North Carolina is home to several common house-invading spiders. If you live in Jacksonville, you may know several common house spiders by their names, such as wolf spiders, American spiders, and daddy longlegs spiders. But, as common as spiders are, many residents don't know enough about spiders to get effective control of them. In most cases, it isn't a big deal; there are only two dangerous spiders in Jacksonville, and neither is common. Let's take a quick look at common spiders in our area, what it means when you find spiders in your home, and how to naturally prevent spiders and spider bites. If you want to bypass the work involved in controlling spiders and would like professional spider pest control in Jacksonville, contact B&T Pest Control for assistance. Our service team members have the training, experience, and professionalism to provide the highest level of control and management of spiders.
The Ten Most Common House Spiders
Let's begin by looking at the two kinds of spiders that are considered dangerous in North Carolina. They are black widow spiders and brown recluse spiders. Jacksonville is home to both, but we rarely see them. That is the good news. The bad news is that these two kinds of spiders can sneak up on you if you don't know the warning signs.
- Black widow spiders create tangled webs made of strong strands. You'll find these near the ground or inside the voids of objects in your yard. They make these strong webs to catch larger prey.
- Brown recluse spiders don't make webs to catch prey. They use their webs as protection when they retreat. You'll find their webs around holes and recesses. Like black widow spiders, brown recluse spiders make tangled webs, but the strands are not nearly as strong.
Control of dangerous spiders begins with yard work. You can deter these spiders by removing hiding places, reducing food options, and sealing entry points. We will get into the specifics of spider prevention in a moment. First, let's look at eight more common spiders in Jacksonville, North Carolina.
- Common house spiders (also referred to as American spiders) are tiny spiders that make wispy webs in your home. If you see lots of webs and no spiders, these spiders are the culprits.
- The wolf spider is another common home-invading pest in our area. These big, hairy spiders are hunters. They don't sit in a web waiting for prey to come to them; they go looking for their prey. If you have a wolf spider problem, it will reveal itself when you discover one of these spiders lurking in a hiding place.
- Daddy longlegs spiders and other long-legged spiders are found in garages, sheds, and dusty spaces. They create lots of webs for you to see, and you'll likely see them in their webs.
- Jumping spiders are creepy but are tiny enough to present less concern. You'll find them springing about in the open because they don't mind being in the light.
- Orb weavers are spiders that hang out in landscaping or gardens. They create webs that look like Halloween decorations. They eat plant-damaging pests, so they're often left to do this job. We recommend hiring a licensed service professional instead. Orb weavers aren't as dedicated as a human. Plus, a human won't bite you.
- Funnel weavers. These spiders create a web that looks like a funnel—hence the name. You'll find funnel weaver spiders in your yard. They rarely get into homes.
Spiders are common pests in Jacksonville, but they don't need to be common pests in Jacksonville homes. There is a reason spiders get inside homes. If you understand why they get in, you can work to keep them out.
What It Means If You're Seeing Spiders In Your Home
Most spiders don't want to live in your home. When you see an orb weaver or funnel weaver indoors, you have holes in your exterior. Seal those holes and say goodbye to those spiders.
Some spiders get inside but don't prefer to live indoors. Wolf spiders fall into this category. If you see a wolf spider, it is essential to seal potential exterior entry points. But there is more going on. You need to know that wolf spiders go where their food is found. Since they eat insects and other invertebrates, you likely have a secondary pest issue. Correcting your pest issue will address your spider issue naturally.
Common house spiders need no reason to live in your home. They love homes, so while all spiders can get in, these spiders prefer to live with you. American spiders, long-bodied cellar spiders, and other home spiders aren't easily deterred with natural preventative methods. But you should know that natural prevention limits their ability to reproduce. If you want fewer of these spiders in your home, it pays to roll your sleeves up and to do the hard work of spider prevention.
Effective Spider Prevention Tips For Your Home
We've touched on some ways you can deter spiders naturally. Let's put some meat on the bones. Here are our best all-natural spider prevention tips for Jacksonville residents.
- Get a caulking gun and a couple of cans of expanding foam. Use the caulk material to seal gaps around windows, doors, and utilities. Use the expanding foam to fill in voids and recesses.
- Repair and replace protective building materials, such as weatherstripping, door sweeps, screens, and vent covers.
- Address indoor pest problems by applying sanitation and moisture control. Most pests enter homes because of available food, food debris, and unsanitary organic food sources. The secondary factor that attracts pests is moisture. Repair plumbing issues such as leaking faucets or weeping pipes.
- Address outdoor attractants. Pests are drawn to homes with dirty trash receptacles, leaf piles, leaf litter, stacked branches, bird seed on the ground, nuts under trees, and other issues that are addressed with general sanitation and yard work.
- Insects are attracted to light, and spiders eat those insects. When you keep lights off at night, you reduce insect populations. Doing so will also reduce spider activity. We recommend installing motion-detecting light fixtures so that lights stay on only as long as needed.
- Plant-damaging insects are attracted to overwatered plants and plants that are not properly tended. If you have spider webs on your shrubs and landscape ornamentals, the root issue is likely plant-damaging insects. Proper plant management, moisture control, and deployment of yellow sticky traps can control insects and deter spiders.
- A damp perimeter is inviting to a long list of potential pests. Check your gutters to make sure everything is working properly. If you have clogs, or a spot where your gutters are broken, address these issues or hire a contractor that cleans and repairs gutters. There are few things as important for the health of your home as working gutters. The added benefit is that your gutters reduce conditions that attract pests and the spiders that feed on those pests.
- Spiders hide in yard clutter. If you have objects in your yard or next to your home, spiders will love exploring your exterior. Remove the clutter to deter spiders and remove potential hiding places.
- Spiders emerge from egg sacs. You can greatly impact spider populations by removing spider webs and any egg sacs attached. A spider web-removal tool is the right tool for this job. One spider sac can have 300 eggs inside it! The last thing you need is for those 300 eggs to turn into 300 spiderlings. While each spiderling will not turn into a viable spider, it is best not to let them try.
All of these tips work together to limit the food sources (insects and invertebrates) that spiders eat outdoors and indoors. Natural pest control has an impact, but it isn't the most effective way to control pests or the spiders that eat them.
The Most Effective Way To Keep Spiders And Other Pests Out Of Your Home
A residential pest control service plan provides layers of protection against pests. Since spiders enter your home to eat insects and other invertebrates, exterior pest control can help you maintain a home that no self-respecting spider would get caught living in. Exterior pest control also works to keep spiders out of your home by maintaining a barrier around your exterior. On top of routine applications of a liquid barrier, your service professional removes webs around your home and directly reduces spider populations. Lastly, your service will include spot treatments and appropriate applications of control materials in your yard. These provide even more management of exterior pests and prevent interior pest problems.
Would you like to learn more about how a residential pest control service plan can help you maintain a spider-free home? We'd love to speak with you and guide you in selecting a plan that fits your specific needs, one that addresses your specific pest concerns. B&T Pest control provides industry-leading pest control solutions in Jacksonville, North Carolina. Our service team members have the knowledge and experience to advise you. Connect with us today to learn more.
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