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As the weather warms up, you may start noticing more spiders around the house, garage, shed and garden. While most Australian spiders pose little danger to people, finding one in the bedroom, bathroom or inside a shoe is rarely welcome.
Completely eliminating spiders from a property isn't realistic. Spiders can continually move back into suitable areas, particularly where there is shelter and a reliable supply of insects. However, there is plenty you can do to make your home less attractive to them and reduce the chances of spiders making their way indoors.
Before summer arrives, work through these practical spider-control steps around your home.
Spiders generally favour areas where they can remain relatively undisturbed.
Around the outside of your home, check areas such as:
piles of timber and firewood
garden equipment
stored pots and containers
outdoor furniture
sheds and garages
dense vegetation against walls
leaf litter
clutter beneath decks and verandahs
Move stored items away from the external walls of your house where possible. Firewood should also be stored away from the building rather than stacked directly beside an external wall.
Inside the home, reduce clutter in garages, laundries, storage rooms and wardrobes.
Cardboard boxes that remain untouched for months can provide particularly good hiding places. Where practical, consider replacing long-term cardboard storage with sealed plastic containers.
Regularly removing webs is one of the simplest ways to discourage spiders from establishing themselves around your home.
Check:
eaves
window frames
exterior light fittings
pergolas
outdoor furniture
fences
garage corners
sheds
door frames
Use a broom, vacuum or suitable long-handled web remover.
Don't just remove the visible web. Look around the area for sheltered cracks, gaps or other places the spider may be using as a retreat.
Regular web removal is particularly useful around outdoor entertaining areas where you want to minimise spider activity during summer.
One of the best ways to keep spiders outside is to reduce the number of ways they can enter.
The Australian Museum notes that wandering spiders can enter houses at ground level, including underneath doors, and recommends weather strips, draught excluders and flyscreens as preventative measures.
Inspect your home for:
gaps beneath external doors
damaged flyscreens
gaps around window frames
cracks around plumbing penetrations
openings around air-conditioning pipes
gaps around garage doors
damaged vents or screens
Installing door seals and repairing damaged flyscreens can help reduce spider entry while also helping keep out many of the insects they feed on.
Spiders don't usually move into a home because they are interested in your food. They are interested in the insects that your home may be attracting.
If flies, moths, cockroaches and other insects are common around your property, spiders have access to a convenient food supply.
Pay particular attention to outdoor lighting.
Lights positioned directly beside doors and windows can attract flying insects at night, which in turn may create favourable hunting areas for spiders.
Where practical:
avoid leaving unnecessary outdoor lights running all night
position lighting away from frequently opened doors
keep window and door screens in good condition
keep bins closed
remove food waste
address ongoing fly and cockroach problems
Managing other insect pests can form an important part of a broader spider-management strategy.
Trees, shrubs and climbing plants that touch your home can provide insects and spiders with an easy route onto the building.
Before summer:
trim branches touching the roof
cut shrubs back from exterior walls
remove excessive vegetation around windows
clear leaf litter from immediately around the building
keep garden beds reasonably maintained
You don't need to remove your garden. The aim is simply to create some separation between dense vegetation and the structure of your home.
Garages and sheds provide many of the conditions spiders favour: shelter, limited disturbance and plenty of cracks and storage areas.
Before summer, give these spaces a thorough clean.
Move boxes and equipment, vacuum webs and check behind shelving.
Take particular care when moving items that haven't been disturbed for some time. Wear appropriate gloves and enclosed footwear, particularly when working in sheds, garages, wood piles or garden storage areas.
We also recommend wearing gloves while gardening and checking shoes before putting them on as simple measures to help prevent spider bites.
Once you've cleaned, decluttered and reduced entry points, an appropriately registered insecticide can form another part of your spider-control strategy.
For homeowners looking for a residual treatment, Surefire Cockroach, Spider Indoor & Outdoor Pest Concentrate 500mL is available from Pest Wholesale.
It contains 15 g/L alpha-cypermethrin and is a suspension concentrate registered for the control of spiders as well as ants, cockroaches, silverfish, fleas and flies in indoor and outdoor household areas.
