Customer Reviews

Agri Zap RZCOO1 Rat Zapper Classic

5 star:		(152)
4 star:		(29)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(9)
1 star:		(12)

 

 

I have been using two Rat Zappers for a few months now, with mixed results. They seem to work most reliably when the batteries are absolutely fresh. In particular, ordinary alkaline batteries seem to be good for one or two kills only. The recommended (and considerably more expensive) lithium batteries last a little longer, but the claim of "3 months or 15 rodent kills" seems to be marketing hype. Even with the optional "Rat Pack," the lethality diminishes rapidly after a few kills. Without absolutely new batteries, I often find the kill light will be flashing but nothing will be in the trap, suggesting that a rat received a non-lethal shock. That is a rodent that has now been trained to never set foot in such a trap again.

What this product desperately needs is an AC adapter, so it can deliver consistently lethal shocks where an outlet is available. Alternatively, some better mechanism for determining when it's time to replace the batteries would be helpful, besides trying to judge spark length or the relative brightness of the LED indicator.

I have found traditional snap traps to be more consistently effective for rat control, though I still use the Rat Zappers in areas where snap traps would be a danger to pets or children. Just be prepared to spend a fortune on batteries.

I set it up the evening I bought it. I found that a mouse was caught the next morning. Reset it before I went to work. Got another one after I was back! After Zapper killed 11 of them, I declared my house is rodent-free! How can I tell? I scattered some dog food around, all of them were still there days later. I didn't bother to figure which one was mouse and which one was rat. But, some of them were quite big.

I have a tip to offer. After several kills, the Zapper may get the smell of the dead rodents. The remaining ones won't come in any more. You have to clean it up using vinegar and dish detergent as documented on their web site. Those stupid rodents will come back in again.

My dog had been chasing a roof rat around in the yard for 2 weeks, she couldn't catch him cause roof rats like to hang out up in the trees. The instructions on the zapper say to put food in it and not turn it on for a few days. Let the rat get comfortable around the new object. I have no patience and I put it out in the shed and turned it on. The second night I had my dead rat. Bought 2 zappers for the warehouse at work and in a couple weeks we killed the entire family. 2 adults, 3 teenagers and 2 babies. No one is eating the food now so we think we have them all. Expect more will move in when it gets cold though.
The zapper is not only the most humane way to kill rats and mice it is the most effective and there is no blood and guts. Well worth the money.

I have had a doggie door into my garage for over 10 years, but have never had a problem with unwanted visitors coming in thru it - until now. First I found a little pile of insulation under my water heater in the garage. Then I found a little wad of that same insulation at the foot of the stairs leading up to my attic. That was when I realized that the little bugger(s) had gotten into the attic/bonus room area thru the small hole where the pipes from the water heater enter the house! Then I saw some droppings on those stairs where there was none just a few days before, so this was a pretty quick invasion. I've never had a mouse or rat problem before and dreaded the thought of conventional traps or baits. Went on-line to see what alternatives there might be and found the Zapper. When I got home that night, I found some droppings in my kitchen at the corner of my stove, so they were INSIDE now - this was war!! Found a location to purchase it locally, set it up but didn't turn it on until I saw that a piece of the dogfood that comes with it had disappeared. About 12 hours after first putting it out, I turned it on - about midnight. Got up early the next morning and immediately saw that light flashing. Had me a little mousie, which I dumped in a plastic bag and threw away in my outside trash without touching anything! Re-set it and went to work and had another when I got home - large enough that it's ratty little tail was sticking out, so maybe a small rat. Anyway, I keep resetting it in my kitchen and I keep getting them. I don't know if they're somehow getting into the living area of the house from the attic or if I had that many in there with me all along. Gives me chills to think so! Anyway, since I'm still getting them inside, I'm getting another Zapper for the attic, with a rat tale so I can see when I've got one without having to keep going up there to check. Eight so far in as many days, still on 4 regular alkaline batteries. I HIGHLY recommend the Zapper - it couldn't be easier and is very effective.

I've had my Zapper for four days and in those four days I have caught 4 mice(yuk!). If you see one mouse, best believe there are 4 or more elswhere in your home. But, since you never see them all at once you think you're seeing the same mouse over and over. Nevertheless, the Zapper has confirmed what I already knew; there is a family making a home in my home(which is unacceptable!!). If you go to the official site you can purchase it for a little under $39.00, including shipping. I paid a bit more for my Zapper ($48.50) at a local hardware store, but I'm glad I made the purchase. Just knowing that those useless, bacteria carrying critters will no longer run freely in my home is enough for me.

