Spiders can be scary little things. To a lot of people, the mere sight of them is enough to send chills down the spine. While most species of spiders are not harmful to humans, there are certain spiders whose bites can be fatal. Which explains why some people prefer to get rid of any spiders in their apartment to ensure their peace of mind.
Spiders are attracted to the household for food, mating, or seeking shelter. Some spiders may be advantageous in the apartment as they prey on insects that are viewed as pests.
This article, therefore, seeks to explain how to prevent an infestation from occurring in the first place. Of course, doing this requires some understanding of the spider’s lifecycle as well as habitat characteristics.
Here are the 14 hacks to prevent spiders from getting into my apartment:
Table of Contents
1. Seal any cracks or holes in your walls, windows, and doors
Spiders have a malleable body meaning they can squeeze and fit through holes and cracks. This is the main way by which they get into the apartment in the first place.
The most common way to ensure that they do not invade our living space is through sealing cracks and gaps on the wall, pipe works, or under the door where possible.
2. Install door sweeps and window seals in your apartment
Ensure doors leading outside do create a tight seal when closed. For windows and vents, it is recommended you use a screen.
3. Install screens on your apartment doors and windows
By installing screens on your doors and windows, you can leave them open during the day without worrying about pests getting in. Remember to check the screens regularly for holes or tears.
4. Check every object carried into the apartment from outside
Spiders can get in through objects carried into the apartment from outside. Ensure spiders do not invade the apartment through key observation of objects you carry into the apartment. This is because spiders do hitch a ride on items that have been left outdoors for a while.
5. Vacuuming and cleaning
Vacuuming not only kills the spiders due to the trauma caused to their soft bodies but also removes the webs and egg sacs. In areas where it is hard to reach, such as high ceilings, do use a broom to sweep off the webs. While doing this, make sure to put on protective clothing to avoid a nasty bite from the falling creatures.
Another step in ridding yourself of spiders involves a general cleaning of the apartment. This involves de-cluttering the apartment. Remove all forms of clutter from the apartment, as this may be used as hiding and breeding grounds. Wipe clean the surfaces underneath furniture and closets.
Depending on the frequency of their hunt, many spiders build their webs afresh every day. Some do this by eating and recycling their old webs. Therefore to get rid of the spiders, the regular process of removal of the webs should be done. Special attention should be paid to corners of the ceiling, picture frames, and even mirrors.
6. Rethink your food storage
While spiders are not attracted to human food, their favorite prey, on the other hand, feeds on it. Insect infestation occurs in the apartment as a result of organic foods and wastes being readily available.
Spiders then get into the apartment because they have a constant food supply source. To rid yourself of them, you also need to choke their food supplies. This requires that you get rid of insects and other pests in your apartments. The simplest way to do this requires an upgrade in your sanitary measures around the house. This involves not only cleaning but good food storage techniques.
Make sure to clean the apartment while clearing out the garbage and other sources of food for the insects. If the insect infestation is extreme, you can use insecticides. However, ensure the product you pick is environmentally friendly. There are other natural ways of killing and repelling insects, such as the use of plants with fragrances that repel the insects.
Once the insect problem is brought under control, spiders will tend to move on in search of other food sources naturally.
7. Limiting bright lights inside the apartment
While most insects tend to stay away from bright lights, those that attract spiders to your home do love bright lights. This occurs especially at night and in outdoor light. The light and heat from the bulbs act as a hypnotic mixture for most insects.
While it is essential to have good lighting around, the placement of such lighting fixtures is pertinent to controlling the insect problem. If placed close to the doors, soon enough, spiders will also set up shop as they try to hunt the insects. To limit this, you should reconsider how you light up the apartment.
First of all, you should place the lighting fixtures away from doors and windows if necessary. Secondly, you can use certain types of lighting with sodium vapor lights or yellow lights. This tends to be less attractive to bugs and insects. You can shut the lights off if there is no need for them. This will keep the bugs away and lower your electric bill.
8. Essential oils keep spiders away
Both bugs and insects do not like strong scents. It happens then that strong scents released by these essential oils act as natural spider repellants. An example of this is peppermint oil. To create this mixture, add 15 to 20 drops of the oil to a spray bottle containing water. Mix the solution thoroughly and spray in areas that may be infested.
Other than repelling the spiders, essential oils will also repel insects that attract the spiders. The essential oils will also leave your apartment smelling nice and are known to have therapeutic properties. If peppermint oil is unavailable, you can use cinnamon or even lavender oil.
For the remedy to remain effective, ensure you change the oil regularly. The added advantage to these essential oils is that other than the insect and vermin-repellant qualities, they also are multipurpose.
