The Chemical-Free Way To Evict Dangerous Brown Recluse Spiders From Your Home

It's always unnerving when you discover you have brown recluse spiders in your home. Not only do they look creepy, but they also have a poisonous bite. Granted, the amount of poison is too small to create much damage to a person, but it's still important to get immediate medical attention if bitten. Because of that, it's important to get them out of your house as soon as you spot them. Since it's a brown spider, it can be challenging to differentiate it from its more docile counterparts, but an easy way to know if you have a recluse on your hands is by counting its eyes. This particular arachnid only has six eyes. If you confirm you have this creepy crawly in your house, the next thing to do is to get rid of it. But rather than use harsh chemicals, there is a safer alternative that is just as effective: Use sticky traps.

While some people might think that insecticides are the most effective way to rid you of your bug problem, sticky traps can work just as well. That's because they catch the arachnids as they're roaming your house looking for prey. This allows you to then dispose of them. Here is how to utilize it in your own home.

While brown recluse spiders may weave webs, they aren't confined to their homes. That's because they don't use their webs to catch food — instead, they like to hunt for their prey. Because of this, you will see them moving throughout your house, trying to find their next snack. That's why the glue trap is such an effective method of catching them. It's one of the easiest ways to keep recluse spiders at bay. Sticky traps are paper patches covered in a tacky adhesive. When the spider walks across it, it will become stuck in the glue, trapping it. You can then dispose of it and set a new trap for the next batch of pests. According to trusted exterminators like Terminix, this is one of the most effective ways to trap spiders and should be used above other more gimmicky hacks.

Since these spiders like to move, you should place the traps in areas they might walk through. This includes along baseboards, under furniture, in closets, and in shadowy corners. You also want to take special care to add these traps in the rooms you use the most. This will lower the risk of it biting you while you're watching TV or hanging out in bed. 

When arranging your game plan, you don't want to be skimpy with the amount of traps you set out. If you suspect you only have one to two recluse spiders in your home, it will be harder to trap them since there are so few of them. You will need them to wander onto the sticky paper for it to be effective. Because of this, the more traps you set out, the higher the chance you have of catching one. You also want to make sure you use a non-toxic brand if you have curious children or pets in the house, such as the 288i insect trap from Amazon. That way if they touch the trap, no harmful chemicals will be transferred to them. 

Also note that if you suspect you have more than just a handful of recluse spiders — meaning you might have an infestation — using glue traps should be part of a multi-level approach to get rid of them, and not the only tactic you use. Having an uptick of spiders usually means there are insects in your house luring them, so you will have to take care of your underlying pest problem in addition to removing the spiders. Due to the fact they have poisonous venom, it's best to call a professional exterminator and have them create a detailed plan on how to remove the infestation.