The 5 day lapse is now 7 and its from the poison. maintenance guy said (when he checked) that the rats are not eating the bait in the drop ceilings but they are eating the poison in the basement. He found no dead rats anywhere as I think they left to look for a water source. However, the rats are still there and alive and well as they must be new rats that have gotten in house from the urine trail smell and see the poison in basement and are eating that and NOT going into the brick wall with a large hole that is behind our bedroom wall. that is how they get into the ceilings and walls.

Now maintenance man said this house is too old to fix the hole on brick wall in basement and does not know where to even look for holes on outside of house. I am so pissed and we are looking for a new place to move to but we are still here now and need this fixed. New tenants that look at this apt and decide to rent it are going to be moving into a rat place and will have them in here with them for sure.

Where Should the maintenance man look for on outside? Can you give me a list of where he should look and all the things he needs in order to keep the rats out?

Sounds like the maintenance man is short on time and motivation. The hole in the brick wall can be covered with sheet metal, but he would have to know how to attach it to masonry. Rats only need a 1-inch hole, so on the outside you have to look everywhere. A snowfall would be very helpful, as rat tracks are then obvious.

WOW! I would have never thought of rat tracks in the snow! I am thinking that they "tunnel" under things. Would you know how to attach this metal on brick wall? I am hoping he does. I will tell him of this, Its a shame that I am doing all of the research for landlord and telling him and worker on what needs to be done in order to first kill with proper poison and then where to seal on holes I have found with everyday living here as well as by walking my dog and seeing things on outside of house....

Clearly, it is not your responsibility to find the solution to this problem. Use Google to locate a lengthy list of pest exterminators in your community and send it to your landlord.

I believe that you should expect to live in a vermin free residence. That your landlord isn't taking that obligation seriously could be your way out of the lease should you decide to pack up and move.

...but as a practical matter, you may just have to keep setting out traps and do your own quickie repairs in the meantime. If this is an older rundown building with many voids and cracks, it may be hard to keep the rats out on your own.

Rats might tunnel under deep snow if they know where it leads, but would not bother tunneling under the first snows of the season.