Rondebosch is old Cape Town: oak trees, Victorian houses, big schools and the UCT campus spilling down the slope toward Main Road.
Flying insects around Rondebosch
Mosquitoes breed along the Liesbeek and in shaded garden water, and clothes moths damage wool and rugs in older homes.
The Liesbeek River runs through Rondebosch and Rondebosch Common is a large open space in the middle of the suburb. Table Mountain's eastern slopes and the forests above Newlands bring heavy winter rain and a lot of tree cover. Damp, shady gardens and river banks are good rat and mosquito habitat.
There's a real mix. Victorian and Edwardian homes with timber floors and pressed-ceiling roofs sit next to student digs, blocks of flats and large school and university buildings.
Something most people miss
Buzzing bug zappers in a kitchen can do more harm than good, because they can scatter insect fragments around. Glue board light traps are the better choice anywhere near food.
How to tell you have a problem
Tick every sign you have noticed. It takes ten seconds.
Why it matters: House flies and blowflies land on rubbish and faeces and then on food, so they move bacteria such as Salmonella and E. coli onto surfaces you eat from. Mosquitoes are mostly a nuisance and a cause of poor sleep in the Western Cape, but bites can become infected when children scratch them. Paper wasps sting readily when a nest is bumped, which is a real concern for anyone allergic to stings. For food businesses, visible flies are one of the quickest ways to fail a health inspection or lose a customer.
What happens when we come out
We start by identifying the insect properly, because a drain fly needs a completely different fix from a house fly or a mosquito. Breeding sites come first: drains are cleaned out and treated with a larvicide or bio-enzyme product, standing water is tipped or treated, and waste areas are sorted out. Only then do we use residual sprays on resting surfaces such as window frames and wall tops, fly bait stations away from food, and ULV fogging where a large space needs a quick knockdown. In commercial kitchens and food stores we install insect light traps with glue boards so there is constant monitoring between visits. Wasp nests are treated with a dust or spray directly into the nest and removed once the colony is dead.
Want the full step-by-step? See how our flying insect control service works.
Keeping them out afterwards
- Pour boiling water down slow drains weekly and scrub the inside of the drain pipe with a brush, since that slime is where drain flies breed.
- Store flour, cereal and pet food in sealed containers so pantry moths have nothing to breed in.
- Tip out pot plant saucers, birdbaths and anything else that holds water for more than a few days.
- Check eaves, carports and garden furniture in early spring for small paper wasp nests while they are still easy to deal with.
- Keep wheelie bins closed, rinse them out in summer, and park them away from the kitchen door.
Pricing, honestly
The price depends on which insect we are treating, because a single wasp nest is a very different job from a fly problem in a large food factory. The size of the property, how many breeding sites there are and how hard they are to get at, such as roof voids or sealed drains, all affect the time on site. Commercial sites with light traps and scheduled visits are usually best quoted as a contract, and we give free quotes once we know what is flying.
Flying insects peak from about October to March, when hot weather speeds up breeding and a fly can go from egg to adult in around a week. The south-easter keeps numbers down on the exposed side of the city but pushes flies indoors in sheltered suburbs, and mosquitoes often surge after the last winter rains leave water lying around. Wasps build their nests in spring and are at their most defensive in late summer when colonies are biggest.
Frequently asked questions
Do you come out to Rondebosch for flying insect control?
Yes. Rondebosch is part of our regular Southern Suburbs route, along with Newlands, Rosebank, Claremont, Rondebosch East. Most bookings are done within about 48 hours, and after-hours visits can be arranged.
Can you treat a whole business, not just a house?
Yes. Restaurants, food factories, warehouses and offices usually go onto a contract with scheduled visits, monitoring and a report for each service.
Is fogging safe for my pets and children?
Fogging is only used where it is needed, and people and pets stay out until the product has settled and the room has been aired. We tell you exactly how long to wait before we start.
Why do I still have flies after spraying?
Because spray only kills the adults that are flying at the time. New ones keep hatching from the breeding site, so until that is found and dealt with, the flies keep coming back.
What are the tiny flies around my bathroom drain?
They are almost always drain flies, also called moth flies. They breed in the gel-like film inside drains, so cleaning the pipe properly works far better than spraying the walls.
Can you treat a student house in Rondebosch during the holidays?
Yes, holidays are the best time because rooms are empty and can be treated properly. Weekend and after-hours visits can also be arranged on request.
Office 021 012 5825 · WhatsApp us
