I am an Exterminator working in an area with a high drug, mental illness and crime rate. Ask me anything!

What are the calls you most enjoy getting? Not from an emotional or fulfilling perspective, but like "oh man, this'll be an easy $100".

Wasp calls, not because they’re easy, but because they can be the most challenging and adrenaline inducing pest to tackle

You’re like the crackhead’s Steve Irwin

that one got me

Which hotel chains do you stay when traveling?

I mainly wear my hat and if they get nervous I don’t stay there. I usually check the room before getting settled though

Have you ever ended up accidentally introducing pests into your home?

Yes, I’ve been up doing 3 am bed bug treatments because one decided to come home with me

What's the most criminal thing you weren't meant to see? Stashed drugs, bodies etc?

I had someone casually living with a body

I’m going to need more details. Nothing telling but just… details.

Guy passed out from an overdose, no one noticed for 2 weeks until I came in to do an inspection, let’s just say that’s one that I’m probably never going to forget

I recently had bedbugs and am now living in the purgatory of not knowing if they are all really gone or if there are a few left. I dont react much to the bites so that isnt a reliable sign.

What do you recommend for ongoing detection? I have interceptors on my bed legs, encasements, and a few sticky traps around the room.

Im also still getting apprehend (fungal spore) treatments, and intend to keep that up for at least 6 months. But that only gets them if they walk through it on the baseboard, right?

for peace of mind spend the money and have a dog go through your place, a dog can sniff out bed bugs with even higher accuracy than a bomb/drug dog (often times they're the same dog)

A dog specifically trained to smell them?

Yes, in fact humans can smell them! In high enough populations I can smell what I’m in for the second I enter the building.

They smell like a crayon, if they decided to make a strawberry scented crayon

I’ve heard that starting your own franchise is relatively cheap. Have you considered going out on your own and starting one?

That’s eventually the plan!

How do you handle bees?

Gently, they’re harmless and fragile

For you, specifically, how do you prevent the little critters from following you home? E.g. how do you ensure you don't take a small collection of bedbugs home from work with you?

I have a heat chamber I put my clothes in, it maintains a temperature above 50C, my place is also treated with a fungal insecticide

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easier to show you

Exactly how afraid of bedbugs should I be?

If you use public spaces you should definitely be checking yourself routinely

How do you check yourself for bed bugs? I’ve never even thought about it

Check Every little seem and fold on your garments, body, and belongings, or just throw everything in the dryer on max for an hour

You have no idea what that's going to do to my cotton shirts.

As a man I’m very familiar with shrinkage

First of all, you have my utmost respect for doing something that most of us wouldn't even dare to try and I do acknowledge that guys like you are working behind the scenes to keep the world running so be assured that you have at least my appreciation.

How did you start doing what you are doing as a profession? Was it a conscious decision you made or did you just stumble into it?

I actually fell into it! I lost my job a while back, and a small company offered hired me, I absolutely loved the work and eventually found myself in a larger company

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Most of the time treat others how you want to be treated and know how to read the room. I’ve only ever been threatened. But never have I ever felt in real danger

Bro, ive been on reddit like 7 years (?) Definitely top 3 AMA ive seen.

thank you!

What is the most dangerous mission you have completed?

Fumigations, probably the only thing that truly terrify me. They will kill you before you even realize it

Why are my lips numb after the exterminator sprays our office?

Possible reaction, possible placebo, consulting your physician is your best bet

I live in NYC . How am I getting waterbugs in my apartment? I hate them!! Where are they coming in??

The sewers probably, it’a NYC, that’s like hard mode for pest control

Do any bugs freak you out at all still?

Ticks, the thought of Lyme disease is terrifying

What's a general tip you have for keeping my place bug free?

Eliminating gaps and cracks and preventative treatment plans are pretty affordable and a great start, but key is to eliminate sources of food and water for the pests

Are there any bugs / pests that you really don’t like dealing with?

Carpet beetles, they can be a nightmare

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Carpet beetles feed on organic compounds, finding where they’re breeding and eliminating that is key, constant vacuuming and laundry also helps. I recommend getting a professional in though if the problem is bad

How do you avoid getting bit by animals, bed bugs, etc?

You can wear protective suits, but bites still occasionally happen

Are you a fan of Dale Gribble?

Yes

What was one of your most changeling assignment?

Having to rid a building of bed bugs when you could see bed bugs in the hundreds crawling down the walls in the lobby

Can you get rid of fleas in an average size apartment in one trip? And if so, using what method?

Lots and lots of vacuuming and an Insect grown regulator (can get at most vets). Essentially follow bed bug preparation guidelines

Do you worry about being exposed to pesticides or other environmental contaminants, like mold?

All the time, I make sure to wear any safety equipment I can get my hands on

Re: the demographic you serve; What's the most challenging extermination you ever had to perform?

