How do I get rid of house spiders?

First, I am SEVERELY arachnophobic, and the house I just bought is Spider Central. I want them all GONE! One evening I killed nine, and I slept with the light on. My cats think they're mobile cat toys, but I'm afraid they'll get bitten. I'm afraid I'LL get bitten. I've sprayed spider poison on the baseboards in the family room (below ground), but I'd rather use as little poison as possible. I'm not concerned about the welfare of the poor itty bitty arachnids. If I killed every spider I could find from now until I died, I wouldn't even make the slightest dent in the worldwide spider population. But I am worried about the welfare of me and my cats, not to mention my mental health. I plugged in a couple ultrasonic pest repellers Monday, and I didn't see a bug until tonight when I caught my cat playing with a big, dark spider with two yellow stripes running down its body. It was dead or dying by that time, but I squished it just to be safe, then sprayed it. Then I found another dead one that I hadn't seen before.

I also have sticky spider traps on order.

They really creep me out. Since I'm not about to get over my arachnophobia any time soon, they have got to go.

Mind you, when I see garden spiders, I don't smash them. I just go the other way quickly and let them go the opposite way. I am well aware that most spiders are harmless and even kill bad bugs. But I have GOT to keep them out of my house.

WH,

I am terrified of them as well..if i see one, it will so be dead. I don't care if it is the last spider on earth, it will be the last dead spider on earth. I live north carolina and we have a celler type thing under our house, it was built way back when.....anyways we get those raid bug bombs...they are in a bright orange box and put them under our house and let them off. I know you can also use them inside but we never do. we do this like once a month and it works for me. I see very little, if any, spiders.
I have also been pondering getting one of them bug sweepers they sell. i have found them on ebay http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-BUG-WAND-SPIDER-INSECT-VACUUM-CATCHER-AS-SEEN-ON-TV_W0QQitemZ160003538272QQihZ006QQcategoryZ50365QQssPageNameZWD1VQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
I have not gotten one yet but i am seriously thinkging bout it cause it is a pain to get my sweeper out all the time.
Hope you find a solution to your icky spider problem soon.

Char

Poor WH - squished and sprayed it? (I'm sorry, but that made me chuckle.) My husband is also afraid of spiders, so I'm always on duty and I just hate to kill them. I'm ok with doing in Black Widows, but I don't like killing bugs ('cept mosquitoes; that's reflex).

I talked to an exterminator a couple of years back. The way they would deal with the spider problem is to first eliminate all their nests, then spray regularly so they can't come back. It is poison, however. That could be a route for you to explore.

Good luck!

Sticky traps are a good way to start, so you know what kind of spiders you're dealing with. This is a 30-year-old house, on a crawlspace, in the south. Bugs, spiders, snakes and other critters are bound to be around, so we use an exterminator; they come out quarterly. Yes, it's poison, but most of it is sprayed outside around the perimeter of the house, and in the crawlspace - very little is sprayed inside the house. As a result, we rarely find spiders inside anymore (this spring/summer has been particularly bad for spiders, but that's the exception, not the rule.)

I was going to recommend a bug bomb in each room and 2 or 3 in the crawl space on a pre-determined day. You should read the directions to make sure they are not toxic to you or your cat when you return. Turn off your heating and air conditioning units.Put the cat in a kennel overnight, but do that in the morning so you have time to be away from the house for 6 hours. Then when you get home, air out the house including running the exhaust fans in your bathrooms and over your stove, BEFORE turning on any air conditioning or heating units. Some folks vacuum their houses thoroughly too.
I think it simply has to be done. Otherwise you're just going to be stuck with spot-killing the spiders which is a gruesome chore and you never know where they're lurking elsewhere.

Char,

What is a "Bug Sweeper?" I tried to get the ebay listing but it wouldn't come up. I then tried to just plug in bug sweeper and it came up zero. Guess it doesn't know it by that name.

Jeanette

Spiders are not bugs, but Arachnids. Bugs have six legs and spiders have eight.

You have spiders because other bugs are living around you. If you eliminate the bugs, the spiders will move on to another food source.

The only other bug I see a lot of are earwigs, and I bought some earwig traps, too.

And to me, they're all bugs. Not all insects, but all bugs.

I read up some more on Hobo spiders. Bug bombs aren't effective against them and can even make things worse because the bug bombs kill their natural enemies.

Besides, I have five cats. That would be an expensive kennel bill.

Jnette,

Try this link http://cgi.ebay.com/SPIDER-CATCHER-INSECT-TRAP-NEW-BOXED-As-Seen-On-TV_W0QQitemZ250004602469QQihZ015QQcategoryZ122848QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

If it dont work put in SPIDER CATCHER that is what i did


Char

Well Char, I have one of those bug vacuums and it really does work. I couldn't see it on ebay, I hve dial-up and didn't have the patience for it to download. The vacuum sucks it in and then wires in there fry it like the bug zappers for mosquitoes.

