We've had numerous discussions about spiders here, but I've yet to see one that has to do with ridding the darn things. I hate them. I mean I absolutely despise them! I'd rather have roach bugs than a spider. I'd rather have mice than a spider! Don't get angry, I just cannot get over my incredible fear of them. The other night I thought I "spider proofed" this place. We live in Georgia on a mountain, lots of woods, lots of spiders. It's misery! What I want is a way to get rid of them without chemicals.

The other night, I cleaned every nook and cranny, pulled out every box, couch, bed, chair. I used vinegar all over the floors and walls. Last night I clogged every tee-tiny crack around my AC and used those sticky foamy pieces to seal really good and for extra protection, I layered with paper towels and duct-tape. Yes, I'm dead serious about ridding these ugly things!

Vinegar didn't do so well so I upgraded to clorox cleaner liquid and made a concoction of that plus vinegar, plus lemon oil. Apparently these stinking things taste with their feet so I had hopes that my desperate concoction would taste so bad to their feet that they'd run for life. NOPE! Just an hour ago I go bouncing in the kitchen and there's a HUGE one. I had a panic attack trying to kill the darn thing. Finally got the nerve and did it. It's dead, but I'm still awake at 4AM shaking like a leaf on a tree! They truly freak me out and I simply cannot take them, not the big ones.

So, I've researched all I can and there are little options that work besides chemicals and at this point, I will break out the chemicals and go freaking crazy if it means ridding them. Like I said, we live on a mountain in GA and it's not uncommon to come across those dangerous recluses, black widows and dear God, WOLF spiders! My huge fear turned into this awful anxiety crap a couple years ago when I had my first encounter with a wolf spider. I had the worst night. It was living in my drawer and had babies. I think that encounter damaged me for life.

My point is, I am desperate people! I know there are other aracnaphobics here and I need to know what you've tried to rid em' and what works? Any advice before I spend a boat load of money to rid em? I'm trying peppermint oil--I think. If it doesn't work, I'm going all-chemical because I know for a fact that works like a magic. We had to use chemicals for wolf spiders last year because they were soooo bad. We were always seeing them. I'm willing to try something natural for now.

Any suggestions? Does the peppermint oil work really well? What have you tried? I'm thinking maybe using more lemon oil and it may work better, but I've read that peppermint works better than lemon oil. No, the pledge and other artificial citrus stuff DOES NOT work. Also, no I cannot live with them. I don't care about the benefits. I want them gone. Lol. The "benefits" do not outweigh me having panic attacks every night at 4am. No siree. I need a real option. I've even considered infesting the house with lady bugs to keep away spiders. I've cleaned, gotten rid of any attractants, I keep the bug level low. We have crane flies like mad, but those don't bother me and we try to keep the numbers of those in the house low. There's nothing more I can do to just not attract them. They don't care if our home looks comfy, they come in anyways. There's NO clutter at all, nowhere to hide really and that is not keeping them away.

Thanks for any advice! Let me know what works for you. If I go ahead with the peppermint oil, I'll update on how it works. less

Kendra! Never ever mix bleach with ANYTHING. Girl, LOLOL

Anytime you do something like this you're just forcing them to come out into the open to get away, so you basically made it to where they couldn't escape.

I understand you are terrified of them, but they are crafty creatures and if they need to, they will find a way in. The only other suggestion I have is to bug bomb your crawlspace or basement if you have one. Spiders typically like cool and slightly damp places. less

Kendra! Never ever mix bleach with ANYTHING. Girl, LOLOL

Anytime you do something like this you're just forcing them to come out into the open to get away, so you basically made it to where they couldn't escape.

I understand you are terrified of them, but they are crafty creatures and if they need to, they will find a way in. The only other suggestion I have is to bug bomb your crawlspace or basement if you have one. Spiders typically like cool and slightly damp places. less

Yes. Seeing you mixed vinegar (an acid) with bleach (a corrosive base) made me cringe.

