Five ways to stop huge spiders invading your home this autumn
It's autumn and you know what that means, we're going to be seeing a lot less sun and a lot more rain while all those beautiful plants and trees will soon fall to pieces.
Alright, there are plenty of good things about the season as well, including a hopeful end to the oppressive heat of the summer months and a chance to actually crack out some of the nicer things in your wardrobe.
Plus it's not quite winter yet so while it might be windy and rainy it's probably not going to be so awfully cold that you're left longing for the days when you were melting into your sofa.
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Returning to the downsides for a moment, the plethora of bugs and creepy crawlies which were skittering around outside during the summer months are now going to be eyeing up your cosy home as a prime location to move the family into.
Spiders can really help protect your home against these menaces as they catch and kill other bugs but they're a big phobia for lots of people who see the eight-legged arachnids as foes, not friends.
With that in mind, we've got five tips which you can use to make spiders think twice before spinning their webs in your house and instead bother those neighbours who spent all summer having loud barbeques.
Keep it clean outside
If you don't want creepy crawlies getting into your house then it's a good idea to rob them of places to hunker down near it.
Think of all the places where bugs might like to take shelter before they make that final, fateful decision to creep into your home and start messing with your stuff.
It can be as simple as clearing away leaves or piles of vegetation from near your doors where a spider might lurk.
Making it harder for a spider to actually get into your house in the first place is also an idea as there may be all sorts of holes or gaps they could slip through, so be on the lookout for opportunities to fill in the cracks.
Remove their hiding spots in your home
Okay, so you failed to stop them from getting into the house but that doesn't mean the war has been lost.
Take that thinking of where a spider might hide and apply it to your home, clean up messy spots and root out all the places a creepy crawly could crawl creepily without you noticing.
Clear the place up and keep an eye out for other bugs which could attract spiders, if your windowsills are full of flies then spiders will want to spin their webs there.
Playing with fire
When in doubt, burn 'em out.
We're not talking about actually cracking out a flamethrower or blowtorch, despite what your arachnophobia might make you think.
Instead, this is about getting scented candles with smells that spiders hate and you love, making it a win-win scenario.
Cinnamon and citrus scents aren't popular among spiders so scented candles along those lines could be a decent investment.
Purchase perfect plants
Other smells which don't require you to keep lighting fires in your house can come from plants and apparently spiders absolutely hate mint and lavender.
Sticking these plants in your windowsills will make spiders think twice about coming in and provided you take care of them they'll be a nice thing for you to have in your house as well.
Once again the kinds of smells us humans like aren't the same as the scents which attract spiders so you can play to that advantage.
Chemical warfare
What's better than a windowsill full of mint plants to scare away spiders?
A bottle of homemade peppermint spray which can be cheaply assembled and will absolutely ruin a spider's day is a handy weapon to have to hand that you can use all over the house.
A few puffs of this stuff will send those scary spiders scurrying away into a hidey hole, or better yet send them running as fast as their eight legs will carry them right out of your home.
Just don't forget that if you clear out all the spiders and are suddenly inundated with flies that's just the consequences of your own actions.
So, there you have it!
Joe Harker