Orkin

They didn’t do the work that the rep said they would do, then they tried to rope us into a long term contact that was expensive and unnecessary. Not impressed, and I do not recommend them to anyone.

We’ve paid them thousands so far and we still have rat problems. Now the rats are chewing through boxes, shitting everywhere in the garage and I hear them run free in the walls. I want my money back and my personal items restored.

We called Orkin to deal with some problems with rats/​mice in our attic. I was able to get an appointment quickly. Initially I was happy with the friendly service. The guy who came out walked around the exterior and appeared to be plugging up any gaps where rodents could get in. He also set some traps, but I had already tried that. Now for the reasons they received only 2 stars:
Orkin wants you to sign a year contract where they come out every month for «maintenance». It was expensive and I didn’t see the point. I felt I was being upsold, and I didn’t see what the point was if they rat proofed the house and attic. The traps only caught one mouse (and it was mine, not theirs), I continued to hear noises in the attic, and essentially nothing changed although I was charged a couple hundred dollars. When something smelled like it died up there, Orkin wanted another couple hundred dollars and were pushy with the contract thing again. I called Palmieri instead. They were able to recommend «Proofit» a small company which removed the dead rat, and showed me all the holes and gaps that Orkin incorrectly covered, and all the ones they missed. The best part is that they didn’t push me to go with them or Palmieri, and didn’t ask for a year long contract!
Friendly service does not mean a whole lot to me if the business cannot solve my problems, as advertised. Orkin can schedule you quickly, but they are not interested in providing real service. Go with someone else!

Okay, so we found termites in the house and asked the Orkin man to come for an estimate… He was able to find the termite location and even actually bagged one of the Subterranian termites and showed it to us.
The quote however, is significantly more expensive than Terminex. The treatments are comparable. At least get 3 quotes before you make a decision. I give 3 stars because the service guy does know how to find Termites like no others. So if you are not sure if you have termites, Orkin might be your best bet. But if you have a lot of questions, Orkin probably won’t answer your calls or email like you matter… The attitude I got from them was like, «hey, you need us, take it or leave it, you’re the one that’s in trouble!»
Definitely use Orkin as one of the quote to see if they detect Termites, but… beware the cost would be double.

So far, so good. Orkin has some friendly customer service reps who have accomodated both my immediate need for an appointment, and my subsequent need to reschedule. They almost make me forget that i have rats.
Yup. R-​A-​T-​S. I have lived in some divey-​ass places before, but never in my wildest dreams did I ever imagine that I would say «my place is a rat’s nest» and IT WOULD BE TRUE. My current abode is a cutesy craftsman house with a sweet little picket fence. Apparently the rats have a taste for homey-​ness, because they have chosen my attic for their crash pad.
The other night, while letting my dog into the house, i noticed a rustling in the tree over my porch. It was a rat, and I Unilocaled and shut the door, then ran and told my husband, who was pretty doubtful of my account. However, last night, we had people over (i’m pretty sure they will never come back) and we had a nice dinner outside, where we had a great view of the freakin’ family of rats that scurried across an electrical wire and into my attic.
My landlord’s not returning my calls, and I work up in Oakland, so it’ll be a couple of days before I can find the time to stay home and wait for the exterminator. Here’s to the next few nights of scurrying, scratching in the ceiling above my bed.
Awesome. Oh, and Orkin let me know that it’s gonna take a while for them to get the rats out of the house, and then they’ll have to come at least once a month for ETERNITY to make sure they don’t come back.
Anybody in the market for a cute 2 br rental? Better yet, anybody in the market for good tenants – non-​infested parties only need apply.
sigh.