I HATE the things, too. I freak out when I see them on the ceiling of my bedroom, and I have a sponge on a stick (made for cleaning my bathtub) that I call my "Biter Killer" (My little one was a baby she used to call spider "biters, because they BITE CHOO!") I put wet Kleenex or toilet tissue on it and smash the thing, then place the thing into the toilet, so I don't have to touch it.

I've tried to rid my house of spiders. We live in the woods, and there is NO WAY to get rid of them. I know people who have had their houses professionally "exterminated&quo t; and all it did was make them sick.... and the spiders returned in a few days.

I don't really think there is a way to get rid of them completely. Just don't mix anything with bleach. You could make you and your family quite sick.

I wish I had better advice for you. Some of the time, I use my vacuum to suck them up when I don't want to go near them. Then I run the motor so they drown in all the dust in the vacuum bag. BLEH. I hate em.

SHUDDER less

We've had numerous discussions about spiders here, but I've yet to see one that has to do with ridding the darn things. I hate them. I mean I absolutely despise them! I'd rather have roach bugs than a spider. I'd rather have mice than a spider! Don't get angry, I just cannot get over my incredible fear of them. The other night I thought I "spider proofed" this place. We live in Georgia on a mountain, lots of woods, lots of spiders. It's misery! What I want is a way to get rid of them without chemicals.

The other night, I cleaned every nook and cranny, pulled out every box, couch, bed, chair. I used vinegar all over the floors and walls. Last night I clogged every tee-tiny crack around my AC and used those sticky foamy pieces to seal really good and for extra protection, I layered with paper towels and duct-tape. Yes, I'm dead serious about ridding these ugly things!

Vinegar didn't do so well so I upgraded to clorox cleaner liquid and made a concoction of that plus vinegar, plus lemon oil. Apparently these stinking things taste with their feet so I had hopes that my desperate concoction would taste so bad to their feet that they'd run for life. NOPE! Just an hour ago I go bouncing in the kitchen and there's a HUGE one. I had a panic attack trying to kill the darn thing. Finally got the nerve and did it. It's dead, but I'm still awake at 4AM shaking like a leaf on a tree! They truly freak me out and I simply cannot take them, not the big ones.

So, I've researched all I can and there are little options that work besides chemicals and at this point, I will break out the chemicals and go freaking crazy if it means ridding them. Like I said, we live on a mountain in GA and it's not uncommon to come across those dangerous recluses, black widows and dear God, WOLF spiders! My huge fear turned into this awful anxiety crap a couple years ago when I had my first encounter with a wolf spider. I had the worst night. It was living in my drawer and had babies. I think that encounter damaged me for life.

My point is, I am desperate people! I know there are other aracnaphobics here and I need to know what you've tried to rid em' and what works? Any advice before I spend a boat load of money to rid em? I'm trying peppermint oil--I think. If it doesn't work, I'm going all-chemical because I know for a fact that works like a magic. We had to use chemicals for wolf spiders last year because they were soooo bad. We were always seeing them. I'm willing to try something natural for now.

Any suggestions? Does the peppermint oil work really well? What have you tried? I'm thinking maybe using more lemon oil and it may work better, but I've read that peppermint works better than lemon oil. No, the pledge and other artificial citrus stuff DOES NOT work. Also, no I cannot live with them. I don't care about the benefits. I want them gone. Lol. The "benefits" do not outweigh me having panic attacks every night at 4am. No siree. I need a real option. I've even considered infesting the house with lady bugs to keep away spiders. I've cleaned, gotten rid of any attractants, I keep the bug level low. We have crane flies like mad, but those don't bother me and we try to keep the numbers of those in the house low. There's nothing more I can do to just not attract them. They don't care if our home looks comfy, they come in anyways. There's NO clutter at all, nowhere to hide really and that is not keeping them away.

Thanks for any advice! Let me know what works for you. If I go ahead with the peppermint oil, I'll update on how it works. less

They just aren't easy to get rid of. They can fit in very small spaces, and many are attracted to the insides of houses because they have evolved to live among people.