If it is in my house and doesn't belong there I don't care if it is a "good" bug.

I bought mine at a garage sale for $2.

Jeanette

Jnette, I agree. If the bugs are outside I won't bother them unless they're dangerous or doing damage. But my house is MINE. The bugs either pay rent or leave. They are uninvited guests.

Why can't I have an infestation of butterflies or something?

I have never heard of so many spiders in one house,White_Hyd. I'd sure want to know their source and 'nests'.

I think you should call a few exterminators and discuss the situation with them. Tell them your concerns about poisons, the cats, etc.

I just had one out for ants. He did not use poisons to humans, or the animals. We were right here in the house while he did it.

with that many spiders I would consider "renting" some sort of reptile or rodent (male, only) and leave it in the house for a few days while I was somewhere else. Then have the owner come back and claim his creature, again only a male so as no accidental babies left behind!

I gave up. I called an exterminator. They'll be here a week from Saturday to seal this place GOOD from the eight-legged freaks.

They do use earth-friendly products, though, and me and the cats don't have to pitch a tent somewhere else. And the price is reasonable. They have a deal where they come back quarterly and even monthly. I may go for that. I'm losing too much sleep over these creepy crawlies.

Quite literally. I am terrified of spiders (did I mention that?), and when I see one I have to sleep (or try to) with the light on. I didn't get much sleep last night. This afternoon at work, after lunch, I closed my eyes to rest them.

Then I woke up and didn't know where I was or why I was sitting up in a chair. Then I realized someone was talking to me. It was my boss! And I'd only heard the last half of what she said.

Ew boy. NOT good! I was only out for a couple minutes. My computer locks up after ten minutes if it's not used, and it hadn't locked up yet. But still....

do your neighbors have such problems? I'd call the local tv station, this is not normal, is it?

I think in its last life, my house was the set for a science fiction movie.

You said you just bought this house? Did you know that sellers have to alert buyers to any problems with the house?

Let me ask you, has there been any logging, building, construction of any kind in the neighborhood lately? Several years ago I had some logging done around my house for fire hazard control. I had so many Daddy Long Legs in my house. They were everywhere. I had my DH spraying inside and outside, around the doors, windows, and any opening. He finally got rid of them. They must have had nests in the trees out there.

This time we had logging done a few months ago and now the ants. I know there were a lot of large ant nests in the woods and when they logged they must have disturbed the nests. Therefore I had them everywhere and had to have the exterminators out.

I think you should call the realtor you bought the home from and ask her/him if there was a problem with the house. Could be why they sold it.

Jeanette

Oh, I know why they sold it. They'd lived in it since it was built, then the husband passed away. The wife put it on the market and moved into a smaller place nearer her children. We do have laws that the sellers have to disclose problems. And I also paid to have a home inspection done. Good thing, too, as the place needed a new roof and some repairs to the electrical system and furnace.

Of course, the inspection was done in February....

But I think you've hit on something. Beyond my back fence used to be a strip of green belt. But this year they've torn it up and built duplexes on it. So any wildlife that was over there is now over here.

Is that where the spiders came from? Although I have heard, through this gardening forum and others, that there have been an awful lot of spiders this year, all over the country, not just here.

As others have said, you've got an exceptional problem.

I have had it happen twice now. 9 years apart. Daddy Long Legs and ants. I know, talk to the guy that comes out to do your exterminating. See what he thinks.

Tell him what I said. See if he thinks that could be the problem. It won't make any difference to his job.

Have you tried Boric Acid Powder, aka Roach Proof? I powder my 3 sheds, home and garage and I not only have no roaches or palmetto bugs around, I have no spiders either. Been using this for about 15 years with outstanding results. Low toxicity too!! While I can find no reference to using it for spiders, it seems to work for me. http://alsnetbiz.com/homeimprovement/boricdirections.html

Since I'm not one for pesticides much and am not a big advocate of regular spraying either, I'll give you the other things you can do, so that when you do use the spraying, they will increase effectiveness of the spraying by helping to reduce your initial insect population.

Kay Jones is correct. In most cases people have spiders, because there are insects nearby that are attracting them.

Terry is also correct - you should capture some spiders on sticky traps and have them identified. If you take them to your local extension agent, they might be able to help. Most spiders are not harmful nor numerous. Unfortunately, though I don't want to scare you, one problem with brown recluse spiders is that they are often VERY abundant when they do show up. The black one you described definitely doesn't sound like a brown recluse, but I would make sure of the rest. If you are too scared, have the pest control guy/gal put out some sticky traps first - in places like under the bed, under dressers, near exterior doors, in the basement, etc. This will help them to know where the spiders are a main problem and maybe where they are getting into your living space. Oftentimes a smaller directed pesticide application is much more effective than just "spraying the baseboards".

