Berkeley Parents Network: Exterminators

Berkeley Parents Network

Exterminators

Please note: this page contains reviews and opinions sent in by Berkeley Parents Net subscribers. Your own experience may be different. Please always check references before hiring!

Berkeley Parents Network > Reviews > House & Garden > Exterminators

Reviews of exterminators 1/05
Exterminator for ants 10/04
Fleas
Exterminator for spiders 11/02
Exterminator for termites 12/02
Exterminator for Wasp Nest 4/02
More advice about household pests fleas, ants, mice, raccoons, etc.

Reviews of exterminators

Jan 2005

MITTS pest control? Does anyone have any experience (good or bad) with MITTS pest control? We are not selling our house but have encountered termites and are considering using MITTS for a full inspection and removal of the termites. If you have a strong positive recommendation about another company that would be great too. amy

My house was inspected by Mitts before I bought it. My uncle, Bob Randall with Prudential Realty (869-4242), said that Mitts is "the best." He's been in the business for *years* and recommended a roofer (Bill Wong, Interstate Roofing) who was *terrific*. Anyway, the pest report was positive and I haven't had any problems with my house. I hope this helps. Jennie Jan 2005

Burge Pest Control
I just wanted to write in because we recently used Burge Pest Control after reading the recommendations on this newsgroup. It was not the best experience. If you'd like more details, please feel free to e-mail me... autstein

Exterminator needed for ants

See also: Advice about Ants

Oct 2004

We have a terrible ant problem. We have tried many methods to fend them off including grants stakes and spraying raid around the outside of the house where they come in. I don't like to have a lot of poison in the house since I have a young child. Hence, Chinese ant chalk not an option. My mother in law recommended calling an exterminator. Has anyone done this? Can you recommend someone? Did it work? Thanks Sara

We had an ant problem so bad that they were running along the molding of our walls. Our landlord found aantx. This is a company that does extermination for doctor's offices and hospitals. It worked. 1 year later and we have only seen a few ants. I don't know the phone number but it is in the 925 area code. My landlord said he didn't think it was too expensive. Rochelle

I can highly recommend Burge Exterminators, based in Alameda for ant extermination. We have 2 dogs and an 8- month old and were very concerned about toxcitiy--Burge took the time to explain their product to us and how it works & were very reassuring. They are a family run business and extremely friendly and helpful. We had ants everywhere, and since Burge sprayed, none. What a relief! Karina

For the two posts that wrote regarding finding an ant exterminator. I have posted my ant problems on this newsletter over the years (and we've had MANY, including an ant invasion of our freezer!) and I have tried every non- exterminator solution possible (ant stakes, boric acid bait- - which I still highly recommend for maintenance), but finally our ant problem became unmanageable and I too called an exterminator. We have a dog and two kids so indiscriminate spraying was a concern of mine too. I settled on Aantex (510-832-8329) and would recommend them if you are looking to call an exterminator. I called quite a few companies. I found the Aantex guys and gals to be the most knowledgeable of what they were spraying, and they were willing to only spray in the parts of the house where I knew the ant nest was and where their ''highways'' were-- many companies insisted on spraying the whole house ''to be effective''. Good luck. Luisa

We've had a bad ant problem for years, and noticed that our little black ants just were ignoring the Grant's stakes. We were even considering an exterminator, but I read up on the ants online and found they liked grease and sweet baits. So, we found new baits called the Enforcer which the ants really swarmed in and seemingly ate. We left them alone to eat the stuff, and now we only see a few a day. It is a poison, but it's in a plastic container. Found at ACE hardware. Hope this helps! Almost Ant Free

July 2004

We have a major ant problem in our house. We've tried some less invasive solutions like Buhatch powder, ant traps etc.. but it's out of control and we need get pest control in here. We have two young children, 1 and 3 years old and we're concerned about our childens health and chemicals used by most commercial companies. Any recommendations of companies that use less toxic jacqueline

Hi, I know all too well the feeling of losing the battle with ants in the house, and wanting to maintain using non- toxic methods of control. However, I succumbed. After months of battling and seeing some fluctuations in population by using boric acid baits, the ants always seemed to rebound and we were never ant-free. We could not leave ANYTHING out EVER, and the pressure to be on top of a perfectly clean kitchen EVERY DAY was too much (we have two kids and a dog), and I called pest control companies. I called around and asked a lot of questions and finally settled on Aantex, whom I'd recommend (got the number from yellow pages). They seemed the most informed in what they were spraying (what they spray inside and outside are different chemicals) and very sensitive to preventing exposure to humans and pets. One thing that I was pleased at was they were willing to only spray certain areas in my house where I knew the ants were coming in-- they didn't insist on spraying the whole house to guarantee the ants wouldn't come back. I knew there was an ant nest under the house in our crawl space, and the man who came to apply knew to look for it and sprayed there. We have been ant free for a month, and I still revel in leaving dirty dishes in the sink. We'll see how long it lasts, and if using bait now will control them so I won't need to spray again. Good luck with your decision! Luisa

