What To Do About Spiders In Your Fort Lauderdale Home

Spiders In Fort Lauderdale

We have quite a variety of spiders in Fort Lauderdale. While all of the spiders here have venom and fangs, only two are considered a medical threat to people. You can probably guess what they are. We'll give you a hint: They have "widow" or "recluse" in their names. All of the other spiders, from the big golden orb weaver to the tiny orchard orbweaver, are mostly harmless. But that doesn't mean you want pests in your Fort Lauderdale home. So, what can you do to keep spiders out? We have some suggestions.

Insects & Spiders

Do you understand the relationship between insects and spiders? We hope you do. Spiders eat insects. If you have lots of insects around or inside your home, you'll have more spider activity. Therefore, reducing insects can help you get control of spiders.

Exterior Insects

Keep lights off at night in areas where you are not concerned about security.
Replace white light bulbs with yellow bulbs. Yellow light is less attractive to insects.
Keep your blinds, shades, and drapes closed at night to keep interior light inside your home.
Keep your exterior trash bins free of odors that attract insects.
Reduce moisture and moist habitats, such as organic debris lying on the ground.

Interior Insects

Make sure all your door and window screens are in good repair.
Keep your interior as clean as possible.
Put fruit in the fridge, rather than on display.
Put pet food down only during meals.
Put dirty dishes in soapy water.

Water & Spiders

Do you know the relationship spiders have to water? If you don't, then you're missing out on important insight that can help you keep spiders out of your home. Spiders need water to survive. They need it more than food. They're also attracted to damp environments because they know they'll find food where moisture is present. If you get control of moisture, you can have a big impact on spider activity.

Exterior Moisture

Make sure your gutters are unobstructed and that water is flowing down and away from your foundation perimeter.
Make sure you don't have any plumbing leaks.
Remove weeds from your landscaping and rake organic matter away from your home.
Put sprinklers on a timer and water your plants in the morning.

Interior Moisture

Fix any faucets that are leaking.
Fix leaky pipes, garbage disposals, and other plumbing issues.
Vent moisture from your bathroom when you take a shower or bath.
Install ventilation, fans, and dehumidifiers in humid spaces in your home.

Webs & Spiders

Do you know that some spiders lay hundreds of eggs in their webs? These eggs are stored in egg sacs. If you allow webs to sit, these eggs can hatch and you can have hundreds of new spiderlings near your home. We recommend removing webs around and inside your home as soon as you see them.

While we're on the topic of egg sacs, we'd like to add a helpful fact to assist you in detecting black or brown widow activity around your home. These spiders often create their egg sacs in holes and voids. If you look into a void and see webbing and a spiky looking egg sac, you're looking at the egg sac of a widow spider. These spiders are the only spiders that make these spiky puffball sacs.

Pathways & Spiders

Spiders get in because they can. When spiders crawl around on the outside of your home, it is important that they don't find an easy pathway to the interior of your home.

Trim bushes and other vegetation away from your exterior walls.
Seal cracks in your foundation.
Seal gaps around pipes and wire conduits.
Replace damaged door sweeps and screens.
Replace weatherstripping where gaps have developed.
Repair damaged glass panes.

Spider Treatments

There are many ways that applications of control products around your home can reduce and control spiders. These applications are included with a quality residential and commercial pest control program in Fort Lauderdale. If you'd like to know how the team here at Native Pest Management can help you keep spiders and other pests out of your Fort Lauderdale home, connect with us. We would love the opportunity to guide you in selecting the right pest control plan for your specific needs and budget.