Scorpion control in Johannesburg

Scorpion control in Johannesburg is about the shelter around your house. Scorpions live under rocks, paving, rubble and wood, and wander indoors on warm nights through gaps under doors. We apply barrier treatments to the walls, thresholds and harbourage around the property, and show you which rockeries, piles and gaps to deal with so fewer make it inside.

Which scorpions you're likely to see

Gauteng's scorpions are mostly the burrowing and rock-dwelling kinds, and you can get a rough idea of the risk from their shape. The old rule of thumb is a good starting point: big pincers and a thin tail usually means a painful but less dangerous sting, while small pincers and a thick, heavy tail means a more potent venom and more caution. Many of the scorpions in Johannesburg gardens are large, dark burrowing scorpions with chunky pincers, which dig under paving and rocks. Smaller, often patterned scorpions shelter under stones, bark and loose bricks.

Any sting on a small child, an elderly person, or anyone who develops pins and needles, difficulty swallowing, breathing problems or muscle twitching needs medical help straight away. If you can safely take a photo of the scorpion, it helps the doctor.

Where scorpions live around a home

• Rockeries and stone retaining walls
• Under paving, stepping stones and garden ornaments
• Wood piles, stacked bricks and building rubble
• Under pot plants, especially ones standing on the ground
• Gaps under garage doors, outbuildings and Wendy houses
• Cracks in walls and around weep holes

Indoors, they turn up in bathrooms, kitchens, shoes left on the floor, piles of washing and boxes stored on the garage floor.

Why some parts of Johannesburg get more scorpions

The Witwatersrand is a city of ridges and rock, and wherever natural ground or rocky outcrops survive, scorpions are part of the landscape. Homes built into the ridges of Roodepoort and near the Walter Sisulu Botanical Garden, gardens bordering the Klipriviersberg in Johannesburg South, and estates and smallholdings in Midrand where veld meets new building all see more than the inner suburbs. Building work disturbs them too: clearing a stand or digging foundations often sends scorpions into neighbouring gardens.

When they're most active

Scorpions are night hunters and most active in the warm months, from spring to autumn. Hot, humid summer nights, especially after rain, are when they wander most and when people find them indoors. In winter they stay deep in their burrows and shelters, and sightings drop.

How we treat scorpions

1. Inspection. We walk the property to find the harbourage: rockeries, paving, rubble, walls and outbuildings, and the gaps they use to get indoors.
2. Perimeter barrier. We apply odourless, non-staining residual treatments to the base of outside walls, door thresholds, weep holes, garage door edges and window frames.
3. Harbourage treatment. Rockeries, retaining walls, paving edges, wood piles and outbuildings are treated where scorpions shelter.
4. Indoor spots. Bathrooms, kitchens and garages are treated along skirtings and entry points if scorpions are getting inside.
5. Proofing advice. We show you the gaps to seal and the shelter to remove.

Scorpions are tough, and no treatment makes a ridge property scorpion-free. What a good barrier treatment does is greatly reduce the numbers getting into the house. You don't need to leave home; keep children and pets off treated areas until they're dry.

What people get wrong

Building a new rockery right against the house. It looks lovely, but it's perfect scorpion habitat a step away from the back door. The other mistake is stacking firewood or building rubble against an outside wall "just for now". By summer it's a scorpion block of flats. Move rocks and piles away from the walls and keep a clear strip around the house.

Practical tips for scorpion areas

• Fit brush strips or rubber seals to the bottoms of outside doors and garage doors.
• Shake out shoes, boots and gloves before putting them on, and keep them off the floor.
• Don't walk barefoot outside at night in summer, and use a torch.
• Scorpions glow under ultraviolet light, so a UV torch makes checking the garden at night easy.
• Keep children's sandpits and toy boxes away from rockeries and walls.

What scorpion control costs, and why

The cost depends on the size of the property, the length of the perimeter, how much rockery, retaining wall and paving needs treating, and how many outbuildings are involved. A suburban house with a small garden is a fairly modest job; a large ridge property or a smallholding costs more. You'll find a guide price on our pest control fees page. If you see one scorpion a year, clearing rubble and fitting door seals may be all you need. Our scorpion guide explains more about species and behaviour, and spiders often share the same hiding spots; see spider treatments in Johannesburg.

Living near a ridge means scorpions come with the view, but they don't have to come into your bathroom. Our scorpion treatments carry a 3-month guarantee and we offer service within 24 hours, from a SAPCA registered business, registered with the Department of Agriculture, with 25 years of experience. Ring 084 200 2700, or WhatsApp us a photo taken from a safe distance.