SPIDER INFORMATION
Spider Control
There are several things you need to know about pest control and spider prevention:
- Don't expect perfection in spider control. Chemicals are not very effective against spiders, nor do the spiders readily pick up pesticides. So just spraying is not a great defense against spiders. With their long legs, spiders keep their bellies well above the ground, so sprayed insecticide residue on a surface will only touch their feet. But they don't have a circulatory system that will carry the insecticide from the bottoms of their feet to the organs in their bodies that would cause them to die.
- So - you really have to make contact with the insect through a direct spray, a newspaper, a shoe, or whatever is your weapon of choice. Spiders are arachnids, not actually insects. True insects (such as ants, roaches, and wasps), use their mouths to groom themselves, so they end up eating insecticide that gets on their feet, legs, and bodies. But spiders don't routinely use their mouthparts to clean themselves. They will clean their leg if there is a large particle stuck to it, but it's not a habit that will guarantee pesticide will kill them. In addition, most spiders spend their entire lives sitting in webs (a non-treated surface). So, spider control needs to be a "contact kill."
- There is one exception to #2: If you use a pesticide spray on the surface of a crack that a spider goes in and out of, (such as between a baseboard and the carpet, or a piece of wood trim around a window), the spider's body will likely contact the spray and the pesticide could be effective. Exterior treatment can be very effective as well. Please keep vegetation off the home. Do not store anything against the home. This can cause spiders to nest against the home.
- So - to get rid of spiders, get rid of your other bugs. Crack and crevice treatment with insecticides provide some control, but you can also use glue boards or sticky traps. These are non-pesticide capture mechanisms. Some can be folded into a box shape so that unintended items won't get stuck to them. There are really no attractants in most of these glue traps. Some companies try to add a scent, but the most attractive thing for a spider is seeing a bug stuck in the glue trap. Pest control professionals often see glue traps with a bug in the glue—and a spider stuck right on top of it.
- The sticky trap, or glue trap, just captures spiders - if they walk through the trap, they die. But you can't cover much surface area with a trap, so you have to place them where the spiders are most likely to come to them. The most effective places to put glue traps are in dark, quiet areas. A closet is a good example, or between a bed and a wall, or by any piece of furniture - these are all common spider travel areas.
- Glue traps also can point you toward the source of the infestation - enabling you to discover how the spiders are getting into the house. If you have 6 spiders trapped on the left side of a glue trap, then look toward the left, along the wall, and check for an opening like gaps around or under a door or non-aligned wall socket. If it's a crack that you can caulk - do so.