Please don't be offended by my next question. It's a perfectly serious one. If your fear of spiders is so profound that it's interfering with your ability to function normally, preventing sleep, and causing panic attacks, have you thought about trying therapy? As a person with a full-blown phobia who had to get help myself, you sound like you have a full-blown phobia. Cognitive behavioral therapy has been pretty successful at helping people cope with phobias. I only suggest it because it seems a shame to go through life stressed and terrified of something that is literally everywhere when there are other options. Of course, I suppose trying to spider proof the house seems like the easier solution in the short-run, but do you really want to have to lose so much sleep and expend so much energy on it for the rest of your life? less

Yes. Seeing you mixed vinegar (an acid) with bleach (a corrosive base) made me cringe.

I HATE the things, too. I freak out when I see them on the ceiling of my bedroom, and I have a sponge on a stick (made for cleaning my bathtub) that I call my "Biter Killer" (My little one was a baby she used to call spider "biters, because they BITE CHOO!") I put wet Kleenex or toilet tissue on it and smash the thing, then place the thing into the toilet, so I don't have to touch it.

I've tried to rid my house of spiders. We live in the woods, and there is NO WAY to get rid of them. I know people who have had their houses professionally "exterminated&quo t; and all it did was make them sick.... and the spiders returned in a few days.

I don't really think there is a way to get rid of them completely. Just don't mix anything with bleach. You could make you and your family quite sick.

I wish I had better advice for you. Some of the time, I use my vacuum to suck them up when I don't want to go near them. Then I run the motor so they drown in all the dust in the vacuum bag. BLEH. I hate em.

SHUDDER less

No problem. I actually did mention therapy to my partner today, but then said "Never mind that, I don't want to pay for some therapy when ridding them would be cheaper." LOL. I know that this fear is really annoying though, but I hate the spiders more than I hate my fear for them. Strange I guess. I can't help but doubt that therapy would really fix this problem. I've never gone to therapy before. Really interesting what you mentioned about cognitive therapy helping your phobia. Now I will look into that now that you say it helped you. I agree, extreme stress is really hard to live with. I used to have other issues with awful anxiety due to a particular thing that happened. I was prescribed meds for it, but don't even need them so I quit taking them. Now I don't ever have panic attacks unless I see a big spider. Lol.

I didn't get around to trying the lemon oil today. By the time I got home it was dark out, but I do already have coconut oil and vinegar on hand and someone said today that it works to repel them from your home. I can handle the smaller spiders--I'm talking REALLY SMALL ones. I can kill them without freaking, but with the bigger, dangerous ones, I panic and it takes hours to get the courage up to smash them.

I hope and pray that the coconut oil and vinegar would be a good thing to repel them. I'm going to mix some up and spray the doors and stuff tomorrow. Anybody ever tried that solution?

Stormy: Lol. It isn't actually bleach Lol. It's the Clorox liquid wipes. I forgot what they're called. Clorox is only the brand, but the wipes are just disinfectant things and I used the liquid from them I'd be too scared to mix anything with bleach. I'd be left standing in the half burned down house with my hair lookin' like a mad scientist. Lol. My Lovie would come in and there I'd be "THE SPIDERS ARE GONE, HONEY! I DID AWAY WITH EM' THIS TIME... FOR GOOD!" Lol. Ha Ha.

Thankfully we don't have a basement or anything. I couldn't imagine the crawlers we'd get then! I just like to repel bugs from the home. It has worked before. Once we used chemicals around the house and I'll tell ya, it was so bug-free around here for so long I nearly forgot what a bug was! LOL. I really don't wanna go the chemical route though so my fingers are crossed with the natural solution. I have heard that the lemon extract will do wonders. Kinda hard to imagine though. less

LOL @ the Biter Killer and Bite Choo! Lol. The bath stick and toilet paper is a good idea! I usually wet a wash cloth if I see one in the bathroom, then sling the rag on them. When it's wet it's heavy enough to hold them under there. Lol. Doesn't always land on them though so the stick is a really great idea. That'll have to be my next project. Lol.

Oh my! I'd be so upset if I paid to have my house exterminated and it made me sick and didn't work on top of it! I have heard so many people say that it doesn't work. I can't bring myself to pay that much for it. There's usually a cheaper solution that at least helps.