While I was living in California, I had problems with rats. I tried the rat zapper because I didn't want to poison rats and then have them die under my deck. Following the enclosed instructions, I prebaited the zapper without arming it. I then went away on vacation and the rats had plenty of time to get used to its presence. After arming it, I caught 3 or 4 rats over a period of about 6 weeks. I rate the zapper 4 rather than 5 for several reasons: (1) sometimes those overfed rats didn't slide out so smoothly, (2) it made me a bit nervous to have the zapper in a yard with a dog (I positioned the zapper so she couldn't get at it), and (3) I think I had some rats left over that were too smart to fall for it. But I felt I got my money's worth and there was no decaying rat smell to suffer through. I recommend handling the box and bait with gloves to reduce the human smell, and I think the conditioning recommended by the instructions is essential.

I read the other reviews and will add my two cents that this thing REALLY WORKS! I've tried using other methods with mixed results, but with the Rat Zapper, I have been very successful at reducing the surrounding population of rodentiae. Might want to keep it away from the squirrels, if you want to keep them. It can't tell the difference between squirrels and rats!
The one gentleman is right about the batteries. If the company would come up with a successful adapter, it would sell like hotcakes. However, the portability feature of using batteries is quite nice as well. Besides, this makes it very easy for using in protected outdoor areas. The price seems a little stiff at first, but when you consider the cost of calling out an exterminator who will spread poison through your house (which will allow the rodents to die in your walls--and it takes a WEEK for the stink to go away), the price is very affordable.

All in all, if you buy this item and use it the way the instructions say, you will be successful. And that is the whole point of buying something like this--to get rid of those disgusting creatures (as my wife is so willing to say):)

I have to admit that when I first spotted this little gizmo at the local hardward store I laughed. It seemed like one of those late night TV specials: but wait there's more! How could something like this ever work? And the price is so much higher than traditional wire traps.

Then we got the rats. Our neighborhood is infested. Oh, we foamed all the possible entrances and used an exterminator service. No luck (or, rather, the exterminator had plenty of "luck" but we still had rats coming into the house, foraging in the kitchen and making noise in the attic at night)

We have children, so poison and traditional traps and glue coated paper all pose concerns. It's one thing for the exterminator to place traps in the attic or crawl space, but you don't want these in your kitchen (and poison gets you dead rodents under the house). All bad choices.

I got the Rat Zapper 2000.

Bait it with peanut butter or avocado (or even the rat bait blocks--they're not sticky or messy and, duh, rats and mice go for them) and it seems to vacuum up the rodents, luring them in, one-by-one, to a clean but perfectly lethal dining experience. There is nothing like coming downstairs to the kitchen in the morning to a little red flashing light. In a week: all gone. And you never have to touch them. And there is no blood and gore. The big 'uns tails may hang out the back, but otherwise all you do is pick up the trap and empty it into the trash.

An amazing product. If you have rodents, this is the best method of eliminating them I've found.

I have been using two Rat Zappers for a few months now, with mixed results. They seem to work most reliably when the batteries are absolutely fresh. In particular, ordinary alkaline batteries seem to be good for one or two kills only. The recommended (and considerably more expensive) lithium batteries last a little longer, but the claim of "3 months or 15 rodent kills" seems to be marketing hype. Even with the optional "Rat Pack," the lethality diminishes rapidly after a few kills. Without absolutely new batteries, I often find the kill light will be flashing but nothing will be in the trap, suggesting that a rat received a non-lethal shock. That is a rodent that has now been trained to never set foot in such a trap again.

What this product desperately needs is an AC adapter, so it can deliver consistently lethal shocks where an outlet is available. Alternatively, some better mechanism for determining when it's time to replace the batteries besides trying to judge spark length or the relative brightness of the LED indicator.

I have found traditional snap traps to be more consistently effective for rat control, though I still use the Rat Zappers in areas where snap traps would be a danger to pets or children. Just be prepared to spend a fortune on batteries.

Being an animal lover, I reluctantly admit the necessity of dispatching mice, but hate the other methods - snap traps, glue traps, poison... even live catch and release is a slow death sentence during a bitterly cold Chicago winter. The Rat Zapper made sense to me. My entire family was skeptical, but I decided to get one anyway. I was the one feeling smug after we killed 11 mice in the first 27 hours of use. It's not 100% - we had a few escape - but when it works, the mice are dead, quickly, and I imagine relatively painlessly. No horrible lingering messes like some of the other traps can cause. I absolutely recommend this - you won't be sorry!