I spent a year treating a unit for bed bugs, it was a challenge because the tennant had 3 distinct personalities, 2 of which hated me

Had to come to the description text to confirm that you were an exterminator.... of pests, not just a retired/"ex" terminator like Arnold Schwarzenegger.

First, thanks for providing an extremely necessary - and under-gratified - service to society.

Where is the line between pest control and animal control? Mice and rats are usually associated with pest control, but where does that end and large animal control take over? Do municipalities regularly outsource large animal control to extermination service providers?

you're very welcome! the line tends to blur in the wild life aspect of things, generally when dealing with mamals larger than rats and mice you tend to cross paths with animal control

How can I make my detached garage absolutely inhospitable to all vermin without poisoning my dog / chickens / etc? Do you fuck with mice? How do I fuck with mice?

If you can can fit your pinky in a gap or hole, fill it with something nice can’t chew (copper mesh works great)

How do you deal with bed bugs without accidentally bringing them home with you? I hear they’re absolutely traumatizing to live with.

I can’t state enough how traumatic bed bugs are. Luckily I’m able to put safeguards in place to prevent hitchhiker’s although accidents do happen

What is the best way to get rid of carpenter bees around your home? How can you tell if they have already gotten in your walls?

Contact a professional especially if your concern is structural damage, though pretty docile to humans they can cause havoc on structures

How'd you get rid of a million bed buggers?

Heat! Turn that room into a convection oven! Anything over 50C for min an hour will kill ‘em

Cockroaches, are they only in gross and dirty houses?

You may be surprised to learn that pests don’t discriminate, some of my worst cockroach clean outs have been in multi million dollar mansions with full time cleaning staff

I'm a former chef, and I just want to hijack this to say that if you're in an environment that German cockroaches enjoy, every restaurant is either infested, or pays good money to not be infested.

Before I will work for someone, I check for bugs in the kitchen. You can tell a bad owner from a good owner pretty reliably just by how clean and bug free their kitchen is or isn't.

You’d be surprised how some can hide it from regular folk

One place I almost worked at hid it well...until I saw it in a light bulb above their grill....a german cockroach. I made an excuse to bolt and didnt look back.. How did it get in the bulb...I know it's above the grease trap of the grill...but...how....

A German cockroach nymph is Damn nest microscopic, and grease had enough sustenance to sustain it through its life.

My biggest giveaway in any establishment is the fluorescent light housings. No one ever cares to clean them. And rid there was a problem, they usually show it

I have a rat problem outside. Had a local company come out 5 months ago and put down 4 poison traps. How long does this typically take to eradicate a colony?

You will never eradicate rodents outside, they will be here long after us. For every one we kill 10 are born. The goal is reduction not elimination

Whose been your favorite customer?

A year ago I solved a case for a family who were being terrorized by rats for over 3 years. To the point where the rats had chewed out their gas lines and almost blew the house up. Even today I still get cards and pictures of a now, very happy family

My house has an endless invasion of bugs. Not an infestation of one kind, just every dumb shit bug on the planet wanders in constantly. I try and seal every gap I can, but nothing works. Why is this happening and how do I get rid of these little bastards?

Check your door and window seals, if you see light a bug can get in. Also highly recommend a spray of the exterior to prevent outside invaders

Oh man, this is just the AMA I've been waiting for!

How in gods name do I stop squirrels from getting in the attic? I've sealed off every opening just to have them chew back in. I've tried vinegar, hot sauce, literal pure capsaicin, and fake snakes, but the little shits keep eating the low voltage wires in the attic. What do you usually do with the little buggers?

You have to really seal them in, recommend using a metal grating over a mesh, they will eventually give up (also make sure there are no babies in your home)

How much of what you do involves spraying stuff I could buy online and toss in a sprayer myself?

0.01%. My chemicals are in concentrate form and must me mixed in exact ratios otherwise you risk causing your target pest to grow immune. Also you need a license to even see the catalog

I have read about extreme heat treatments killing bed bugs vs chemicals. What do you think?

Heats always the way to go

Your scariest Ralph Wiggum "I'm in DaNGeR!!" story from a job you did, please? It can be dangerous becuase of the pest, the people, the building, or some other factor--just that your life was potentially/almost asked of you that day.

A tennant I was doing a bed bug inspection for got raided by the cops mid inspection

I went into more detail in a previous reply, but essentially was doing a bed bug inspection on the unit, next thing I know police are busting down the door with guns

What did you do with the raccoon? Is s/he okay?

He got some marshmallows and was relocated to a nice wooded area nearby

Is it true cold weather will also kill bed bugs? For instance, if it’s below freezing outside and you put couches or mattresses outside overnight, will that do the job?