This makes it useful where you're trying to manage several common household crawling pests rather than spiders alone.
As with any pesticide, always read the product label before use and apply only in the situations, at the rates and using the methods specified on the label.
Broadly spraying every surface isn't necessarily the best approach.
Spiders frequently shelter in cracks, crevices and protected areas. Depending on the product label, targeted treatment of these locations may be more appropriate.
Typical areas worth inspecting include:
gaps around door and window frames
cracks around sheds
garage corners
behind stored items
sheltered exterior crevices
gaps around building fixtures
For more targeted applications, Py Aerosol Insecticide is another option currently available from Pest Wholesale.
It is a ready-to-use 300 g aerosol containing 10 g/kg pyrethrins and is listed for control of a range of pests including spiders, cockroaches, ants, fleas and flies. Pest Wholesale also identifies it as suitable for crack-and-crevice applications.
A ready-to-use aerosol can be useful when you don't require the larger treatment volume of a concentrate.
Again, follow the product label carefully and don't apply pesticides to locations or surfaces that aren't included in the Directions for Use.
Summer often means pulling outdoor furniture, gardening equipment, toys, BBQ accessories and camping equipment out of storage.
These are exactly the types of objects that may have remained undisturbed for months.
Before putting your hands underneath or inside stored items:
visually inspect them
wear gloves where appropriate
shake out footwear
check outdoor cushions
inspect children's outdoor equipment
check gardening gloves before putting them on
Take extra care around sheltered outdoor areas where redbacks may establish webs.
Some spiders wander rather than remaining in a permanent web.
Shoes and clothing left on floors or outdoors should therefore be checked before use, particularly in areas where spiders are known to be active.
White-tailed spiders, for example, are wandering hunters and the Australian Museum notes that they are often seen in and around houses during summer and autumn.
A simple habit of checking shoes and shaking out clothing can reduce the chance of an unpleasant encounter.
If you live in a funnel-web area, particularly parts of NSW, spider management requires additional care.
The Australian Museum advises that insecticide spraying is not recommended as a general control method for ground-dwelling funnel-web spiders. It also notes that male funnel-webs may wander during summer and autumn, particularly following wet weather.
Reduce potential entry points beneath doors, keep areas immediately around the home relatively clear and take care when gardening or moving materials around shaded, damp areas.
If you suspect a serious funnel-web problem around your home, consider contacting a professional pest manager rather than attempting extensive DIY treatment.
DIY spider prevention can work well for general household spider activity, but there are situations where professional assistance is the better option.
Consider contacting a licensed pest manager if:
you're repeatedly finding large numbers of spiders indoors
you suspect funnel-web activity
redbacks are established in areas regularly used by children or pets
spiders are occurring in difficult-to-access areas
you're unsure which species you're dealing with
your existing preventative measures aren't working
A professional can inspect the property, identify likely harbourage areas and recommend an appropriate treatment strategy.
Don't attempt to identify the seriousness of a spider bite based on an internet image alone.
Healthdirect advises treating a bite from a funnel-web or other big black spider as a medical emergency and calling Triple Zero (000) for an ambulance. Different first-aid measures apply to different spider bites, so follow current Australian medical advice.
Before the warmer weather sets in:
remove webs from around the home
declutter sheds and garages
move firewood and stored materials away from walls
trim vegetation touching the house
repair damaged flyscreens
seal gaps underneath doors
check cracks and possible entry points
reduce insects that provide food for spiders
inspect outdoor furniture and stored equipment
consider an appropriate labelled spider-control treatment
check shoes and gardening gloves before use
Spider control is most effective when you combine several approaches rather than relying on a single spray.
Reducing clutter, sealing entry points, removing webs, managing other insect pests and using appropriately registered pest-control products where required can all help make your home less attractive to spiders.
Getting started before summer also gives you a chance to identify potential problem areas before outdoor entertaining, gardening and holiday activities increase.
Looking for spider-control products?
Explore Pest Wholesale's range of household insect-control products, including Surefire Cockroach, Spider Indoor & Outdoor Pest Concentrate and Py Aerosol Insecticide, for DIY pest-control options delivered across Australia.
Always read and follow the complete product label before use.