Now for some general non-chemical things that can help a lot...

1) Try to find out what kind of spider you have - even knowing the general type can help. Is it a web spider or did it accidentally wander in? Those are actually two different types of problems. For example, spiders with webs setting up house in your house can mean too much humidity inside whereas outdoor hunting spiders coming in means that you might have space beneath your doors or are harboring them nearby (see information below).

2) Exterior doors should not have any space beneath them. If you can bend down in the day and see sunlight, critters can get in and will do so. Our kitchen door had a storm door outside the regular door that blew open one night during a windy storm - in that one brief moment that it blew open, a big wolf spider waltzed in under the door. Now for me this was exciting and I got my camera to take a picture, but most people would not feel this way. The point, however, is that this could happen 24/7 if your doors are not correctly protected - usually this means doorsweeps on all exterior doors, including basement doors - no space allowed at all.

3) There should be no "hiding places" near any exterior doors. This includes leaf piles, mulch, pots for plants, garden stones, etc. And the less of any of this stuff you can have around the foundation in general the better. Most people don't like to hear that they shouldn't have mulch around their foundation, but it is true. Many ant problems indoors can be almost eliminated if mulch is removed from around the foundation.

4) Reduce moisture around the foundation. This includes making sure drainage around the house is good and not over irrigating. Moisture attracts insects which in turn attracts predators like spiders. Reducing moisture inside also can help. Many kinds of spiders prefer humidity.

5) Use yellow bug lights when there is exterior lighting. This is for the same reason as #4. Spiders are often attracted to lights because insects are, and they will purposely build their webs nearby lights to take advantage of the situation.

6) Try not to kill the spider predators if you can help it - and this is why I don't usually advocate perimeter spraying. Spiders have lots of predators, many of them in the wasp family. I see spiders outside near my house getting nabbed quite often (just saw one today in fact getting nabbed by a small velvet ant). One wasp might grab many, many spiders to stuff into her nests or underground. The spiders are usually paralysed or immobilized (the poor one I saw today had all of its legs chopped off to immobilize it), so they won't be getting away to bother you once a predator nabs them.

That's all that I can think of at the moment, though I'm probably missing something that I'll think of later. Even if you do go with spraying - these non-chemical things are a good idea to try. They will definitely help reduce your initial population.


Edited to add: I would sugest not buying any more ultrasonic devices. They don't work. At all. Don't waste your money on them.

This message was edited Jul 16, 2006 7:29 AM

White_H, what did you find out about your spider problem?

The exterminator is coming Saturday afternoon. I'll be so glad when the spiders are gone. I keep waking up with spider bites. And I have constant nightmares.

I'm going to go in for having it done quarterly. It'll come out to about $30 a month. Small price to pay for peace of mind, not to mention physical health.

OHMYGOODNESS! I, too, have arachnophobia and couldn't bear waking up with bites! You must be a wreck.

I sure hope it works for you. Also, BE SURE and call them back if you see any more spiders after the time he tells you they should be gone. They told me to wait for 2 weeks on the ants so I did even tho I saw some. What happened was that whatever they did drove the ants into another area where they had not been before.

I called them and they came right out and I haven't had a problem since.

Good luck.

Hi White-Hyd, The magazine American Handyman has an article in one of the spring 2006 issues on pest-proofing your home, no chemicals or exterminators needed. For spiders, they recommend a thorough cleaning of all cobwebs and eliminating all sources of moisture whree they don't belong. The thorough cleaning includes everywhere in the basement and attic and crawlspaces, the places that might get skipped over on a regular basis. Your local library might have it.

I put a dug zapper in the bathrooms [ the one in master bedroom is covered with webs if we leave for 4 or 5 days ] I hate the sound of buzzing in my ear when trying to sleep and we have the west nile thing getting worse here . The other 2 are cleaned once a week .
I put the light in for mosquitoes .
I have a 6 inch oscillating fan in bedroom - spiders "feel" the webs move and the fan drives them crazy - running around . Was hot 4 or 5 years ago when I put fan in and wife noticed the corner by window didn't have a spider anymore . Spiders don't like music either .
I am going on ebay now and look up SPIDER CATCHER .

Tony, we spray with the Home Defense twice a year. Once in the spring and once in the fall. I don't worry about picking up empty flower pots or anything in the basement with my bare hands because I am sure there is nothing in them. It seems to work except for the ants. Which I had an exterminator for.

We spray around the doors, windows, and basement mainly. Any place that they might come in.

