Walk into almost any Melbourne kitchen on a warm November evening and you’ll probably hear the same story: someone just spotted a line of ants heading for the honey jar, the dog won’t stop scratching, or a friend quietly mentioned waking up with mysterious bites after staying in the spare room. Summer is barely here and the phones at local pest companies are already ringing off the hook. Ants, fleas and bed bugs are the three pests that dominate call-outs across the city from Geelong to the Dandenongs, and each one brings its own brand of misery.

The difference between putting up with them for months and being free in a matter of days usually comes down to how fast you act and who you call. Trying to fix a serious infestation with supermarket products is like bringing a teaspoon to a bushfire. That’s why more Melbourne families are booking targeted treatments straight away. If ants have decided your place is their new highway, proper Ant Control Melbourne is the only thing that reaches the queens hiding metres away from where you actually see the workers.

Why These Three Pests Love Melbourne More Than Anywhere Else

Our weather is basically custom-built for them. We get enough summer rain to keep the soil moist for ant nests, warm nights that let fleas breed nonstop, and heated homes in winter that stop bed bugs from ever slowing down. Add in a city full of terraces, apartments and weatherboard houses with plenty of cracks and gaps, plus a population that loves travelling and sharing Airbnbs, and you can see why pest controllers never get a quiet month.

Ants have exploded in the growth corridors especially. New estates in Mickleham, Tarneit and Cranbourne are built on old farmland where bull ants and Argentine ants were already living happily. One new house with a leaky tap or a dropped ice-cream on the patio is all it takes for thousands to move in.

Fleas are no longer just a dog problem. Indoor cats are bringing them home from the vet or the cattery, and rental properties where pets come and go mean eggs can lie dormant in floorboards for months waiting for the next warm body. One flea you spot means there are likely a hundred you don’t see yet.

Bed bugs are the silent travellers. They don’t jump or fly; they simply crawl into your suitcase at a hostel in Sydney or a five-star hotel in Asia and arrive in Toorak or Footscray without anyone noticing. Second-hand books, picture frames and even new mattresses straight from the warehouse have all been known carriers lately.

How to Know Which Pest You’re Actually Dealing With

Ants are pretty obvious once you see the trails, but pay attention to size and colour. Tiny black ones are usually sugar ants, bigger reddish-brown ones might sting, and pale yellow ones inside the walls are a nightmare species that eat timber framing.

Fleas give themselves away with the jumping. Put on long white socks and walk through the lounge room; if little black dots start leaping onto the socks, you’ve found the problem. Pets scratching the same spot over and over or small red bites around your own ankles are the next clue.

Bed bugs are masters of hide and seek. Check the seams and tags of your mattress with a torch at night. Look for tiny reddish-brown insects about the size of an apple seed, pale shed skins, or black dots the size of a full stop. Blood spots on the sheets where you’ve accidentally squashed one while sleeping are usually the giveaway that makes people finally call for help.

The Mistakes Almost Everyone Makes at First

Grabbing the first can of insect spray feels good in the moment, but it usually makes things worse. Ants scatter and bud off new nests, fleas drop deeper into the carpet, and bed bugs just move to the next room. Vacuuming helps with fleas but you have to empty the bag outside straight away or you’re just relocating them.

Washing everything in sight is great for bed bugs, but only if you dry on hot for at least thirty minutes. Cold or warm cycles won’t kill the eggs. And those cheap flea collars or supermarket spot-on treatments often don’t touch the new resistant strains we’re seeing around Melbourne now.

What the Professionals Do Differently

Today’s treatments are clever rather than heavy-handed. Ant baits look like little drops of clear gel, but one worker ant carries a microscopic amount back to the nest and within days the whole colony is gone, queens included. The best companies map your property first so they treat the source, not just the symptoms.

Flea jobs are a complete inside-and-out blitz. They spray a fast knockdown product plus something that sterilises eggs and larvae for months. Yards get treated too because that’s where the next wave hides in the shade under the deck.

Bed bug work has changed completely in the last few years. Many Melbourne companies now use a combination of very fine dust that sticks to the bugs’ feet and safe residual sprays that keep killing for up to a year. Some bring in electric heat units that turn your bedroom into a sauna for six hours; every single bug and egg dies at 50 degrees and above.

Everyday Habits That Keep Your House Off the Pest Radar

Wipe benches before bed, rinse pet bowls, and take the bin out nightly. A single forgotten Weet-Bix under the couch can feed an ant colony for weeks. Seal gaps around pipes with caulk and keep tree branches trimmed back from the roofline. When you come home from holidays, leave suitcases in the garage and wash clothes on hot straight away. Vacuum at least weekly and steam-clean couches twice a year if you have pets.

Ready to Sleep Easy Again?

There’s no prize for toughing it out when pests move in. The fastest way back to normal life is picking up the phone and letting people who do this every single day sort it out properly the first time.

For anyone across greater Melbourne needing ants gone for good, fleas wiped out from the house and yard, or discreet bed bug treatment that actually works, locals keep recommending the same reliable team. Drop in and see why so many five-star reviews point to RF Pest Management for friendly service that gets results without drama.

Don’t let another night go by scratching or watching ants parade across the bench. Summer in Melbourne is for backyards and beaches, not battling bugs inside your own home. One quick call and you’ll wonder why you waited so long.