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desiree333's avatar

What are all the effective ways I can use to prevent/kill spiders in my home?

Asked by desiree333 (3195 points ) January 21st, 2013 from iPhone

I have MAJOR arachnophobia.. Today, even though it’s winter, I found a spider crawling on the end of my hair. That resulted in a half-hour screaming/crying/scratching episode… For some reason I find spiders in my room on about a monthly basis. It is getting to the point where I fear sleeping and just generally being in my room. I have rarely, if ever found spiders anywhere else in the house. I’m not sure why my room specifically seems to be the target. I am very, very clean. What are some effective ways I can prevent spiders from entering my room, and how do I kill them without actually touching them? Also, is there some sort of lethal spray that I can use when I find one? I’m also thinking about paying someone to scour my room/house for spiders and killing them. Will exterminators do this for me?

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33 Answers

Tropical_Willie's avatar

Yes, call an exterminator. They will probably use a an aerosol bomb and tell you to vacuum afterwards. You’ll have to cover all food utensils and foodstuffs. ALL animals will have to be out of the house for at least part of a day.

chyna's avatar

Ultrasonic high frequency bug terminator
I have used these and you can get them at Walmart. They seem to work. If you have animals, it could bother their ears though. It doesn’t bother my dog.

wundayatta's avatar

It’s hard for me to imagine that anything is going to be effective, unless you make your house a kill zone with poisons. The spiders will come back soon, anyway, because there are all kinds of other bugs around, and they eat bugs. Get rid of spider food, and get rid of spiders. But you can’t really get rid of spider food.

SPider food is all over the place. Your dead cells get into your bed and mites eat it. Something else eats mites—maybe spiders. And something else eats the things that eat mites. And spiders are always in there.

Most spiders are harmless to humans. House spiders are actually good for you. You get rid of spiders and you’re going to have more of the harmful type bugs. I know you have arachnophobia, but it might be worth trying to deal with that instead of getting rid of spiders. It honestly would be easier.

Judi's avatar

I have overcome my fear quite a bit but I totally know what you are going through.
I would hire an exterminator on a monthly basis.
When the fear is this bad the risks of the poison is worth the benefit of peace of mind.
I had a huge black widow problem and one visit killed them all. I haven’t seen ONE since they came two months ago.

wundayatta's avatar

@Judi That really depends on which part of the country @desiree333 is in. Black Widows tend to be in warmer climes.

Where do you live, @desiree333?

desiree333's avatar

@wundayatta Northwestern Ontario, Canada. I’m too afraid to research what type of spiders I’m seeing, because that would involve me having to look at pictures. They’re just little beige ones and sometimes moderate-sized black ones… cringe.

Bellatrix's avatar

I know this isn’t what you want to hear but @Wunday would definitely be right where I live. Trying to rid my world of spiders would be impossible. Can you speak to a therapist and get some help with your phobia?

Judi's avatar

I’m sure she doesn’t have black widows but if her fear is as overwhelming as mine was then its still worth it. I used to be SURE that if you locked me in a room with a daddy long leg I would go completely in sane. Something about not being able to see their eyes I think.
At least I can kill them now.
The fear and panic can be debilitating.

Shippy's avatar

Kill the buggers.

desiree333's avatar

@Shippy “I have MAJOR arachnophobia”.

Shippy's avatar

@desiree333 Get a spray, that you can shoot them with from far. Ugh! me too. I don’t care what anyone says I kill. I live in Africa we get monsters here. Or call in pest control if its a huge issue.

glacial's avatar

@wundayatta is right. You will never be able to get rid of them all, or prevent new ones from coming in. It would be easier, and make you stronger and happier, for you to find a way to cope with your fear. Spiders are great little creatures who provide a service that is valuable to us. Maybe if you spend some time learning more about them, you’ll find them less scary?

gailcalled's avatar

Although not the final solution, using a mosquito net over your bed may help a little.

Mosquito netting

You mentioned trying to see a therapist in another question. Perhaps you can talk to him/her about this phobia. Thirty minutes of “screaming/crying/scratching” seems unwarranted.