KYTOANGEL:
OMG! Lol. That sounds terrible. You poor thing. My twin and I used to mix crazy stuff together and call it "our potions." No idea what it was about mixing fun ingredients, but we'd have the house stinking to high heavens for days with crazy glue, nail polish and perfume mixtures. Ha ha. Nothing that actually caused our eyes and lungs to burn. Bless your heart! I remember my dad would swear we were going to blow the house up. I guess we thought we were little scientists and our play room was our lab. Hee Hee. I guess I never really grew out of mixing concoctions lol. I even make my own perfume now! OK... Sorry, I get sidetracked

ROSSIE: I'm glad you brought that up! I know this is probaby dumb, but what do I look for? What do the eggs/sacs look like? I was talking about this to my partner today and we decided to look up images, but I can't tell. Are they those actual white eggs that get in the windows and look similar to a q-tip end? Then I read some are almost invisible? I have all colored walls in my house so surely I'd see the white balls? Or are there little bitty things that aren't easy to see? I will have to check our house and see for eggs. ICK! lol. Also, Rossie, I read that vinegar will kill the eggs. Idk how true it is, but it may be something you'd want to try.

Yes, once upon a time I had a trusty ol hand held vaccum. Worked wonders for getting the webs in corners. A friend stole my darn charger to it though! I really need to look for a new charger because that would come in handy! Maybe I'd be better off buying a whole new hand held anyways.

LOL. I know... crazy lady bug idea! I read it somewhere and that's something else my partner and I discussed during our spider convo today. I didn't know their exact diet, but I definitely don't see them eating any medium-large spider. There's a site that even sells them to rid spiders from your garden? I think they also kill spider "mites." I have no clue. I only read about it for the first time at 4am this morning. Lol. less

No problem. I actually did mention therapy to my partner today, but then said "Never mind that, I don't want to pay for some therapy when ridding them would be cheaper." LOL. I know that this fear is really annoying though, but I hate the spiders more than I hate my fear for them. Strange I guess. I can't help but doubt that therapy would really fix this problem. I've never gone to therapy before. Really interesting what you mentioned about cognitive therapy helping your phobia. Now I will look into that now that you say it helped you. I agree, extreme stress is really hard to live with. I used to have other issues with awful anxiety due to a particular thing that happened. I was prescribed meds for it, but don't even need them so I quit taking them. Now I don't ever have panic attacks unless I see a big spider. Lol.

I didn't get around to trying the lemon oil today. By the time I got home it was dark out, but I do already have coconut oil and vinegar on hand and someone said today that it works to repel them from your home. I can handle the smaller spiders--I'm talking REALLY SMALL ones. I can kill them without freaking, but with the bigger, dangerous ones, I panic and it takes hours to get the courage up to smash them.

I hope and pray that the coconut oil and vinegar would be a good thing to repel them. I'm going to mix some up and spray the doors and stuff tomorrow. Anybody ever tried that solution?

Stormy: Lol. It isn't actually bleach Lol. It's the Clorox liquid wipes. I forgot what they're called. Clorox is only the brand, but the wipes are just disinfectant things and I used the liquid from them I'd be too scared to mix anything with bleach. I'd be left standing in the half burned down house with my hair lookin' like a mad scientist. Lol. My Lovie would come in and there I'd be "THE SPIDERS ARE GONE, HONEY! I DID AWAY WITH EM' THIS TIME... FOR GOOD!" Lol. Ha Ha.

Thankfully we don't have a basement or anything. I couldn't imagine the crawlers we'd get then! I just like to repel bugs from the home. It has worked before. Once we used chemicals around the house and I'll tell ya, it was so bug-free around here for so long I nearly forgot what a bug was! LOL. I really don't wanna go the chemical route though so my fingers are crossed with the natural solution. I have heard that the lemon extract will do wonders. Kinda hard to imagine though. less

No problem. I actually did mention therapy to my partner today, but then said "Never mind that, I don't want to pay for some therapy when ridding them would be cheaper." LOL. I know that this fear is really annoying though, but I hate the spiders more than I hate my fear for them. Strange I guess. I can't help but doubt that therapy would really fix this problem. I've never gone to therapy before. Really interesting what you mentioned about cognitive therapy helping your phobia. Now I will look into that now that you say it helped you. I agree, extreme stress is really hard to live with. I used to have other issues with awful anxiety due to a particular thing that happened. I was prescribed meds for it, but don't even need them so I quit taking them. Now I don't ever have panic attacks unless I see a big spider. Lol.

