How to Get Rid of Brown Recluse Spiders| How to Kill Them

Brown recluse spiders are common in North America. Both Black Widow and Brown recluse spiders are poisonous and can inflict dangerous bites. These spiders are common in the southern region of the U.S.

In this article, we give you tips on how to identify brown recluse spiders and how to get rid of brown recluse spiders.

Identifying Brown Recluse Spiders

It’s easy to mistake the brown recluse spider with other species of brown spiders. However, checking some things like the body and color can help with the identification.

Brown recluse spiders have soft bodies and a yellowish-tan like color that looks similar to dark brown. These spiders have six eyes and eight eyes. The adult body can be a third to half an inch in length.

They also have long thin legs without spines. Another differentiating characteristic is that recluse spiders have fine hairs. You’ll notice a distinctive violin-shaped mark next to the abdomen.

Sometimes wolf spiders are confused with brown recluse spiders. However, the recluse spiders are twice as big. Also, the wolf spider population is widespread, unlike that of brown recluse spiders.

Where Do Brown Recluse Spiders Live?

Brown recluse spiders like to stay hidden, and you’ll spot them in dry, dark, and undisturbed places. They can hide in storage closets, cardboard boxes, basement, and dirty laundry. Outdoors, you can find them in sheds, woodpiles, and garages.

What Do Brown Recluse Spiders Eat?

These spiders feed on soft-bodied insects like flies, moths, cockroaches, and crickets. Brown recluse spiders can also eat one another. Another thing worth noting is that brown recluse spiders are nocturnal hunters; they don’t use their webs to catch their prey.

After trapping their prey, they inject venom to subdue them. Also, brown recluse spiders can go for months without water or food.

Brown Recluse Spiders Habits and Characteristics

Brown recluse spiders are shy and rarely aggressive. They also prefer to build their webs in protected sites that are inconspicuous. These spiders use their nests to lay eggs and to retreat from predators. The nocturnal hunters only come out at night to look for their prey.

The female recluse spider lays its eggs in silken cases from May through to August. They can lay up to 300 eggs. Spiderlings form in 36 days, and fewer depending on food availability and weather conditions. The young ones reach maturity in 12 months.

Brown Recluse Spider Bite

Although brown recluse spiders are not aggressive, they can bite. You may get bitten if you place your hand in places the spiders are hiding like old clothes, shoes, or closets. If the spider had crawled in these spaces to seek shelter, you might end up squeezing it, leading to the bite.

At first, you won’t feel as much pain, but after eight hours, the pain becomes intense. Individuals with a severe reaction may experience joint pain, restlessness, chills, and fever. The bite area may also become inflamed and hard to touch.

Unlike other spider bites that clear with time, the brown recluse bite can form large ulcerous sores if the venom destroys the cell membranes in the wounded area. The sore can take up to eight weeks to heal. It’s essential to seek medical attention if bitten.

How to Get Rid of Brown Recluse Spiders

The thought of brown recluse spiders lurking in your house can be nerve-wracking. Fortunately, you can take specific measures to get rid of them.

Non-Chemical Measures

Below are some tips on how to get rid of brown recluse naturally.

Do a Thorough Inspection

If you spot one brown recluse spider crawling from outside a box, you should inspect all other boxes around the house. Make sure that you have gloves when moving suspicious items or lifting them to avoid bites. Get rid of potential breeding sites like the boxes. Check under the furniture for webs and nests.

Look for cobwebs under insulation, inside wall voids, and around clutter. The webs are loose and irregular as the spiders only use them to hold eggs. They also act as a retreat area. If you notice these webs, destroy them carefully.

Failure to carry out inspection could lead to an infestation. Use a vacuum hose to remove any spiders present. After the inspection, replace items in the boxes and cover them to prevent future recurrence.

Clean Around

Brown recluse spiders love to hide around and find dark areas favorable for their survival. It’s essential to take necessary sanitation measures to eliminate these pests. Clean anything around that may attract potential food sources. Do not leave crumbs lying around as this may attract insects, which may, in turn, attract the brown recluse spiders.

Move any piles of firewood, lumber, and boards far from the house. Ensure that you store them off the ground and cover them. Cut any dense vegetation around the foundation. Trim bushes and tall grasses. Clean out the garage and remove any items off the floor. Get rid of clutter that may act as harborage for these pests.

Set up a Trap

Setting up multiple traps inside your house is the easiest way to get rid of brown recluse spiders. Place the traps in different places like underneath the bathroom sink, the water heater room, and in the spaces under your bed.

You can use spider glue traps to identify the type of spider you’re dealing with to determine if it’s a brown recluse spider.

Use Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth

Food-grade DE is a safer alternative to conventional pesticides. The powder is abrasive and kills any pests that walk on it. You can sprinkle a layer of diatomaceous earth to potential hiding sites like underneath the kitchen cabins and in bedroom closets. Replace the powder after a few days for it to be effective.

Reduce Humidity Levels and Get Rid of Potential Food Sources

Brown recluse spiders like to eat moths, roaches, flies, and ants. By removing water food and shelter, the place will become unfavorable for other pests, which means also eliminating these spiders. They’ll move somewhere with regular food supply.

Run a dehumidifier close to bathroom storage spaces and closets where these spiders are likely to hide.

Seal Any Cracks and Openings

Make it difficult for the brown recluse spiders to enter your home by sealing any openings and cracks along the exteriors and wall. You can use caulk to block these gaps. Ensure that you put in the weather-stripping seal around the doors and windows.

Also, treat the vents, cables, wires, and pipes with a residual dust product. Make sure that the vents have tight-fitting screens. Do the same with the basement.

Chemical Treatment for Brown Recluse Spiders

If you’re looking for effective ways on how to kill brown recluse, you may want to try chemical treatments like:

Using Contact Sprays

You can eliminate live recluse spiders by spraying a non-residual aerosol insecticide directly on them. It’s a quick method as compared to vacuuming. Talk to your pesticide expert to find the best contact spray that also works for other pests you may have.

Dust Applications

Brown recluse spiders are secretive and prefer to hide in wall voids and cracks. You’ll need a dusting agent to puff into cracks, wall voids, under the insulation, behind outlet covers, and on switch plates. Ensure that you use the right dusting techniques to make the treatment effective.

Carry Out Spot Treatments

Get microencapsulated formulation or a liquid residual wettable powder to spray under furniture, behind closets, and in corners. You can find a sprayer at your local store. Spot treatments prevent new spiders from building their webs and also kill existing spiders. ‘

Nevertheless, you should combine spot treatments with other procedures to get the desired results.

When using chemical treatments, focus around all entrances. Also, reduce fogging applications to garages and basements. Always read the labels carefully before use.

Preventing Brown Recluse Spiders

It’s essential to shut the doors and windows. Reduce light from outside as this attracts insects, which are a food source for spiders. Get rid of any cutter in storage areas, and vacuum around corners of rooms, windows, and under furniture. Vacuuming will remove egg sacs, webs, dead insects, and spiders.

Inspect items like clothing and shoes before use. In case of an infestation, seal these items in plastic bags.

Professional Pest Control for Brown Recluse Spiders

Sometimes DIY methods aren’t as effective, especially if you’re dealing with an infestation. The best way to handle an infestation is to call in a trained pest control professional. The company has trained staff that will conduct a thorough inspection of your home’s interior and exterior to determine the spider species you’re dealing with.

They’ll also advise you on the best treatment to get rid of brown recluse spiders. It’s essential to note that removing a brown recluse spider infestation can include both natural and chemical methods. Working with a professional also means that they take care of other pests that may act as food sources for these spiders.