Yes and no, it takes a very ideal set of circumstances for it to get cold fast enough to kill bed bugs, as they can enter a state of hibernation for a long time

How does working in these lower income neighborhoods affect you mentally? Had any clashes with clients?

I tend not to take things personally, but it can be hard sometimes, I just have to remind myself I’m meeting them in a bad situation

Do you ever get phantom itches after a job? I feel like I would be scratching imaginary bugs all the time.

how do you spot an exterminator in a crowd? look for the one scratching

Termite situation question: I've got Formosa termites in my home, but I've also got wood rot that I'm working to fix ASAP. All the termite companies I've called for treatment have refused because I have rot and they say they can't guarantee their work. I am poor AF and I'm doing all I know to do right now. Is there anything I can do to stall these termites till I can fix the house enough to get it treated?

I’m not sure about termites because we don’t get them here, but if there is a known problem in a city or county, sometimes there’s programs in place to help

What’s the most memorable thing you’ve seen on the job?

unfortunately a chest freezer filled to the brim with roaches and rotting meat

How do you dispose of bodies?

Usually in the garbage. Pretty much the only place to in the city

Got any interestingly crazy stories to share?

an aspect of the job a lot of people don't know about is the mental health side of it. sometimes a client is calling because they have bugs, sometimes its because they're seeing bugs. for some people suffering from mental illness, just me showing up can provide respite to things like hallucinations.

one client in particular was a bit of an odd duck, he struck it big in the education industry and bought himself a mansion in the middle of the woods, this place was a full on gothic mansion, complete with gargoyle statues, a hedge maze, if it could be featured in a cheesy Dracula flick. he had it. one day he decided to contact me with concerns of spiders, no big deal I went over, sold him a service and treated for spiders, the next week he calls me again for a re treatment, i go there, re treat and bobs your uncle.

he calls me about 6 more times over the course of 4 months with the same issue, spiders running rampant at night. at this point I came to the conclusion that the spiders were real, but only for him. after a while things quieted down with him, I was only doing the occasional exterior spray and had little to no direct contact with him.

until about 6 months later.
I get a knock on the door of my personal residence, sure enough I'm being summoned to court. turned out this crazy rich guy decided his maid was the one planting spiders in his home, and decided to fire the maid and sue the company she worked for.
Luckily reason overcame insanity and the courts saw he was clearly suffering. he ended up getting the help he desperately needed instead

My spouse's grandfather kept on calling someone in about bugs, it was dementia. He was treated with incredible compassion by the exterminator who was able to tell us that it was not bugs. He did things that made the grandfather feel better, gave us a heads up, and ended up not charging for at least one of the visits. He was a really good guy.

I have a care home that pays me $50 a month to spray water on their baseboards. That’s the lowest I can feasibly charge them

How do you combat zombies?

Good cardio and a shot gun

Have you ever dealt with drug addicted insects?

No, but I did once have a meth addicted rat

How safe for pets and kids are the chemicals that your average big retail extermination outfit uses that they may spray around doors and your baseboards for preventative measures? What are they using? Anything I should know?

Any chemical that I use is moderately safe for animals once it is dry. Saying that I wouldn’t go licking exactly where I sprayed. As for what chemicals they are using that depends on the technician and situation, but most certainly requires a license to use them

Do you exterminate people or just animals?

No you need to call a terminator for that

What's the grossest thing you have encountered, and how long did it take for you to mentally "tough it up" with really disgusting places?

i one time had to steam treat a sofa that was encrusted in human feces and vomit, I wouldn't say you ever really toughen up. you just learn to deal with it differently. there are still some things I haven't been able to get used to that I encounter often

Isnt that thing a big bio hazard, woudlnt throwing it away and burning it be a better choice?

For most yea, for some it’s all they have

When you come home at night, how do you make sure that you are not bringing bedbugs along with you? Do you change at work and they sanitize your clothes? Do you wear your clothes home and then change in the garage? Do you need to worry about bringing home bedbugs on your hair? Do you just go on home and figure that it will be fine and just change whenever you feel like it? I’ve always wondered that about people who fight bedbugs, thank you for letting me ask!

So, just for you I’m going to lay out my procedure from start to finish.

Before I get on site I remove anything from my pockets I can’t live without, I make sure to wear white socks, and tuck my pant legs into my socks, if it’s a really bad case I’ll usually wear a tyvek suit and tape the legs to my boots. During service I make sure I only touch things with my hands and the bottom of my boots. Everything I touch usually gets vacuumed first. After a job I go outside, carefully undo my suit and roll it off my body. That goes into a plastic bag and tied up. Then I go top to bottom, taking off my boots and checking them thoroughly, then go through my pockets, any items I brought in, ect until eventually I check my ears and comb my hair out. My truck is treated with a fungus that only infects bed bugs spreads like wildfire. When I get home I step into a small hamper, strip completely and place my clothes in a box that’s kept a roughly 55C. Then I do a check of my body cavities and shower. For added measure my place has bed bug pheromone lures placed strategically with monitors, along with more of that fungus and mechanical barriers.