We had a horrendous ant problem and used Ant Stakes from the hardware store, placed every 6-8 inches outside around our house and wherever we found them inside and they were gone within a week. The bug man (in the Saturday home/garden Chronicle section) recommended them I think. He generally recommends the least toxic method. I think he has a website that is something like thebugman.com or maybe google the bug man (he lives in New Mexico). Hope that helps. ants no more

March 2004

We are having quite an ant problem. I think it has gone beyond the ''the ants are coming inside to get out of the rain'' to ''the ants live in the walls and sometimes come out for a snack''. I spray Orange Guard; they go away for a day and then find a new route in. I thought it was the rainy season but now I'm convinced it's a large-scale infestation. I've seen the many recommendations posted on the Web site (baby powder has not worked for me, incidentally) and have not yet investigated ant stakes but will give that a try. I'd just like to know what I'm dealing with first, so I thought an exterminator might at least be able to tell me. My questions are: (1) does anyone have a recommendation of a good exterminator who will understand my perhaps conflicting wants to poison the ants but not my child, cat or the groundwater, and who might honestly give me an assessment of the extent of the problem and (2) has anyone had a major ants-in-the-woodwork problem such as this and fixed it via ant stakes or some other home remedy (besides baby powder)? Thanks! Jennifer

I found Employ Exterminators very easy to work with: 836- 4500. We had a huge ant infestation under the house and they had to come back for 3 visits within 2 months(all covered under the one-time fee of $120). Richard knows about the habits of ants and is considerate about the hazards of spraying where there are small children. He will be able to answer all your questions.

I might be able to control the ant situation with home remedies now, but I'm relieved to have had professional help first. Each nest has many thousands of ants, as you know if they are invading your home! Suzanne

re the ant invasion, I went and got books in the library about this and found out that sprinkling BoricAcid powder in the pathways where they come in works great,; it's a stomach irritant if eaen by humans. It really works so much better less smelly and toxic, and it works, rather then the sprays, traps, etc. Leia

during the rainy season 2 years ago, i had an ant infestation in which the ants just kept coming and coming and coming. i tried various solutions, but found the most useful was to put multiple (5 or 6) grant ant stakes out near the spot of ingress (if I could find it, or the place I saw the ants on their endless march. so, for example, in the kitchen, i put four each on the window sill, by the faucets, one my dish shelf and on the counter adjacent to the sink. In my bedroom, where i could not see where the ants came from, I put 4 each near the wall bordering the garden, in my closet and under my bed where I had seen them, and where the stakes were not visible or easily accessible to little ones. (i was going to put them outside each wall, but could not because of the architecture. It took a few days to discourage the colony, but i've not seen them since. Nselk

Oct 2003

Our house is overrun with ants, and we can't take it any more! We would like to hire a professional exterminator, but have a toddler and an infant. Can anyone recommend an exterminator sensitive to the young-children issue, or offer insights into just how dangerous using an exterminator might be under the circumstances? (The alternative seems to be to spray Raid periodically, as we can't put out ant stakes, etc., where they might be ingested -- and this has its own poisonous disadvantages.) If you've had either a good or a bad experience with ant extermination, we'd like to hear about it! (I have read the website postings, but they relate primarily to non-professional home remedies.) Thanks!! Gretchen

We had great success with having our house sprayed by a company called Burge Pest Control, 510-523-6100. We have a small child also, and were really worried about the toxicity of the spray. We had a long talk with the guys who came out to do the job (also parents of small children) and they assured us that the spray is harmless after the initial waiting period (they said a few hours, we stayed out all day). It kills the ants, then degrades. In fact they said it was better to spray once and kill them all, including nests around the perimeter of the house, than spraying Raid or similar inside which is actually more toxic. We didn't spray in the baby's room at all, just for peace of mind, but did in kitchen and bathroom, and outside. We've had them out twice in two years, and it's been great. No ants for many many months, then a few if it's really hot or raining. Perhaps we need to do it once a year? It was well worth it since nothing else was working. Costs about $150, though not positive about that price. Jocelyn

Exterminator for spiders

Wasp Nest

April 2002

Hello. I've discovered a wasp nest in an awning right outside my balcony windows. I'd like to have the nest removed, as members of our family are allergic to bee and wasp stings -- can an exterminator take care of this, and could/would someone recommend any service that would remove the wasp nest? Thank you.

If you're in Contra Costa county, the ''Vector Control'' folks will remove the wasp for you for free. Check in the government pages. Also have humane skunk traps that you set, they pick up. Ann

The opinions and statements expressed on this website are those of parents who subscribe to the Berkeley Parents Network. Please see Disclaimer & Usage for information about using content on this website.