I didn't get around to trying the lemon oil today. By the time I got home it was dark out, but I do already have coconut oil and vinegar on hand and someone said today that it works to repel them from your home. I can handle the smaller spiders--I'm talking REALLY SMALL ones. I can kill them without freaking, but with the bigger, dangerous ones, I panic and it takes hours to get the courage up to smash them.

I hope and pray that the coconut oil and vinegar would be a good thing to repel them. I'm going to mix some up and spray the doors and stuff tomorrow. Anybody ever tried that solution?

Stormy: Lol. It isn't actually bleach Lol. It's the Clorox liquid wipes. I forgot what they're called. Clorox is only the brand, but the wipes are just disinfectant things and I used the liquid from them I'd be too scared to mix anything with bleach. I'd be left standing in the half burned down house with my hair lookin' like a mad scientist. Lol. My Lovie would come in and there I'd be "THE SPIDERS ARE GONE, HONEY! I DID AWAY WITH EM' THIS TIME... FOR GOOD!" Lol. Ha Ha.

Thankfully we don't have a basement or anything. I couldn't imagine the crawlers we'd get then! I just like to repel bugs from the home. It has worked before. Once we used chemicals around the house and I'll tell ya, it was so bug-free around here for so long I nearly forgot what a bug was! LOL. I really don't wanna go the chemical route though so my fingers are crossed with the natural solution. I have heard that the lemon extract will do wonders. Kinda hard to imagine though. less

LOL @ the Biter Killer and Bite Choo! Lol. The bath stick and toilet paper is a good idea! I usually wet a wash cloth if I see one in the bathroom, then sling the rag on them. When it's wet it's heavy enough to hold them under there. Lol. Doesn't always land on them though so the stick is a really great idea. That'll have to be my next project. Lol.

Oh my! I'd be so upset if I paid to have my house exterminated and it made me sick and didn't work on top of it! I have heard so many people say that it doesn't work. I can't bring myself to pay that much for it. There's usually a cheaper solution that at least helps.

KYTOANGEL:
OMG! Lol. That sounds terrible. You poor thing. My twin and I used to mix crazy stuff together and call it "our potions." No idea what it was about mixing fun ingredients, but we'd have the house stinking to high heavens for days with crazy glue, nail polish and perfume mixtures. Ha ha. Nothing that actually caused our eyes and lungs to burn. Bless your heart! I remember my dad would swear we were going to blow the house up. I guess we thought we were little scientists and our play room was our lab. Hee Hee. I guess I never really grew out of mixing concoctions lol. I even make my own perfume now! OK... Sorry, I get sidetracked

ROSSIE: I'm glad you brought that up! I know this is probaby dumb, but what do I look for? What do the eggs/sacs look like? I was talking about this to my partner today and we decided to look up images, but I can't tell. Are they those actual white eggs that get in the windows and look similar to a q-tip end? Then I read some are almost invisible? I have all colored walls in my house so surely I'd see the white balls? Or are there little bitty things that aren't easy to see? I will have to check our house and see for eggs. ICK! lol. Also, Rossie, I read that vinegar will kill the eggs. Idk how true it is, but it may be something you'd want to try.

Yes, once upon a time I had a trusty ol hand held vaccum. Worked wonders for getting the webs in corners. A friend stole my darn charger to it though! I really need to look for a new charger because that would come in handy! Maybe I'd be better off buying a whole new hand held anyways.

LOL. I know... crazy lady bug idea! I read it somewhere and that's something else my partner and I discussed during our spider convo today. I didn't know their exact diet, but I definitely don't see them eating any medium-large spider. There's a site that even sells them to rid spiders from your garden? I think they also kill spider "mites." I have no clue. I only read about it for the first time at 4am this morning. Lol. less