Gardens takes its name from the Company's Garden, and the squirrels in there have been raising families in neighbouring roofs for generations. Add the restaurants on Kloof Street, old Victorian semis and a lot of flats, and you get a busy mix of pest work.
Stored product pests in Gardens: what we see
Restaurants, bakeries and delis need regular stored-product checks, and households see weevils and pantry moths now and then.
Victorian and Edwardian semis with corrugated iron roofs, broekie lace stoeps and wooden floors sit alongside blocks of flats and modern apartments. Old houses have hollow walls and suspended floors, so mice and rats can move through without being seen. Restaurants, coffee shops and bars along Kloof Street sit below residential flats. Many homes are rentals with frequent turnover.
Gardens lies on the lower slopes below Table Mountain, between the city centre and Kloof Nek. The Company's Garden and its old trees are a squirrel haven. Winter rain runs down from the mountain, and in summer the South-Easter tumbles down off the mountain into the streets.
Squirrels and roof rats in ceilings are the classic call. German cockroaches in restaurant kitchens and the flats above them come next, followed by Argentine ants and fishmoths in the old houses.
How to tell you have a problem
- Bare patches show up in woollen rugs or carpets under beds, sofas and other heavy furniture.
- You find small silk tubes or cases stuck to fabric, carpets or the corners of cupboards.
- Small whitish caterpillars crawl up pantry walls or across the ceiling looking for somewhere to pupate.
- Small pale moths flutter away when you open a wardrobe or move clothes on the rail.
Clothes moths can ruin expensive wool and silk clothing, heirloom blankets, wool carpets and upholstery, and the damage is often only noticed months later. Pantry moths contaminate food with webbing, droppings and larvae, and infested food must be thrown away. For retailers, hotels, guesthouses and textile businesses, moth damage to stock or furnishings means real financial loss. Neither moth is known to carry disease, but both spread from room to room and cupboard to cupboard if they are ignored.
Worth knowing
Spraying the wardrobe and leaving the infested clothes inside is the most common mistake we see. The clothes need to come out and be washed, frozen or dry cleaned.
A technician's first stop is under heavy furniture and at the edges of carpets, where clothes moth larvae feed undisturbed.
How the treatment works
Identifying the moth correctly matters most, because clothes moths and pantry moths are treated in completely different places. For clothes moths we remove and sort affected textiles, recommend washing at high temperature, dry cleaning or freezing, vacuum carpets and wardrobe floors thoroughly, and apply a residual treatment to carpet edges, skirting boards and the inside of cupboards, with an insect growth regulator where the infestation is heavy. For pantry moths we find and remove all infested food, vacuum shelving, and treat cracks and crevices where larvae pupate, keeping treatment away from food. In both cases we place species-specific pheromone traps to monitor results, since these catch male moths and show quickly whether the problem is under control.
Want the full step-by-step? See how our moth control service works.
Stopping a repeat visit
- Vacuum under beds, sofas and along carpet edges regularly, since moths thrive in dark, undisturbed spots.
- Wash or dry clean woollens before packing them away for summer, because moths prefer fabric with sweat and food stains on it.
- Take clothes out of the wardrobe and shake them every few weeks, as clothes moths dislike disturbance and light.
- Keep cereals, nuts, dried fruit and pet food in airtight containers, and check birdseed before bringing it inside.
- Freeze second-hand woollens, rugs or vintage clothing for a few days before putting them with your own things.
What affects the price
The cost depends on whether it is a clothes moth or pantry moth problem, the number of rooms or cupboards involved, and whether carpets and upholstery need treatment. Larger homes, guesthouses and retail spaces with many wardrobes or storage areas take more time and may need a follow-up visit. We give a free quote, usually after seeing photos or doing a quick inspection.
Both moths are more active in warm weather, so problems usually become obvious from late spring through summer. Clothes moth damage is often discovered in autumn when people pull their winter woollens out of storage for the first cold front. Heated homes and warm pantries can see moth activity all year round.
Moth Control questions from Gardens
Are pheromone traps enough on their own?
No. They catch male moths and show you how bad the problem is, but they do not kill the larvae doing the damage. They work best alongside cleaning and treatment.
Do old Victorian houses in Gardens have more borer?
They often do, because many still have original timber floors and roof structures. A beetle certificate inspection will show whether there is active infestation that needs treatment.
Do you come out to Gardens for moth control?
Yes. Gardens is part of our regular City Bowl & Atlantic Seaboard route, along with Tamboerskloof, Oranjezicht, Vredehoek, Higgovale. Most bookings are done within about 48 hours, and after-hours visits can be arranged.
Are the squirrels in my Gardens roof from the Company's Garden?
Very likely. Grey squirrels travel from the garden and the trees along the streets into roofs, often through gaps at the fascia. Sealing those gaps once the roof is empty is the lasting fix.
How long does it take to get rid of moths?
With a proper clean-out and treatment, activity drops quickly, but we keep monitoring for several weeks because eggs and larvae can survive in hidden spots.
Why are there holes in only some of my jerseys?
Clothes moth larvae prefer wool and silk that has sweat or food stains on it, and they feed in dark, undisturbed spots, so items worn less often are usually hit hardest.
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