Should spiders concern you? Many of them have venom, and if you are houseproud their webs can be a hassle. Arachnophobia — the fear of spiders — can lead to physical and mental health problems. But on the other hand, spiders do a lot to help the environment and agriculture —spiders are important predators, eating tons of pest insects every year. But if you would like to avoid having spiders in your house, you should know what attracts them to your home in the first place. So here are the things that attract spiders to your house…
Things that attract spiders into your home
- Food: They attract other pests that serve as spider prey. Spiders primarily feed on insects. In fact, one spider eats about 2,000 insects a year. This can actually be beneficial to your house because spiders eat a lot of common house pests like flies. But here comes the bad news — spiders may find your house too attractive and settle there if there are a lot of insects they can hunt on your property.
- Shelter: There are two general things that attract spiders to your house — food and shelter. The insects serve as the food (see above), and your house serves as the shelter. Spiders are just like you — they want to live in an environment where they can be comfortable. It’s a plus if they can find food near this comfortable place — and that’s exactly what your house is.
- Easy access: Technically, all human houses have food and shelter anyway. But why do some houses have spiders while some don’t? The deciding factor is often accessibility. If food and shelter are easily accessible in your house, it will attract various kinds of pests, not just spiders.
Things that attract spiders
1. Garbage cans
Garbage cans are notorious for attracting different kinds of pests like ants, cockroaches, and rats. Flies can even live in garbage cans, especially the ones outside your house. These pests find garbage cans attractive because these areas are a haven of resources. There are food leftovers and drink residues that they can consume.
But spiders are a little different. Garbage cans attract spiders to your house, not because of the leftovers and residues, but because of the other pests in there that they can feed on. The small insects that you often see in garbage cans are fair game for spiders.
2. Plants
Garbage cans and plants have one thing in common — they attract pests that attract spiders. For example, aphids are some of the most common garden pests. They suck the nutrients out of plants and destroy fruits and vegetables. They are also part of the spider diet.
You may think this is a good thing because you are naturally controlling aphid populations outside your house by letting spiders eat them. But really, your property is better off not having both of them. Take good care of your plants to avoid attracting aphids and other insects, who will attract spiders in turn.
3. Warmth
You are not the only one looking for an environment with a controlled temperature. If it’s hot outside, pests will try to look for a cool place. If it’s cold, they will try to look for a warm one. But here’s the thing — spiders are not necessarily attracted to the controlled temperature in your house. They are cold-blooded creatures, meaning they don’t necessarily seek out environments with controlled temperatures to regulate their body.
They are more likely to be attracted to the other pests being attracted by your house’s controlled temperature. As you can see, this is the trend in this list of the things that attract spiders — they are not necessarily attracted to the conditions of your house. They have attracted to the pests the conditions of your house attract.
4. Dampness
Dampness is another condition in your house that pests find attractive. Many different pests thrive in moist environments, like termites. Unfortunately for these pests, they are also part of the spider diet.
Because dampness attracts other pests, it attracts certain spider species as well. Some of the most common among these are cellar spiders. They are spiders with long and thin legs and you have probably seen them before already because they are common.
There are other spider species that are attracted to other conditions in your house. For example, black widows are attracted to dryness, not dampness.
5. Light
Artificial light during nighttime attracts certain pests too. Well, technically, artificial light doesn’t attract the pests themselves. It’s just that certain pests use natural light for navigation and they confuse artificial light in your home as natural. Mosquitoes are a perfect example of this.
And like the other pests on this list, mosquitoes are fair game for spiders. This is the reason why you may see spiders around light sources in your house. They are feeding on the insects around the light sources, like flying ants and mosquitoes.
6. Other pests
If you notice that there are so many spiders in your house, there is a possibility that there is an abundant food source on your property. This means you may have a serious pest infestation that is getting eaten and sustaining the population of the spiders in your house.
Again, the other pests in this list come to mind — ants, aphids, cockroaches, mosquitoes, and termites. Insects are mostly attracted to food, so store your food properly in containers and refrigerators, clean up immediately after eating, and don’t let your garbage cans overflow. If you attract these insects, they will attract their predators as well, including spiders.
7. Property damage can provide nooks and crannies that attract spiders
Pests like spiders will take advantage of the food and shelter in your house if your house is easily accessible. They can simply go in and out as they please. One of the most common reasons why a house is accessible is property damage.
Cracks and holes are common passageways for different kinds of pests. But even areas with no damage at all can serve as passageways as well as the gaps between your doors and windows. Remember that insects are small creatures, and many of them can squeeze through the smallest of spaces.
Avoid attracting spiders
There are a lot of different things that attract spiders to your house. But they all have a common denominator — other pests. Your house’s condition attracts other pests, and these other pests will attract their predators, including spiders.