Spiders are considered among “the good guys” since they eat tons of really nasty insects.

desiree333's avatar

@gailcalled Oh I am completely aware of how ridiculous my reaction was. I will definitely mention it to a therapist if I ever get the guts to seek one out.

@glacial Learning about them does sound like the perfect way to see them as less of a terrifying enemy. I just can’t bring myself to google about them, because of the pictures. Thanks though!

glacial's avatar

@desiree333 Go the academic route… use Google Scholar. :)

trailsillustrated's avatar

I am Australian and the spiders there are as big as cats. I have been terrified of them since I was a child. I am going back, and have consulted a hypnotist. ( Am still HELLA worried). I sure feel your pain. Good luck.

Bellatrix's avatar

@glacial is right. Google Scholar is likely to have some real information about dealing with arachnophobia and the success of different methods. Don’t Google pics. If you don’t want to research, just talk to your therapist. I like the mosquito net idea in the meantime. At least you will be able to sleep knowing they can’t get in to you.

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Pachy's avatar

I dislike crawly things, spiders included, but in recent years I’ve developed an aversion to killing. Granted, I don’t get many critters in the house other than ants in hot weather, but when I do, I pick them up with a wad of tissue or paper towel, and in my infinitive benevolence, set them free outdoors. My benevolence does not extend to scorpions, however. They immediately get the stomping treatment. Having been stung twice, I never want to chance that again. In your case, poison sounds like the best choice.

jonsblond's avatar

This link might have some helpful information for you. There are no pictures of spiders on the main page.

Like you, I feared spiders. A former Flutherite helped me deal with my fear through education and sharing his love of spiders through pictures. Once I knew more about them I realized how silly my fear was. I still get a bit startled by the large spiders, but I don’t kill them like I used to. I now scoop them up (without screaming or squirming) and put them outside. I leave the tiny spiders alone and let them go about their business.

glacial's avatar

@jonsblond I love that.

Actually, one of the things that I find interesting about spiders is the way I instinctively cringe when they move quickly, even though I like them in principle. Knowing that this response is hardwired into humans because it helped our ancestors survive changes the way I feel about it. I know there’s no actual threat from my local spiders, so I can override fear and find both the spider and the response interesting.

rojo's avatar

I just used a 16 oz framing hammer on a brown recluse. My son thought it was overkill and that I should have used a 12 oz. To each his own.

winnie0990's avatar

Peppermint oil helps with keeping spiders away. Also its a lot safer than harmful chemicals. Especially if you have small children and pets.

LostInParadise's avatar

I am surprised to see so many people afraid of spiders. I don’t mean to make light of this, but how do you all feel about centipedes, snakes and mice, all of which I find far creepier that spiders.

dxs's avatar

@LostInParadise For me, I think it’s because they have more than two eyes.

Judi's avatar

@dxs, and you can’t look them in the eye. <<shivers>>

glacial's avatar

@Judi Well, you can, but you have to crouch down really close to the ground. :)

dxs's avatar

@glacial and that’s when they jump

trailsillustrated's avatar

@LostInParadise no fear. whatsoever. I can hold a snake, rat, whatever. It’s spiders that bother me.

desiree333's avatar

@winnie0990 Okay, but how would I use the oil? Where would I put it?

@LostInParadise Centipedes are gross. I would be scared to kill it, but I could get the job done without any crying. Snakes are alright, I would hold one. Some are pretty interesting looking. I love mice! I think they’re so adorable.

@dxs That scares the living hell out of me. Also their legs, especially when they are black.

desiree333's avatar

@jonsblond Thanks for the link. I just tried to get through it, but even reading the word “spider” that many times started to make my skin crawl… Now I’m itchy everywhere. I will try again later!

Judi's avatar

You might want to plant peppermint around your house. It grows like a weed.

dxs's avatar

@desiree333 I personally hate when they’re not hairy…I think that the smooth ones are scarier, especially the lighter colored ones.

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