How To Get Rid Of Brown Recluse Spiders Naturally With An Overlooked Solution

Brown recluse spiders (Loxosceles reclusa) are well-known for their necrotic venom, so it's a given you don't want one in your house. Trouble is, these spiders like to hide, and even when one does come out, it's small and difficult to see. An insecticide will kill a brown recluse, but you usually have to spray it directly, and that's not going to happen if you can't see it. Brown recluse webs, on the other hand, are much easier to spot, and that suggests an easy and safe way to control the spiders: Vacuum up the webs. 

You could vacuum up the spiders themselves and chances are that would kill them. If not, it would confine them to the vacuum bag or canister at least long enough for you to take it somewhere safe and empty it. Many people advise against killing spiders because they help control other insects, and that's probably why a vacuum is an overlooked solution for spider control. However, because of their venom, brown recluse spiders (like black widows) are a different story. Killing one is better than getting bitten.

Because a brown recluse is so difficult to spot, an even better idea is to vacuum up its web. That way, you get rid of the eggs. You may actually get the spider itself if it's hanging around at home, and chances are that it is, because the web is its retreat.  

As you would expect from a privacy-seeking spider like the brown recluse, the web is seldom out in the open. Unlike some webs, it's no geometrical work of art; it's a tangle of loosely hanging silken fibers that the arachnid uses as a retreat rather than an insect catcher. The spider prefers to construct its web in dark, undisturbed spaces, like closets and attics, but it sometimes chooses furniture, clothing, shoes, and empty storage boxes. In fact, the spider may have hitched a ride into your home in a box. 

Get out your vacuum (for maneuverability and sucking power, you can't beat a stick vacuum with a crevice tool), and go on the hunt. When you see a suspect web, set the vacuum on high and suck it up. Some web residue may be left on the nozzle, but any live spiders in the web will be sucked into the vacuum canister, and as long as the vacuum is running, they can't get out. 

When you're finished hunting and demolishing webs, take the vacuum outside, put on protective gloves to protect your hands from fugitive spiders, and empty the canister. Don't wait to do this until tomorrow, because spiders can and do crawl out of vacuum canisters and bags after the machine has been turned off. If you want to keep recluse spiders out of your home, repeat this vacuuming operation regularly.