Home Defense is a brand name available at big places, I am assuming.

I just saw this thread. I have been terrified of spiders for years and my favorite product is Spider Killer. It comes in an orange can at Wal-Mart for $3.50. It kills spiders on contact but even better, when you spray it around your baseboards it will kill spiders who come in contact with it for up to 3 months!!

I occasionaly find spiders in my house, but they are almost always dead - which is great! (Pretty cheap, too. I keep a few bottles in stock)

It is funny, though. Since I have taken to gardening in the last few years I have become less and less afraid of spiders . . .

:) Good luck with them! I am sure after you get rid of the initial infestation it won't be bad at all.

I also have a cat!

This message was edited Aug 3, 2006 4:46 PM

We occasionally find biggies in our basement. My DH found a biggie in main bathroom last night and I remember finding such a critter during August for the past few years. Looking for moisture? Home Defense and Spider Killer on my list. Biggies in the garden don't bother me at all.

I tried Home Defense. Didn't notice any difference at all. Tried Hot Shot Spider Killer. The spider walked around dripping wet with poison for a while until I finally stepped on him.

I put out spider traps. The spiders ignored them.

Definitely time for the big guns. Either that or a movie deal.

The thing is, my basement isn't really damp. For one thing, we're going through drought here. For another, over the July 4th weekend it rained considerably, but I had no leaks in my basement at all, when other people were complaining about flooding. Very solid foundation. Helps that the house sits on a slight hill.

Now you have me wondering if they are getting immune to the stuff you are using. If they are, I wonder how they are going to do with the exterminator.

I think if I were you I would be sure to tell him what you just said. It may be that he will need to use something stronger.

Be sure to tell him what kind of spiders you have.

I can understand the need to get rid of spiders. I have an allergic reaction to spider bites and have ended up in the hospital with breathing problems having been biten while asleep. So here is what I have done...

I clean everything on a regular basis, I dust the ceilings and baseboards, I run fans, I use glue traps, Vacuum, Vacuum, Vacuum! And I use Orkin every three months. They no longer have to treat indoors and can do perimeter spraying only. That is because they have been doing this house for 18 years. (I have lived here for 2 years previous owners had them on contract as well) It is an expense but it has paid off. I transfered the service from the previous owners. Before Orkin days I worried more than I do now. I don't want to say that I like the chemical because I am an all natural gal in so many other ways. But I have to live spider free or risk serious illness and possible death. So chemicals are part of a control for me.

Also I regularly sweep under beds, furniture etc. I have a dehumidifier in the summer in the basement....worse spider area in a home!

I hope this helps, it is not much that anyone else has not said here except this......it is not one thing it is a combination of things done consistently. Good luck, sorry about your phobia.

p.s. It just occurred to me that phobias can also be worked on with some good therapists. There is much that can be done to help you cope with this from a physicological perspective as well. Google phobias and see what you come up with. I used to fear elevators and have worked on that at therapy and eventually I have been able to confront that issue. It never feels 'comfortable' for me but I no longer walk 33 flights of steps to get to a job interview!

There are a lot of common phobias I don't have. I've handled pet snakes and lab rats. I've given blood and taken flu shots without problems. I'm not afraid of dentists. I'm not afraid of flying. I'm not afraid of blood.

But my arachnophobia kinda makes up for the rest. ;-)

Oh, the exterminator will definitely get an earful! But I'm sure they deal with phobics all the time.

It doesn't help that I'm still trying to unpack. So I have stuff everywhere, half open cardboard boxes, and a garage still mostly full of boxes and bags. But I'm afraid to pull things out of boxes because I've been bitten that way. And I don't want to work after dark because spiders like the dark.

I'm just tired of always being on edge about this, about being afraid to touch things in my own house because I might get bitten. The next time I get bitten I might wake up with an asthma attack or going into anaphylactic shock. Or a recluse or hobo might take an exception to my presence during the night and bite me in my sleep. Or one of my cats might get bitten.

I just can't live like this. Put me on a plane during a thunderstorm, put a pet snake in my lap, and give me a root canal while I'm donating blood. Anything but spiders!

doveybydesighn, you put a humidifier in your basement during summer months? summer humidity attracts them?

I was talking to my sister-in-law about this thread when my brother told my about a house he paint that had strobe lights in the basement .
He said the ower told him they kept the spiders out . He had a switch by basement door to turn on strobe when no one was in basement . Anyone esle heard of this ? If it works , I'll get one for my shed and green house . I am going to post this seperatly also .

Disco house's never have spiders? We need to get White_Hy. some disco boots. Interesting.

Disco lights would keep me out of the basement, that's for sure! But even if it worked, I'm afraid they'd all just come upstairs.