Table View is big, busy and windy, with the famous postcard view of Table Mountain across the bay. Between the beachfront, the Rietvlei wetland and the shopping strips along Blaauwberg Road, we see a bit of everything here.
Crawling insects around Table View
Black ants and Argentine ants nest in the sandy soil and trail inside in summer. German cockroaches are common in flats and food outlets, and fishmoths like the stored boxes in garages.
Much of the suburb is face-brick family homes from the seventies onward, with plenty of newer townhouse complexes and apartment blocks filling in the gaps. Busy centres and restaurants along Blaauwberg Road and Koeberg Road bring commercial pest work. Many homes have flat-roofed extensions and wendy houses that create easy shelter for rodents.
Ants and German cockroaches are probably our most common calls, with mosquitoes close behind for homes near Rietvlei. Rats and mice keep restaurants and complexes busy, and pigeons foul the shopping centres and flat roofs.
Tell-tale signs
- There is a faint musty, oily smell in a cupboard that has not been opened for a while.
- Crickets chirp loudly from inside the house at night but go quiet when you get close.
- Dead insects collect on window sills, in light fittings or along the bottom of the garage door.
- Cockroaches dart away when you switch on the kitchen or bathroom light at night.
Cockroaches move between drains, bins and food surfaces and can spread bacteria that cause stomach upsets. Their droppings and shed skins are a recognised trigger for allergies and asthma. Fishmoths damage paper, documents, photographs and starched fabrics, which matters a lot in offices, schools and archives. In food premises, a crawling insect sighting by a customer or an inspector can do lasting damage to a business's reputation.
From the technician
For homes with toddlers and pets, crawling insect work is one of the easier jobs to do safely, because the products go into cracks, hinges and voids that little hands cannot reach.
People are often surprised that the cleanest kitchens can have German cockroaches. They usually arrive in cardboard boxes, second-hand appliances or grocery deliveries, and a warm motor compartment behind a fridge is all they need.
Our process, step by step
Crawling insects walk through treated areas and carry baits back to their nests, which is exactly why baits and dusts work so well on them. We use gel baits in cracks and hinges for cockroaches and slow-acting ant baits that the workers take home to the queen. Insect growth regulators stop young cockroaches from maturing and breeding, which matters for German cockroaches that multiply fast. Residual sprays are applied as a barrier along entry points, door thresholds and drain areas rather than across open floors. Dusts go into wall voids, ceiling spaces and plug points where liquids should not be used.
Want the full step-by-step? See how our crawling insect control service works.
Stopping a repeat visit
- Store books and documents in sealed plastic boxes in dry rooms rather than in damp garages.
- Check second-hand furniture, appliances and cardboard boxes before bringing them inside, as German cockroaches often move house this way.
- Seal gaps under exterior doors with a brush strip, because most crawling insects simply walk in.
- Move firewood, compost and piles of bricks away from the house walls.
- Do not leave dishes in the sink overnight, since a wet sink is a feeding station for cockroaches.
How much will it cost?
Cost is driven by the species and how established the infestation is, with German cockroaches in a busy kitchen usually needing more work than a one-off ant trail. The size of the property, the number of units or rooms affected, and access to roof spaces and drains also matter. Where a follow-up treatment is needed to catch hatching insects, or where a business wants a regular service contract, we build that into a free quote upfront.
The first heavy rains in late autumn and winter push ants, cockroaches, crickets and millipedes indoors in large numbers. Summer heat brings American cockroaches out of drains and sends ants foraging hard for water. German cockroaches and fishmoths do not care much about the season because they live inside heated buildings all year.
Questions we get asked in Table View
Can crawling insects come from my neighbour?
Yes, particularly in flats, townhouses and semi-detached homes that share walls, drains and roof spaces. Treating several units together gives much better results.
What counts as a crawling insect?
Anything that mainly walks rather than flies: cockroaches, ants, fishmoths, crickets, earwigs, millipedes and scorpions. They hide in cracks and voids, which is why they are treated with baits, dusts and barriers.
Is the treatment safe around food?
We use gel baits and targeted applications in cracks rather than spraying food areas. Food should be covered or put away during treatment, and we will explain what to wipe down afterwards.
Do you come out to Table View for crawling insect control?
Yes. Table View is part of our regular Blaauwberg & West Coast route, along with Bloubergstrand, Parklands, Milnerton, West Beach. Most bookings are done within about 48 hours, and after-hours visits can be arranged.
Why do I get ants in my Table View house every summer?
The sandy soil here is perfect for ant nests, often right under paving or along your foundations. Targeted baiting near the nest gives longer relief than spraying the trails.
Are the mosquitoes in Table View worse near Rietvlei?
Yes, homes along the wetland edge get the most. We can treat breeding spots on your property and advise on screens, but the vlei itself is a protected wetland and stays as it is.
Office 021 012 5825 · WhatsApp 074 697 2254