9. Use vinegar
Vinegar’s odor and sour taste are a repellant not only for spiders but insects as well. To create this concoction, you need to mix an equivalent mixture of vinegar in water and spray the areas most affected by the spider infestation.
Unfortunately, vinegar’s smell may be off-putting to humans too. To quell it, you can soak three to four orange peels in a cup of vinegar and let it soak overnight. This will help with the scent released to give it a more natural-smelling scent.
10. Citrus fruits as spider repellants
Interestingly, other than vitamin c, essential to our bodies, citrus fruits can act as spider and insect repellants. Spiders hate citrus fruits and can’t stand the smell. A common citrus fruit available in the apartment could be either lemons or oranges.
To create this repellant, squeeze a whole lemon and mix it with a half cup of water. Put the solution in a spray bottle and spray the apartment concentrating on the likely places the arachnids might be hiding. An added advantage to this remedy is that your apartment will retain a fruity scent.
11. Cedar
This is another known scent that spiders are known to detest. Luckily, cedar comes in different forms, such as woodchips, blocks, or even balls. Oil and wood from this plant are used to make an array of different products, including spider repellants.
Getting the whole cedar plant into the house may be impractical, but the many available products may work just for you. You can procure cedar wood, whose natural scent will act as a repellant. Now and then, you need to sand it down to refresh the scent and keep the spiders away.
12. Garlic
Despite its well-known myth, garlic keeps vampires away and spiders. Spiders do not like the pungent smell emanating from this bulb either. However, putting garlic on display is not enough to deter the spiders. A carefully formulated solution is needed.
To do this, it will depend on how much of the scent you can withstand. Either immerse the whole clove or crush a part of it in water. Having done that, put the mixture in a spray bottle and spray suspected infested areas.
13. Cats as natural prey
Felines are known to be a spider’s foe. Therefore keeping them as pets would help to control their infestation within the apartment. These little predators are harmless to us but a nightmare to all types of vermin within the apartment.
The most advantageous bit about this is that the cats provide a needed source of companionship and eat the spiders, which are harmless to them.
14. Protecting the apartment’s exterior
Most spiders are outdoor spiders, but now and then, they tend to invade the inside of our apartments. Apart from spiders crawling into the apartment, they also hitch a ride on items left outside. Some spiders have been known to come from the grocery store.
Therefore, to rid yourself of these vermin, you must also ensure your outdoors are catered for. This may eventually require a proactive approach. The first step requires you to clear any clutter in the common areas where spiders may find refuge to procreate and hide. As well as clearing leaves and bushes, the lawn should be mowed meticulously.
You can also care for the environment by using plants that are a natural repellant for the spider. This may include, among others, a eucalyptus tree.
15. Use insecticides
If all else fails, this can be your final solution. The insecticides not only kill spiders but insects as well. However, these insecticides may be harmful to you if you have a respiratory problem. Therefore, ensure you leave the apartment once you spray.
While spraying, concentrate on the corners, ceilings, and other dark areas in your apartment that spiders may hide in. If aerosol sprays pose a problem to you, you can procure insecticide dust. This can then be sprinkled in areas where spiders may be found.
What attracts spiders to the apartment?
- Mating. Some spiders, especially males, will make their way into the apartment to look for females to mate with. This usually happens from late summer to early autumn. This is the spider mating season. Females then lay the fertilized eggs in sacs that may contain upwards of a hundred eggs. The eggs typically hatch in warm and wet weather, mostly in spring. The spiders then go through 4 to 12 molting stages before becoming adults. This process takes roughly a year.
- Weather. Spiders may also come into the apartment to seek shelter. They may do so if the outside conditions are no longer favorable. As they are attracted to dark, secluded areas, most spiders will likely be found in the attic or other dark spaces within the apartment. If that’s not present, spiders may be spotted in high-ceiling corners or where the apartment has clutter.
- Hunting. All spiders are predators. Their main prey is insects which may be found within the apartment. As a result, if your apartment is infested with insects, most likely, this will attract spiders. The web they spin is used to catch these insects.
The most important to note is that there are very different species, each with distinct characteristics. This then determines their various habitats. Some species do build webs to capture their prey, while others live in burrows. Some species are attracted to moist and damp conditions, while others prefer dry and darkened places.
Final Thoughts
While most spiders are harmless, it is still quite understandable to want to rid your home of them. If you have an infestation on your hands, these tips will show you what you need to do. If the infestation persists, it may be time to call a professional exterminator.
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Last update on 2023-04-16 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
