How to identify pests at home

Mosquitoes, flies and rats may carry diseases, and can bring these into your home, while other insects can destroy clothing, books and timber. Efekto has developed a range of protection products that are safe for use indoors.

Ants

Description: Small, dark-brown insects.
Location: Found around foodstuffs and water. Hide in warm, dark places.
Protect with: Efekto Ant Dust, Efekto Ant, Antrap, Efekto Fendona 6SC, Aqua Fumigator, Efekto No Insect Indoors RTU Ant.

Bedbugs

Description: Oval insect with flat body that feeds on blood.
Location: Lives in bedding. Can survive for up to a year with no blood.
Protect with: Efekto Fendona 6SC, Efekto Fumitabs,Efekto No Insect Indoors SC, Efekto No Roach 25 SC, Aqua Fumigator, Efekto No Insect Indoors RTU Fleas and Bedbugs.

Crickets

Description: Insects with a 12-18 mm long cylindrical body, dark brown to black. Rounded wings almost cover their bodies.
Location: Commonly found in fields or gardens, where they feed on a variety of plants. Indoors they can feed on fabric, such as cotton, linen, silk, and wool.
Protect with: Efekto Bexadust, Efekto Karbadust.

Cockroaches

Description: German, American and Oriental species from light to dark brown (5-50 mm). Eggs are laid in capsules that hatch in two weeks. Become an adult in 6-8 weeks.
Location: Found around foodstuffs. Hides in warm, dark places.
Protect with: Efekto Ant, Efekto Bexadust, Efekto Fendona 6SC, Efekto Fumitabs, Efekto No Insect Indoors SC, Efekto No Roach 25 SC, Efekto Zero Roach Bait, Aqua Fumigator Efekto No Insect Indoors RTU Cockroach.
Natural protection: Efekto Trap-A-Roach.

Fleas

Description: Small, flat, light brown insects that jump.
Location: Feed on blood and move in between feathers and hair.
Protect with: Efekto Ant, Efekto Fendona 6SC, Efekto No Insect Indoors SC, Efekto Karbadust, Efekto No Insect Indoors RTU Fleas and Bedbugs, Aqua Fumigator.

Flies

Description: The house fly has a soft tongue hanging from its head and breeds in dung.
Location: Houses, dairies, foodprocessing establishments.
Protect with: Efekto Fly Trap, Efekto Fendona 6SC, Efekto Fumitabs, Efekto No Insect Indoors SC, Aqua Fumigator, Efekto No Insect Indoors RTU Flying Insects, Red Top Fly Trap.

Fish moths

Description: Silver-grey insects up to 1.5cm long that live for 2-8 years.
Location: Feed on glue found in the binders of books, starch, meal, cotton, rayon, and silk.
Protect with: Efekto Bexadust, Efekto Fendona 6SC, Efekto Naphthalene Marbles, Efekto No Insect Indoors SC, Aqua Fumigator,Efekto No Insect Indoors RTU Flying Insects.

Hide and skin beetle larvae

Description: measure 4 to 5 mm in length and have coarse hairs on their bodies. They are generally carrotshaped to oval-shaped and brown to tan in colour, with white and tan stripes.
Location: Clothing, carpets, upholstered furniture and more. They also feed on dead insects, hides, milled products, pet food, crumbs, lint, felt and soiled clothing.
Protect with: Efekto Fendona 6SC, Efekto Karbaspray, Aqua Fumigator, Efekto Karbadust, Efekto Malasol.

Hornets

Description: Distinctive black and yellow colouration. Narrow waist between thorax and abdomen. Very similar to the German wasp, but lacks the three distinctive dots at front of head.
Location: Social insects that form colonies inside nests up to about 30 cm across. Commonly found in roof spaces or within cavities in walls or trees. Forage on a wide range of foods including flying insects, nectar and other sweet foodstuffs.
Protect with: Efekto No Insect Indoors RTU Flying Insects.

Lice – Poultry

Description: small (less than 1mm long) mites with 8 legs, very mobile. Oval in shape with a sparse covering of short hair. Semi-transparent in colour until blood has been digested when they appear reddish.
Location: Poultry, birds, coops and humans.
Protect with: Efekto Karbadust, Efekto Malasol.

Mosquitoes

Description: Long, thin insects with wings that make a distinctive sound.
Location: Feed on blood; carriers of malaria and yellow fever.
Protect with: Efekto Ant, Efekto Fendona 6SC, Efekto Fumitabs, Efekto No Insect Indoors SC, Aqua Fumigator, Efekto No Insect Indoors RTU Flying Insects.

Rats and mice

Description: Rodents that nibble everything to keep the length of their fast-growing front teeth under control.
Location: In areas of foodstuffs.
Protect with: Ridak Bait Blocks, Storm Rat Killer, Supa Kill, Snaptrap, Rodex Grain Bait, Rodex Bait Blocks, Rodex Rat & Mouse Pellets.

Spiders

Description: Spiders have eight legs (four pairs), no wings and antennae, but vary in size, shape and colour.
Location: Indoors and outdoors, mostly in corners, cracks and crevasses.
Protect with: Bio Kill Classic, Efekto No Insect Indoors RTU Fleas and Bedbugs.

Termites (Subterranean)

Description: Commonly referred to as ‘white ants’. Worker termites are tiny soft-bodied creatures, and whitish or creamy in colour, therefore given the nickname ‘white ants’. Soldier termites have larger armoured heads, with protruding jaws that look like pinchers, which can be orange, brown, yellow or red in colour and are used to crush intruders. Swarmers are winged termites and usually swarm during daylight. Their wings are brownishgrey, and front wings are larger than hind wings.
Location: Termites are attracted by their primary food source: cellulose. They often infest buildings and damage lumber, wood panels, flooring, wallpaper, and paper products. They have the ability to cause serious structural damage and, in the worst cases, total collapse of the building.
Protect with: Efekto PWP-F (Indoors only).

Ticks

Description: Small, red-brown in colour, and lacking any ornamentation. Although not sufficient for formal identification, it can be recognised by its red-brown, elongated body shape.
Location: Lawns, plants and pets
Protect with: Efekto Karbadust.

Wood borer

Description: Black or brown with greyish ‘hair’ on upper bodies and wing cases, and shiny spots that resemble eyes. Only the larvae feed on the wood. Larvae take 2-3 years to mature, depending on the moisture content of the wood. Larvae usually mature in spring, and the mature adults then cut holes 6-10 mm in diameter to exit the wood. Adults are most active in summer.
Location: Found in any wooden structure or furniture. Fine sawdust coming out of small holes in the wood is typically the first sign of the presence of wood borer larvae. The dust has a gritty feel to it.
Protect with: Efekto PWP-F.