little brown cam, screw cover things. These holes ARE visible.Step 9. This unit is supplied with 4 dark brown wood plugs that you can put in the holes for the towel rod that you didn't use. On my unit, those plugs fell out every time I tried to put them in. I decided not to use them at all. If you have the same trouble, try using a little glue and I am sure they will stay in. Just remember if you do that, you might have a hard time getting them out, or you might damage the wood, if you later decide to put the towel rod in those holes.Voila!! You are finished. I hope that helps the next person put this thing together a little easier than it was for me. I didn't realize about the different sizes of the cams until I had to take it apart to fix it. And good luck getting the wrong cams out of those holes after you put them in! It took a nail file, gravity, and a lot of frustration to get them out.As everyone has already stated, make sure you get a small litter box. Check the dimensions of this unit and find one that fits. I had what I thought was a small litter box and it is too big. Silly me. Should have measured. I wish I had looked for one on Amazon to order at the same time so I wouldn't be sitting here with a lovely finished piece but no way to use it yet. Ah well, I can wait until tomorrow. The dimensions of the inside are 18 3/4" x 16 1/4".Even though the thing was a little tricky to put together, I gave it 5 stars because it looks lovely. The opening to the unit is 7" x 8". Little kitties will fit in easily. I am not sure about the mega cats. (If you know what I mean.) If you have a super duper sized feline, I would suggest getting a cardboard box first and cut the opening that size and see if your kitty will fit.

I've actually had a few different kinds of litter box enclosure furniture over the years, so I've got quite a bit of experience when it comes to getting the most out of such products.Prior to this one, I had the larger version from the same brand - its like a bench with a secret cut out entrance on the side. That one would have been wonderful if I had known then what I know now. Sadly, I made every mistake in the book & I ruined it within a year.I'll try to describe the mistakes I made with the other one, what I learned & how I applied that to really getting the most out of this one, that I have now.I got the espresso color for this item, but the bench type I had before was white. In regard to color - I don't think it makes a difference either way. The white one got just as dirty on the inside as the espresso colored one does...in both cases, you'd have to open it up to see the mess - and obviously, in both cases, you'd want to clean any messes - so color doesn't make a difference. Just get the color that suits you and don't second guess that aspect of it.These can be quite heavy, especially once litter is inside. before you ever even assemble it, its a must that you line the floor underneath to protect it - that goes for carpet, hard wood, whatever. I failed to do that the first time around and I really regret it. This time, I went to home depot or lowes (dont remember) and I had them cut me a piece of heavy vinyl floor mat - clear, in the size I needed. I think that was like $10 or $12. no matter what - when choosing your floor cover, make absolutely sure that the part of the mat that faces up is smooth and flat. No texture at all. You want to be able to wipe it clean, vacuum it, sweep it, whatever - without having to bother with crevices or textured services that mess that can get stuck in. if you're putting your litter enclosure on carpet, you will be amazed how much easier it is to vacuum up litter that gets kicked out or spilled. The litter comes up with half the effort when it's on a flat vinyl surface, as opposed to scattered on the carpet. the mat will also make it easier to scoot the furniture around when you occasionally want to clean any spilled litter that found its way underneath the furniture.Get a high back litter pan and fill it with the least amount of litter you can get away with - and just resolve yourself to stay on top of it & keep it clean. I was way over filling the litter pan when I used the bench style & that really facilitated a lot of mess. it was way easier for the cat to kick it out, and it caused her to be so high up in the pan that sometimes when she'd be in the litter pan - her pee would go over the top of the litter box & splash all over the inside of the furniture. If you keep it shallow, that won't happen.Because the inside of the furniture was always such a mess, I was constantly cleaning it. The directions said not to saturate with cleaning liquids - in fact - the directions said to wipe down with a damp cloth, just water. Um, no. No. No. No. I was not about to wipe up pee "with a damp cloth." give me a break. I used method anti-bac spray cleaner or sometimes I used vinegar. It wasn't long before the chipboard wood became saturated in places and started to warp. Then, eventually, the laminate coating that sealed the chipboard actually eroded off...which meant every time I wiped down the inside of the pan I would bring up bits of wood shaving & make an entirely different mess. so then I tried different types of mats and liners to put inside the furniture, underneath the litter box. Don't do that! All that did was trap spills and messes under the mat to better pool up & saturate the eroded chipboard.So, that one went in the trash, and when I ordered this one I took some preliminary steps before I ever let the cat in there. in addition to the vinyl mat that I mentioned....I assembled the new espresso enclosure and took it outside and used acrylic sealant to seal up all the cracks where the different parts of the assembly came together. I sealed around the bottom piece really well. after all of that dried, I used a non-toxic waterproof spray varnish to entirely coat all of the inside. I probably did 4 rounds of coating and letting dry...the end result being 12 strong coats of protection. Everything I used is pet safe after dry. I also coated the outside piece where the hole is...for the cat to enter the furniture. that part requires a lot of cleaning too. once all of that was dry, I put it on the mat & put the litter pan in with minimal litter. this is necessary. now when she makes a mess, I can clean it up with whatever I like without ruining the chipboard. And with the cracks sealed...there's no saturation and warping taking place.The big thing with this is to manage your expectations. litter does sometimes get kicked out. There will sometimes be messes inside. and know that you really do have to clean it every day. An out of site, out of mind mentality will only result in the rest of your house being peed on by your frustrated cat. if you're going to stay on top of it, then you will be glad you have this item. It's a lot better than a box of poop sitting in the middle of a room somewhere.The material really should be less vulnerable - its aggravating that I had to waterproof it myself - but it is what it is. take extra care and you won't be disappointed.