Eight-Legged Invaders
If you have a spider infestation in your house, you have probably spent a lot of time screaming recently and plotting to either move or set your home ablaze. This is the normal reaction of a sane person. However, there are more practical and somewhat less drastic measures that can be taken. Take a deep breath as we address the question of how to get rid of spiders in your house (without involving a match and gasoline).
Fighting the Enemy
Now, as you probably know, not all spiders are created equal. There are relatively harmless spiders that are undoubtedly creepy but do not actually pose a threat to your safety. Then, there are the nastier, more dangerous species, such as the Black Widow and the Brown Recluse. If you are bitten by a Brown Recluse, you need to seek medical attention immediately, or your skin will begin to necrotize - yuck! If you believe your home is indeed infested with venomous spiders, do not mess around.
The answer to how to get rid of venomous spiders in your home is to call a pest control company immediately, preferably one that makes emergency house calls. Meanwhile, secure your family and your pets. Venomous spiders are deadly threats to our beloved four-legged friends, so we must take steps to protect them. Let the pros handle these tiny beasts, and do not put your safety at risk.
Identifying Spiders: Creepier to Creepiest
The main species of spiders you typically will encounter in your house are as follows:
- American House Spider (relatively harmless, albeit scary)
- Wolf Spider (large, scary as heck, and very fast)
- Black Widow (toxic, venomous, and aggressive)
- Brown Recluse (very scary, very toxic, extremely dangerous, and venomous)
- Daddy Longlegs (not as scary, slightly venomous but not aggressive)
- Domestic House Spider (creepy but harmless; usually hide from humans)
- Hobo Spider (scary as heck and venomous)
- Jumping Spider (absolutely terrifying, dangerous, potential weapons of mass destruction)
Evicting the Uninvited: Natural Methods
What’s another way to get rid of spiders in your home? If you are confident that you are dealing with non-venomous species of spiders that are mostly benign, you are basically dealing with a colony of squatters in your house. Like a friend that crashes on your couch and never leaves, they are unpleasant, annoying, and they don’t pay rent. However, you may not need to call a pest control service.
Getting Rid of Spiders
There are natural approaches to getting rid of spiders in your home. How do you reclaim control of your home naturally when it is being invaded by uninvited guests, or, in other words, how do you naturally get rid of spiders in your house? One method is to use a solution that is 50% water and 50% vinegar. Spiders are repelled by the vinegar’s acidity. Vinegar is not caustic enough to do damage to your home, especially if it is properly diluted in water.
Therefore, vinegar is a good alternative to a caustic, paint, and wood-damaging chemical insecticide. Simply spray the water and vinegar solution in the areas where you have seen the spiders. Spray the solution around the perimeter of your home and around the outside, especially near the door. You can also leave small dishes of the diluted vinegar solution in areas where you have seen the spiders in order to act as bait to attract and kill them.
Additionally, spiders (much like their close relative, the vampire) are repelled by vinegar (yes, seriously). Another way to get rid of spiders naturally in your home is by leaving cloves of garlic in strategic places. Sure, your home may start to smell delicious, and you may find yourself craving Italian food, but that’s a small price to pay to get rid of spiders in your home naturally. Why are natural methods preferable?
Insecticides
Spider-killing chemicals (insecticides) are indeed effective, but it can be dangerous to spray said chemicals in a home with pets and small children. It’s also unhealthy for you, an adult, to be breathing in any sort of toxic chemicals, even though if you are truly arachnophobic, you might be willing to put down some napalm if it means getting rid of a spider infestation. Put the chemical weapons away and reassess your options, tempting though it may be.
Dangers
Importantly, if you are in a position to secure your small children and pets in another location for an extended period of time, you can attempt to use insecticides to rid your home of spiders. Insecticides are available at most hardware stores. If you don’t own them already, also pick up eye protection, a mask, and gloves, so that you are not breathing anything harmful.
