Able Pest Control

Besides seeing red squirrels in the yard, I started hearing them in the attic. After finding out that they can start a fire by chewing on electrical wiring, I panicked and called Able Pest Control in the yellow pages, which had a local number and claims to be "Locally Owned and Operated", which isn't quite true since the company is located in Johnstown, PA, 70 miles from my house. The Able technician arrived on October 1, 2015, put bait outside the house and inside the attic, and charged me $715.00, which includes $40.00 state tax. He told me that the squirrels would be gone in a month. Even though Able was here several times, the squirrels were still here after 6 weeks. My neighbor brought a live trap, set it on the porch, and caught a squirrel in an hour. When I told the Able technician about the live trap, he said it was illegal not to kill the animal because the capture "messes up it's brain and it will become rabid." I called the Game Commission and was told to use a live trap and release the animal. I asked Able to remove their bait, which they did on November 25, 2015, 8 weeks after I had hired them. After checking with Angie's List, I found out that the average for animal removal is about $300.00, far below the $715.00 that I paid. I asked Able for a refund and was given a $250.00 check. Between November 24 and November 30, my neighbor caught 3 squirrels in the attic. They love peanut butter and crackers. He released them about a mile from my house and I haven't seen or heard any since. (I was told by the Able technician that they would return if they were released within 10 miles.)

Seemed to have worked

Overall, I am giving a B rating because of the nature of the inspection. The inspector found 3 carpenter ants on my property. One on my front porch (which I did not see), one on my deck out back, and a dead ant in a spare bedroom. The paperwork was filled out by him and he suggested spraying. The cost for spraying was quoted at $245.00 after a discount. When I submitted the paperwork to my loan company I received an email the next day telling me to get it sprayed because that is what the inspector recommended. Here lies the problem I have: 3 ants (one not seen, one dead) and the person doing the inspection has a vested interest in spraying the property (for $245). I chose not to use Able pest control for the spraying because of this and got quotes from three other companies. All of which were lower in cost. I chose to use one of them instead and saved almost $100. I have reviewed that company as well.

Jerry Katzenstein 415 Hystone Ave. Johnstown, Pa. 15905--814-288-3987.......did the service of removing the red squirrel from the the residence for me. Jerry was wonderful, he trapped the squirrel without harm. It took him 2 weeks. He had to keep going back to the house to check the traps. He charged me $90.00. He took the squirrel away and turned it loose on a hill side where it could live happy ever after as well as I could. hahaha.I highly recommend Jerry.

I would definitely recommend them. They are efficient, fast, and reasonable. More importantly, they are local. There is no waiting time. When I make an appointment, they are there the next day.