How To Get Rid Of A Spider Problem Around Your New Braunfels Home

There are many facts New Braunfels residents don't know about spiders. For example, do you know that some spiders don't come into your home from the outside? Certain spiders are so accustomed to living indoors, they spread by hitchhiking rather than climbing in through cracks and gaps in the exterior of the home. These spiders also have offspring that never live outdoors. If you put certain common house spiders outside, they won't survive. They don't know how to live outdoors. Facts like these complicate spider control. Join us today as we discuss how to get rid of spiders from A to Z. We'll share tricks we're sure you've never heard and tips that work on all spiders, both indoor and outdoor spiders. If you don't particularly want to learn about spiders and would rather have a certified technician take a look at your spider control needs and offer advice, give us a call. We provide advanced pest control in New Braunfels and have the experience to guide you to a solution that will work for you. 

How To Tell If You Have A Spider Problem

The first thing we must tackle on our way to getting rid of spiders is the misconception that all spiders create webs. If you read, "How to tell if you have a spider problem," and thought, "I can just look for the webs," you may miss detecting certain spiders in your home. Some spiders don't create webs to catch prey. They hunt for their prey and pounce on their food. These spiders don't create webs in your home, but webs are an excellent place to start when looking for evidence of spider activity.

• Inspect locations where spiders are likely to create webs. Usually, they'll create their webs where food is easily caught. A spider will make a web in landscape vegetation to catch insects that feed on plants. A spider will make a web in a dark moist location where moisture pests live. A spider will make a web near a trash receptacle or light fixture to catch flies and other flying insects. Web creation is associated with food detection.
• Consider flying insects and other pests in your home. Since spiders go where food is found, you can expect all spiders to explore your home in search of food if there are food sources. But even if you don't see webs, you likely still have spiders. 
• Use a flashlight to inspect areas where spiders are most likely to hide. They will gravitate to humid, dark, and secluded zones. Underneath your back deck is a good place to check. They'll get into your attic, basement, or boiler room. They'll hang out in your garage. If you see spiders crawling around, you know you have a spider problem.
• Inspect holes around and inside your home. Some spiders hide in holes. You may see them in there or find webbing around a hole. The webs these spiders create provide protection when they retreat into their hiding places.
• Use a flashlight at night and shine it on your lawn. If you see glowing eyes looking back at you, those are spiders. The eyes of a spider have a reflective tissue called tapetum lucidum, which helps them see at night. An inspection with a flashlight can give some understanding of the spider pressures on your property.

When you detect spider activity, should it worry you? We understand that some residents have a fear of spiders and spider bites. Let's quickly set the facts straight.

Some Spiders Are More Dangerous Than Others

Once you evaluate your spider control needs, the next step is to consider the risks. All spiders have fangs, all spiders have venom, and all spiders are predators. But not all spiders have the ability to bite you or a venom strong enough to harm you. There are only two types of spiders that are considered to be a medical concern. One creates webs to catch prey; the other does not.

Black widow spiders create webs. You'll find these webs in hidden locations. The strands of a black widow spider web are strong and will make a noise when broken. It is best to take steps to address black widow spiders, as a bite from one of these spiders is painful, and its venom can make you sick.

Brown recluse spiders don't create webs to catch prey. The webs they create are to protect themselves when they retreat. They are not strong, like black widow webs. Look for these tangled webs in low areas or holes. Brown recluse spiders have a necrotic venom that is potentially harmful to humans.

All other spiders are only a mild threat to people. If a spider has the ability to bite, its fangs and its venom will cause localized pain. Some spider bites feel like a pinprick. Others feel like a bee sting. But there is no medical concern.

Factors That Attract Spiders Into Your Home

Now that we've looked at how to detect common spiders and what to expect from spiders that get into your home, let's get to the topic of our article. The primary reason spiders get into your home is that they first find reasons to live near your home. If you address the attractants, you'll see fewer glowing eyes looking back at you from your lawn, and you can prevent those glowing-eyed critters from getting into your home. Spiders go where food is found. If your yard has limited food sources, you'll have a limited number of spiders. Here are some ways to reduce spider food.

Remove Lawn Weeds: The insects and bugs that enter your yard dine on plant sap and nectar. Both are found in weeds. If you have a variety of weeds, it is like having a buffet for pests. When pests encroach upon your property to eat plant sap and nectar, spiders will follow behind.

Prevent Aphids: There are a few pests that damage your landscape vegetation, but aphids are at the top of the list. When aphids damage your vegetation, they do something else unwanted: They produce honeydew. Honeydew is a sweet food source that many bugs love to eat. If you keep your landscape plants healthy and strong, they will resist aphids. If more control is needed, you can put yellow sticky traps in your vegetation to catch aphids. If even more control is needed, contact a licensed pest professional. 

Deter Flies: Spiders eat flies by the truckloads. Many flies are attracted to dirty trash receptacles. Cleaning dirty receptacles, keeping covers securely on top, and getting trash to the curb weekly will prevent fly problems—and, ultimately, spider problems. 

Keep Lights Off: Insects are attracted to light. Consider replacing fixtures or bulbs. When you install motion-sensitive fixtures or bulbs, your lights will only come on when you need them, and you won't have a constant attractant luring insects to your home. 

Yard Work: Spiders, insects, and other invertebrates prefer a yard that is overgrown or covered in leaf litter. The first step in deterring these pests is to trim your grass and remove leaf litter as soon as possible.

Address Moisture: Water is a building block of life. Maintain working gutters that channel rainwater down and away from your exterior. Trim your landscape vegetation to let the wind flow through and keep things dry, and only give your landscaping the water needed for good health.

Along with addressing the spider food in your yard, you should also take steps to directly deter spider activity. There are two great ways to do this.

1. Remove Hiding Places. Certain spiders hide in, under, and behind the objects in your yard. A clutter-free yard is resistant to spider activity. It is particularly useful to remove hiding places if you are hoping to deter black widow spiders. Black widows have a particular attraction to wood scrap piles and brush piles.
2. Remove Webs. Spiders can create egg sacs in their webs, and one egg sac can have hundreds of spider eggs. When those eggs hatch, you'll have hundreds of new spiders exploring your yard in search of a meal. While most won't survive, those tiny spiders can get into your home through the tiniest of gaps, find indoor food sources, and turn into indoor pests. It is hard to keep tiny spiders out.

It is a lot of work to stay on top of managing pests in your yard. While effective and all-natural, you may want an easier solution.  

Professional Pest Control Is The Best Spider Control Solution

A year-round pest control service plan provides ongoing management of pests in your yard. It comes with web removal to reduce spider populations and exclusion work to block routes spiders take to enter your home. Best of all, you don't have to think about spiders as much when your property has the protection it needs. You can rake those leaves when you feel like it. You can trim your landscape vegetation when you have the time. Professional pest control gives you the protection you need and allows you to focus on the things that matter to you in life, like spending time with your family.

For assistance with getting control of spiders and other pests in New Braunfels, contact Gold Star Exterminators for assistance. Our programs are environmentally friendly and tailored to provide the highest level of protection.