Crawford Bird Proofing

Crawford is a settled suburb where many families have lived in the same house for decades, adding rooms as the family grew. The work here is steady household stuff: rats in the roof, cockroaches in the kitchen and ants once summer arrives.

The local picture in Crawford

Pigeons nest on flat roofs and under solar geysers, bringing droppings and sometimes mites. Spikes or netting on their favourite ledges usually sorts it out.

You'll find solid freestanding houses and semis on modest plots, often with outside rooms, garages and flat-roofed additions built on over the years. Where an old roof meets a newer extension there is very often a gap, and rodents find it quickly. Houses sit close together, so a problem next door can be yours within a week. Corner shops and takeaways along the busier roads around Kromboom Road add food businesses to the mix.

Rats are the main call, roof rats in ceilings and Norway rats under outside rooms. German cockroaches follow kitchens, and big American cockroaches come up from drains in the warmer months. Ants in the sandy gardens are constant from spring to autumn.

Something most people miss

Bird proofing involves no poison at all, which makes it a good option for homes with children, dogs and cats.

How to tell you have a problem

1. Birds regularly perching in the same spots over doorways or walkways.
2. Tiny mites crawling on walls or bedding near a nest site.
3. Twigs, grass and feathers sticking out from under roof tiles or panels.
4. A sour smell around a roof area where birds have been nesting for a long time.

Our process, step by step

We start by watching where the birds actually land and nest, because proofing the wrong ledge is a waste of money. Ledges and beams get bird spikes or tensioned wire systems that stop birds settling. Larger open areas such as courtyards, loading bays and light wells get bird netting fixed to a frame so birds cannot get in at all. Gaps under solar panels and roof tiles are closed with mesh or panel skirting so pigeons cannot nest underneath. Old nests and droppings are removed first, and if bird mites are present we treat the area as well.

Want the full step-by-step? See how our bird proofing service works.

Prevention that actually works

• Deal with the first nest quickly. Pigeons that breed on a site get attached to it.
• Close off broken air vents, missing tiles and open eaves as soon as you notice them.
• Do not feed pigeons near your home or business. A reliable food source keeps them coming back.
• Fit mesh skirting around new solar panels at installation, before birds discover the gap.
• Clean gutters before winter, and check for nesting material at the same time.

Pricing, honestly

The cost depends on how many areas need proofing, how high they are and how much access equipment is needed. Netting a large courtyard or a warehouse roof is a bigger job than spiking a few ledges. Clean-out of heavy droppings and any mite treatment are included in the free quote once we have done the site survey.

Pigeons breed throughout the year in Cape Town, so proofing is a year-round job. We see a rush in late winter and spring when birds start nesting heavily, and again before the winter rains when people find their gutters blocked.

Questions we get asked in Crawford

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