First, spray the insecticide in the areas where you’ve seen the spiders. Then, go for the dark and creepy areas where spiders like to hang out and play cards, eat potato chips, or whatever it is that spiders do in their spare time. This means spraying under your kitchen and bathroom sinks, in your basement (assuming you have a basement), under your table, under your fridge, under the sink, inside your closet, and by your garage door. Spray your garbage cans and any other areas that would be attractive to a spider. Yes, you are being instructed to think like a spider.
Baby Spiders!
What about baby spiders - how do you get rid of them? If you have an infestation of baby spiders in your house, fortunately, this is probably the easiest type of infestation to handle. Keeping your home dust-free and clean is an important step because dust attracts baby spiders. Regular vacuuming is a powerful and effective way to get rid of the tiny pests, plus it keeps your air quality fresh and your floors clean. Try to get rid of as much clutter as possible. Baby spiders like to hide out in small, confined spaces such as the inside of a shoe. Creeps. Another trick? Turn off any lights that do not need to be on. Like moths, spiders are drawn to light. Getting used to living in a dim home may take some time, but rest assured that you won't be drawing in baby spiders as if a large, neon "welcome" sign was blinking above your home. Plus, you may see a slight reduction in your electric bill.
Other Spiders
There are also terrifying spiders that are relatively harmless, such as the Wolf Spider, which is non-venomous but is intimidating enough to give you an immediate heart attack! Those guys are huge, and they like to hang out in places that are already scary enough, like basements. Their size alone is enough to scare you half to death; they look like kittens, minus the cuteness.
Tools, Other Than Flame Throwers
Specific tools exist to grab and trap bugs and spiders effectively. They are kind of like handheld vacuum wands. Combat the nightmarish scenario of trapping a dreaded spider on the ceiling with our specially designed wands. We all know what happens when you climb on your bed with a rolled-up newspaper and attempt to smash a spider. You miss, and the spider escapes somewhere ON YOUR BED. Or, worse yet, the unthinkable happens. The spider LANDS ON TOP of you. This obviously results in the sort of stop, drop, and roll approach that we are taught to utilize if we accidentally are set on fire.
The vacuum wands are preferable to regular vacuum hoses because they are specifically designed for pest control. You know how scary the idea is that a spider might be sucked up into your vacuum and then just kind of mosey its way out, shaking the dust out of its hair. How charming. No, you need something that provides the security and assurance that once you trap a spider, like a life-long criminal, its days of wreaking havoc on your home are over, mister.
Entrapment
There are also different types of spider traps that can be purchased at a hardware store, which is a way of luring arachnids to an enclosed area so that they cannot escape. Also, there is a DIY method of making a spider trap that is as unpleasant as it is ruthless. You can construct a glue board, which is kind of like flypaper. Then apply pools of glue to a board and place the board in an area frequented by spiders. Lastly, have the disgusting satisfaction of building a spider graveyard in your home. No, not the cleanest method of spider control, but another win for the good guys, nonetheless. Spider traps and glue boards are okay for managing spider infestations but not eliminating them.
Conclusion
So, in conclusion, how do you get rid of spiders in your home? What’s the most effective use method? As previously mentioned, there are several natural ways to get rid of spider infestations. But the best way to get rid of spiders in your house is to call in a professional. If you see one spider, there are undoubtedly more. They are clever and good at hiding. Additionally, you may not know what type of spider you are dealing with. Venomous spiders are not always easy to spot unless you know the telltale markings to look for. The Black Widow, for example, typically has a red diamond-shaped marking on its back, but other spiders that are quite dangerous appear rather ordinary.
While it’s important for a multitude of reasons to keep your house tidy and free of clutter and vacuum regularly, these are deterrents but not necessarily the answer to the question of how to get rid of spider in your house. Hiring a professional pest control service is an inexpensive and effective way to keep unwanted arachnids away. This will give you greater peace of mind, and it does not result in making your house smell like an Italian restaurant (see the garlic clove method discussed above). Not that that’s a bad thing - but you don’t want to wind up associating the scent of garlic bread with arachnids. No sir. Schedule an appointment with a pest control professional today and send those eight-legged monsters back where they belong - outside!
