Cricket Control Masiphumelele

Masiphumelele, or Masi as most people call it, sits on Kommetjie Road beside the Noordhoek wetlands. It's a dense community where formal houses, backyard rooms and informal structures stand close together, so pests spread quickly from one home to the next.

Crawling insects around Masiphumelele

German cockroaches are common in kitchens and spaza shops. Ants come in during summer.

There are brick houses and flats in the formal part, surrounded by informal homes built from timber and corrugated iron. Shared walls, narrow lanes and limited storage space make it hard to keep food sealed, which draws rodents and cockroaches. Informal structures on low ground can be flooded in winter, pushing rats into drier homes.

Something most people miss

Crickets sometimes damage stored clothing, curtains and cardboard in damp outbuildings. If you use a garage or storeroom for storage, dry it out and box things in plastic.

Crickets are not dangerous to children or pets, so there is no need to panic or use strong products indoors. A perimeter treatment keeps the products outside, away from living areas.

How to tell you have a problem

1. Birds and hadedas probing the lawn intensively, which is often a sign of mole crickets or other insects underneath.
2. Crickets sheltering in the garage, under appliances or behind skirting boards.
3. Patches of grass that brown and die, and lift easily because the roots have been cut.
4. Raised, soft ridges and tunnels in the lawn, especially after watering.
5. Small chewed holes in clothing, curtains or paper stored in damp places.

Crickets do not bite people or spread disease in any meaningful way. Indoors, the main issues are lost sleep, droppings and small amounts of damage to fabrics, carpets and stored paper. Mole crickets are a bigger problem for property, because their tunnels cut grass roots and can damage lawns, sports fields and seedlings badly. Large numbers of crickets attracted to lights also draw in spiders and geckos, and sometimes scorpions.

How we handle cricket control in Masiphumelele

Indoors, we focus on finding where the crickets are coming in and hiding, then apply a residual treatment to entry points, door thresholds, garage edges and other hiding spots. Granular baits can be used around the perimeter of the house to reduce numbers before they reach the walls. For mole crickets, the lawn is treated with a targeted product and watered in so it reaches the tunnels, and timing matters because young mole crickets near the surface are easier to control. We use the least-toxic effective option and avoid spraying open living areas.

Want the full step-by-step? See how our cricket control service works.

Prevention that actually works

• Water the lawn deeply but less often, as constantly damp soil suits mole crickets.
• Clear leaf litter, mulch, firewood and garden rubbish away from the walls of the house.
• Keep the garage and storeroom tidy and dry, since crickets love damp cardboard and clutter.
• Fit brush strips under exterior doors and garage doors so crickets cannot walk straight in.
• Seal cracks in walls and around window frames, and check that airbricks have intact mesh.

How much will it cost?

The cost depends on whether it is an indoor nuisance, a lawn problem or both, and on the size of the property and garden. A large lawn with widespread mole cricket damage takes more product and time than a perimeter treatment for a house. Follow-up treatments, if needed to catch a second generation, are included in a free quote upfront.

Field crickets are loudest and most noticeable in the warm months from late spring through summer. They often move indoors in autumn as the nights cool down and the first rains arrive. Mole cricket damage to lawns shows up most in spring and summer when they are active near the surface.

Cricket Control questions from Masiphumelele

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