Spider infestation

[Bpb]

So our house is very new, at only 2 years old. We keep a pretty neat and clean house as well with very little clutter and frequent vaccuming, mopping, ect. Well we have noticed a bit of a spider problem.

At any point in the day we can look around on any wall and see no less than 5 small wall spiders and I spot quarter sized brown spiders scurrying around the house daily. In any given day I would guess we kill probably 10 spiders of various kinds. Wife is beginning to get freaked and wanting to take drastic measures. Naturally the first thing that comes to my mind is how will these measure impact my aquariums. I know bug sprays are ultra toxic, and fogging the house is out of the question. Anyone delt with anything like this?


Aside from calling an exterminator what are some good spider control methods that are reef safe lol. I'm gonna get a bottle of ortho home defense spray and use it but try to stay far away from my tanks. Would you all worry about baseboard treatments getting in the air and crashing a tank?

[Planeden]

i use boric acid to control bugs, but i'm not sure it works on spiders. i doubt it, but it may depend on the type of spider. but, if you control the other bugs, the spiders may move.

i have a recipe that mixes the boric acid with flour and water to make little dough balls. stash them around the house and no bugs. no bugs to speak of in my house for 10 years, and we are hardly neat.

[mFrame]

Boric acid is cheap and pet-safe. Spider's aren't insects so most insecticides don't work well on them, arachnoids are one of the hardest things to kill. That said, an exterminator can treat your walls and attics to help eradicate them. Removing insects will also remove the spider's full supply and then they'll go elsewhere.

[+o0zarkawater]

If my nursery rhyme education tells me anything, you'll need to get a bird, cat, dog, goat, pig, cow, donkey, and a horse.

Should fix any spider/fly problems.

[jestep]

I could see it being a problem if they're literally everywhere, but we gave up messing with them, and just scoop and throw them outside when we find them. They eat mosquitoes so they're a bonus IMO.

[Bpb]

I could see it being a problem if they're literally everywhere, but we gave up messing with them, and just scoop and throw them outside when we find them. They eat mosquitoes so they're a bonus IMO.

I actually agree with this most. I don't care too much. I'm weary of brown recluse spiders. I know a couple of people who have been bitten by them and its something I don't want me or my family to go through. I normally scoop up the wolf spiders and toss them in the yard. I think they're generally good for pest insect removal.

When I walk in the yard every step I take I see spiders everywhere. I'm not too skittish about them. Just trying to figure out something to do so my wife doesn't go nuclear on them lol. I got a bunch of sticky fly paper traps that I'm gonna stick to the undersides of cabinets and such to hopefully reduce their numbers indoors. There will never be any shortage outside.

They're keeping our frogs well fed. **** Texas toads keep leaving massive frog turds all over my porch and digging holes in my cactus pots

[+Grog]

I'd call an exterminator who is keen on the SW hobby. Explain the situtation. I know a guy but he is out here in Bastrop, so not good for you.

Spiders are eating other things, bugs. So like others said, the exterminator may get rid of them as a by-product.

Word of caution, we had a ton of spiders. We were cool with that. Then we had an eruption of scorpions. Our son was ~3 and came in the room with a scorp in his mouth once...... They were everywhere, in my shoes, in the bed, etc. I got stung 3X and it is not fun.

Our exterminator said the scorps were going for the spiders. We had him treat the place.

But really, tell them your concerns. We have a 5 pets in addition to various tanks, one of them is a hedgehog and they are very sensitive. The exterminators can change what they are applying, or doses, or where they are dosing to make it less offensive.

Good effect of the wildfire? I haven't seen a single scorpion since the fires. Nada.

[esacjack]

might i interest you in a venus fly trap or other insectivore type plant/insect/mammal?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insectivore

Apparently shrews love them... shrews are cute... get a shrew..could also get some of those little chickens, I cant remember what they're called. But they eat spiders and what not as well..

[esacjack]

Oh, you could also try throwing bird feed out to attract more birds... they might put a dent in your spider population..

[jestep]

Scorpions and Centipedes are way over the line. I've seen 12+ inch centipedes around south Austin, and we had about 50 baby scorpions in one of our skylights. Luckily have only found 1 in the house in the past 5 years.

[Sascha D.]

Boric Acid works by drawing water from the carpace and dehydrating the pest. It doesn't work on spiders because the legs are what touches the ground. Works great on roaches though.

When I moved into my 6year old house last year there was a spider problem due to an ill fitting door. I haven't had the time to fix the root problem but I used that Ortho Home Defense spray and I haven't seen a spider in 6 months.