The Secret To Keeping Spiders Out Of Your Sanford Home

Habits And Behaviors Of Common Spiders

We could write pages describing the common spiders in Sanford but not only would it bore you, it would not provide you with what you need to keep spiders out of your home. So, rather than cover each species, let's look at the habits and behaviors of common spiders that bring them into your yard.

• Spiders are looking for food. They eat insects and bugs. Therefore, a yard filled with these critters will attract spiders.
• Spiders hang out near light fixtures because insects are attracted to light.
• Spiders hang out near trash receptacles because many insects are attracted to the aroma of decaying organic matter and some insects lay their eggs in rotting things.
• Spiders crawl around in landscaping and establish webs on landscape plants because many insects feed on plants, particularly unhealthy vegetation. Like a decaying banana, decaying plants are sweeter. 
• Spiders hide underneath objects or get inside object voids. They prefer piles of branches, scrap wood, campfire wood, stones, bricks, and other organic materials. They will also establish themselves in lawn furniture, toys, equipment, etc.
• Spiders drink from ground puddles and objects that capture rainwater.
• Spiders love rocky crevices and caves, so it only makes sense that they'll get into homes through cracks in foundation walls and slabs.

Do you see how spiders are not mysterious? They are only motivated by a handful of factors. Many of those factors are within your power to control. 

What It Means If You're Seeing Spiders In Your Home

Spiders don't know that you have food in your home. They get in by accident as they explore gaps and holes in your exterior. Once inside, they may grow a population, depending on the species. When you see lots of spiders in your home, you can bet that it is because of one of the following:

• You have lots of spiders near your exterior.
• You have lots of entry points for spiders to exploit.
• You have moisture damage and wood rot.
• You have indoor pests, such as flies, ants, or roaches.
• You haven't removed spider webs in and around your home.

There is more to it, but you get the idea. Food and water bring spiders to your exterior, and entry points allow them to get inside. Once inside, interior food sources can make them want to stay. When they establish themselves, they're going to reproduce. You'll have lots of spiders if you don't take steps to arrest reproduction. Now, let's look at specific examples of how to prevent spider infestations by applying what we've discussed so far.

Five Easy And Effective Spider Prevention Tips

Let's start inside your home and work our way out. It is essential to point out that while these steps are easy to understand, they aren't easy to execute. You'll need to use some elbow grease.

1. Sanitation And Food Management

There are a few ways sanitation plays a role in driving spiders out. In some ways, sanitation directly impacts spiders. They like to hide in clutter and prefer to create webs in dusty and undisturbed areas. But, in most cases, sanitation targets the pests spiders eat. Removing food debris will remove a food source that brings ants into your home. Covering your trash prevents flies from breeding in your trash. Cleaning the sides of your oven removes the oil and grease that cockroaches eat.

Along with sanitation, be sure to protect your food. Storing food in sealed containers is the first step. Keep food covered on your counters. Put pet food down only during meals. Clean dishes as you go. Don't give pests any food to eat.

2. Indoor Webs

Certain spiders craft egg sacs in their webs. These paper-like sacs are small, but they hold a lot of eggs. Some spiders have more than 300 eggs in their sacs. Not all eggs in a sac result in viable adult spiders, but when the eggs in a sac hatch and the spiderlings grow, you'll see little spiders appearing more frequently inside your home. The spiders that survive and mate will continue to create spiders in your home.

3. Gaps

There are many gaps that spiders use to get into your home. Here are a few places to inspect indoors and outdoors.

• Look for gaps around the pipes that come in underneath your kitchen and bathroom sinks.
• Look for the tiniest of gaps around window and door frames.
• Inspect your door sweeps, weatherstripping, and other door seals.
• Inspect window and door screens.
• Check all your vents to make sure they have working covers.
• Look for gaps around exterior plumbing.
• Check your home for rotten wood. Fill in rotted wood holes with expanding foam.

Get every crack, no matter how small. Spiderlings can enter your home through gaps the width of a credit card.

4. Outdoor Webs

It bears mentioning again. Spider webs have egg sacs. The more spiders you have crawling around next to your home, the greater your chances will be of having spiders get inside. Use a spider web removal tool attached to a long pole to get webs in high places. Dust and clean around light fixtures and window frames to deter spiders from making webs. 

5. Exterior Attractants

The most important step of all is to address exterior attractants. It is our longest tip, and we saved the best for last. Here are just some of the many ways you can deter insects (and the spiders that enter your yard to eat those insects).

• Keep lights off. Insects are drawn to light and will enter your yard at night when they see lights turn on.
• Replace bulbs. Insects can't perceive yellow light. Sometimes the best way to address the issue of exterior lights is simply to replace the bulbs.
• Keep shades drawn and curtains closed at night.
• Consider installing motion-sensitive fixtures or bulbs. These are great when you need more light for a short time, such as in your entryway.
• Address weeds. Insects eat nectar. When the weeds in your lawn start to produce tiny flowers, bees aren't the only insects that will notice.
• Keep your trash receptacles free of odors that attract insects from a distance.
• Keep your trash covered.
• Stay on top of picking up nuts underneath trees that produce them.
• Pick up dead branches and remove them or stack them in a bin.
• Trim grass low.
• Remove unnecessary vegetation from your landscaping.
• Deploy yellow sticky traps in your landscaping to capture tiny insects. Plant-damaging pests, like aphids, white flies, and scale insects produce honeydew, which is a sweet food source for many insects.
• Pick up dog waste if you have a pet that goes out in the yard.
• Pick up food after cookouts.
• Remove lawn clutter, which pests uses as hiding places.
• Clean your gutters and fix areas that are damaged. A damp perimeter draws moisture pests.
• Pick up cardboard and paper products that certain pests feed on.

Every step you take to remove food sources, moisture, hiding places, and entry points will deter insects and spiders. While easy to understand, it is hard work. If you don't have the time, energy, or inclination, you may turn to control products. You should know that there is no product that works to stop spiders. Spider control and management is a multipronged process that is best applied by a trained professional. We have a few of those on staff at Hawkeye Home & Pest Solutions.