Can You Get Rid of Spiders Using Bleach?

After watching “National Geographic” and seeing that spiders can be poisonous, you would want to get rid of any that you find in your house as soon as you spot them. As much as house spiders will stay out of sight and only bite in self-defense, you cannot guarantee that children will not be tempted to touch the creatures. Since pesticides and insecticides may not be readily available, you will have to make do with whatever you can find, and bleach usually is the main go-to product for all cleaning solutions. However, does bleach kill spiders? Yes, it does and here is how effective it is.

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How Bleach Eliminates Spiders from Your Home

According to Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, even if bleach is used to clean, whiten and disinfect, it can also be used as a pesticide but only if it is advertised as one. The site cites an example of bleach that claims to kill 99.9% of viruses and bacteria as a pesticide. The US Environmental Protection Agency describes a pesticide as any product labeled to kill, mitigate or repel pests. Pests are further defined as insects, rodents, bacteria or fungi; thus, bleach is considered an antimicrobial pesticide, fungicide or bactericide.

You should note that it is not a registered pesticide; hence you must be careful when using it as such. Although it is a guaranteed method of killing spiders, bleach should never be sprayed directly onto the pests because the concentrated solution will damage the surrounding surfaces. It kills spiders and other insects by suffocating them; bleach poured on the pests disrupts the respiration since they breathe through the exoskeleton. The bleach’s fumes also poison the spiders and result in the eggs’ death, further mitigating infestation.

How to Use Bleach to Kill Spiders

Since bleach has many household uses, it should be diluted differently when killing spiders than when cleaning kitchen countertops and bathrooms. Hunker details the steps of how to use bleach to kill spiders, and the first thing you do is dilute it with water in the ratio of 1:3. You should then pour the diluted solution in a spray bottle and spray directly onto the spiders keeping the bottle around 6 inches away. There is no limit to how many times you need to spray; whatever is necessary to kill the spider will be determined probably by its size.

Once dead, dispose of the dead bodies and immediately wipe the bleach from the surfaces because even if it is diluted, it can still bleach surfaces. You can then scout for the places you have seen the spiders breed and hide then spray the remaining solution. It acts as a repellent to keep the spiders away, and you should continue spraying the mixture at least once a week on those areas. If any mixture remains, store it away from the reach of children until the next time. Remember to check the expiry of the bleach when preparing the mixture to ensure it is effective. Bleach usually expires six months from the date it is opened, and even when not opened, it loses effectiveness by 20% as each year passes.

Why You Should Not Kill Spiders

No matter how afraid you are of spiders, according to Considerable, they are more afraid of you than you are of them. Therefore they will try to stay out of your way as much as possible. If you disturb them to the point that they feel they need to protect themselves, they are not afraid to bite. Luckily, the bites are not lethal, and only 10% of spider bites have been proven to cause necrotic skin lesions.

Still, spiders do a lot more good than harm in your home. If you are willing to overlook the chance of an occasional bite and focus on the insects it eats, you will find there is no need to kill spiders; they will eat the menacing cockroaches, mosquitos and moths. Most of the times, they make a web in a strategic place to capture pests. Thus any sign of a spider web within your home indicates that you should be more worried about the number of insects roaming freely in your home, than the one spider you have spotted.

What Attracts Spiders to Your Home?

You can be proactive and ensure that spiders do not get into your house by establishing what attracts them in the first place. A few things that could cause more spiders to come running to your home, and they include:

Access Spaces – Sometimes the only thing that makes spiders settle down in your home is the access you provide through cracks and crevices in the walls and foundation. Such hiding spots could have been created by other pests before, but even the open doors and windows provide a great entry point.
Gardens – You might be surprised to learn that some farms in America look forward to spiders inhabiting their grape farms to control pests. Spiders live in gardens to feast on the pests attracted to the growing fruits or other crops.
Waste – If you are not keen on disposing of waste properly, you will find spiders in it. Trash provides spiders with an ideal breeding ground. You should note that they do not feed on the waste; hence they will still crawl around looking for food.
Warm places – Spiders love warmth; therefore, they will settle and breed comfortably when they find a warm place in your house. The most suitable place is a warm and moist area. However, if it gets too wet or warm for their comfort, they will migrate to an ideal environment.
Food availability – A home that never runs out of pests that can be preyed upon by spiders will always have spiders. After all, why should they go out searching when they can make a web in a strategic place and catch all the food they want.