Pest control in Vosloorus mostly comes down to four jobs: brown rats burrowing around houses and backyard rooms, German cockroaches in kitchens, bed bugs in bedrooms, and fleas and flies once summer arrives. Combat Pest Control serves Vosloorus from Johannesburg, and we treat the cause on the stand, not only the insects you can see.
What shapes pests in Vosloorus
Vosloorus is a big, busy township on the East Rand, south of Boksburg, with Katlehong close by. Stands are small and full. A typical yard has the main house, a couple of backyard rooms, a washing line, maybe a chicken run or a car being fixed, and a boundary wall shared with the neighbours on three sides. Older four-roomed houses sit next to RDP homes and newer double-storey extensions, and many households are larger than the house was designed for.
That density is exactly what pests use. A rat that lives under one wall feeds in three yards. Cockroaches move through the gaps where a backyard room was built against the main house. Bed bugs arrive in a second-hand couch or a bag from a long-distance trip and spread from room to room. Open ground and dumping spots along the edges of the township give rats a place to breed, and the Highveld summer, warm and wet from about October, speeds everything up.
The pests we treat most in Vosloorus
Brown rats
The heavy, ground-living brown rat is the main rodent here. It digs under paving and the foot of boundary walls, lives under rubble and old car parts, and comes inside through gaps under doors and around drain pipes. Chicken feed, dog food and refuse bags left overnight keep it fed. We place lockable bait stations that children and dogs cannot open, and our rat control across Johannesburg page explains the full method.
German cockroaches
These small brown cockroaches hide in kitchen cupboard hinges, behind the fridge, inside the microwave and under the two-plate stove. They are the main problem in shared kitchens, backyard rooms and spaza shops. Gel bait placed where they shelter clears them far better than a can of spray, which mostly sends them next door and back again.
Bed bugs
Itchy bites in a line, small blood spots on the sheets and a sweetish smell in the bedroom point to bed bugs. They hide in mattress seams, bed bases, headboards and the folds of curtains. Treating one bed while the children's room next door is left alone does not work, so we treat every sleeping area on the stand. There is more on how they spread on our bed bug treatment in Johannesburg page.
Fleas, flies and ants
Fleas breed where dogs sleep, in bare sandy yards and under beds. Houseflies build up around refuse, chicken runs and open drains in summer. Ants come in before the rain. These are often treated together on one visit, along with the dogs being treated by their owner at the same time.
The danger of street poison
The biggest mistake we see in townships is the use of unlabelled poison bought from hawkers at taxi ranks and on street corners. Much of it is a farm chemical that is illegal to sell for household use. It kills dogs, cats and chickens, and children have been badly poisoned by it, because it often looks like small grains or sweets. It also does nothing about where the rats live. If you have some at home, store it far out of reach and stop using it.
How a visit works
We walk the whole stand first: the main house, every backyard room, the yard and the boundary walls. That tells us where the rats are burrowing, which rooms the cockroaches or bed bugs are using and what is feeding them. Insect treatments are odourless and do not stain, and nobody has to move out. Keep children and pets off sprayed surfaces until they are dry. For creches, spaza shops and takeaways we can set up a regular monitoring visit with a written service record.
A Vosloorus tip
Treat the main house and the backyard rooms on the same day, and talk to the neighbour about doing the same. On stands this close together, a cockroach or bed bug treatment in one room only buys a few weeks before they walk back in from the next one.
What it costs and why
The price depends on how many rooms and buildings are on the stand, which pest we are treating and how heavy the problem is. A cockroach treatment of one kitchen is a small job. Bed bugs in several rooms, or rats burrowing across a full yard, take more time and often a follow-up visit. Our pest control price guide shows the guide "from" prices, and we confirm the cost before we start. If a single mouse is all you have seen, a snap trap may be enough and we will say so.
We work across the East Rand, including pest control in Katlehong and in Boksburg, and our main Johannesburg pest control page covers everything we treat.
Combat is owned and run by Jason van Heerden, who has 25 years in pest control. We are SAPCA registered and registered with the Department of Agriculture under Act 36, we offer service within 24 hours, and general treatments carry a 3-month guarantee. Phone 084 200 2700, or send us a photo on WhatsApp and we will tell you what you are dealing with.
Questions we get asked
How much does pest control cost in Vosloorus?
It depends on the number of rooms, the pest and how bad it is. One kitchen with cockroaches costs far less than bed bugs in several rooms. Our price page shows guide prices and we confirm the cost before starting.
Is the rat bait safe with small children in the yard?
Yes, because it sits inside lockable stations that children and dogs cannot open. We also place stations along walls and away from where children play.
Do we have to leave the house during treatment?
No. You can stay home. Keep children and pets off treated surfaces until they are dry, which usually takes a few hours.
Can you treat the backyard rooms as well?
Yes, and we recommend it. Cockroaches and bed bugs move between the main house and the rooms, so we treat every room on the stand on the same visit.
How do I know if it is bed bugs or fleas?
Bed bug bites usually appear in a line on the upper body and you will find small dark spots on the mattress seams. Flea bites are mostly around the ankles and are common where dogs sleep.
What should I do before you arrive?
Clear the kitchen cupboards onto a table, strip the beds if we are treating bed bugs, and put pets in a closed room or a neighbour's yard.
Do you service spaza shops and creches?
Yes. We can do once-off treatments or a regular monitoring visit with a written record of each service.