Hope that helps satisfy your curiosity!!

In short you decontaminate pursuant to the protocols used in The Andromeda Strain.

Crichton himself couldn’t decide a better protocol

I have an open ceiling basement (you can see the pipes, values, etc), what's the best way to keep the Midwest creepy crawlies (centipedes, silver fish, spiders) to a minimum?

Do specific plants help (I've read mint is a repellent)? Smells?

best bet? finish the ceiling.
the unfortunate part of open ceilings it they provide lots of little cracks and crevices for insects to hide in.

a key thing for reducing centipedes is to reduce what they're eating, seeing a lot of them may be a sign of a bigger problem

Have any tips for Pantry Moths?

Remove infested sources, and start portioning stuff in sealed containers from now on

How often do you find yourself saying "sorry" as an American stereotype of Canadians goes?

Way to much

I currently work for a very large company that has a pest division. My pest guy talked me into checking them out over a year ago and I ended up applying and taking a job in their kitchen, pools, laundry division.

How do you feel about coming in contact with chemicals used in your line of work? Any good stories of interacting with the locals in your neighborhoods you service?

I approach them like you would a nuclear bomb, I've had one exposure and that was enough to scare me.

and one time I got to jam out on guitar with a bunch of the local homeless, that was pretty wholesome

In March, I hired a professional like you to tent the house and fumigate. He said I should not have to deal with termites for at least ten years. He provided two years warranty. I know fumigation won’t protect after it wears off. How can he say that I should be suitable for another ten years when termites can come back a week after? What stops them from coming back for years?

fumigation only works during the fumigation, thats the beauty of it. unfortunately, like in every industry, not everyone is honest

How do I get rid of mice? Like big ones

Big mice or rats? First step to getting rid of them is finding where they’re coming in and sealing it

Given the fact that insects play a crucial role as pollinators, do you ever attempt to re-home beehives you remove?

I do not personally, since I am not a bee keeper and would probably accidentally kill them. So instead I contact local bee keepers to come and take the colony

Is your name Dale Gribble?

Yes

Do you ever have to use rifles or guns ?

I’m my company they’re mainly used for bird control

I've heard of paramedics getting sick from fentanyl just from touching wallpaper that had some on it. Have you seen anyone complain of head pains and stuff with quick onset from your line of work?

Accidental exposure is a serious risk with all drugs not just fent, I never enter a job without gloves and I don’t touch things unless I fully intend to

Question about termites. Do the outside traps actually lure termites out or is that bs? Why would termites leave a warm, food filled structure?

Why can't wood inside houses be treated for termites anymore even with some precautions?

I’d love to provide insight but termites are extremely rare in my part of Canada, but from what I hear over the border they’re a real nightmare

Last year I had a few ants in the summer. A couple of ferro liquid traps laid down and no more ants. This year I saw ants digging under the wood in the from porch outside (none were inside) laid out ferro right by entrance. Next day lots of dead ants.. But.. Next day it seemed they moved their base indoors! Ferro traps got little to no attention! I tried borax and sugar and peanut butter as well. No interest! I then bought that advion gel the small ones seem to go for it but the bigger ones just ignore it. My last attempt is going to be some ant granuals I saw on Amazon. There has been way less ant traffic but I'd love them to be all dead. Am I screwed? Should I keep up my fight? Or call a professional?

With ants it can be tricky, depending on the species killing them to fast or using the wrong pesticides can cause budding, meaning they make new colonies

Ok, stupid question, but like if you see a fair amount of carpenter ants in your house that’s made of wood and they live in trees next to your house, are they nesting in the house? The other exterminator I called was just like “meh lemme spray around your house”. And they were seen toasted in the house like all dying and stuff but like I still see them a month later

That’s a tough one to say without seeing it in person, but good chance it would be all of the above

Do you use a lot of diatomaceous earth at home?

Generally not, it’s not great to breath in, and I have access to better.

Most people are using DE wrong and are risking lung damage

Is there a way to get rid of a nest of carpenter ants in the base of a tree? The ants have a satellite nest inside my house, but their main nest is in that tree and I don't know how to get rid of it. Even if I hire someone to cut down the tree -- which is big -- they would just all run away to a new tree.

Is there some kind of poison that would do the trick?

Granular baits on the outside, liquid on the inside followed by an exterior spray to stop the travel

Have you seen the Pesticide episode of Creepshow? Your description sounds just like the synopsis for that episode.

I have not, but I might just check it out

We call them junkies, vagabonds, nutters and criminals where I live. How do you get bonded to dispatch them?

I call them humans, everyone was someone’s child at some point, not everyone has the same opportunity we do