How to get rid of black widows safely (SAFE spider control)

black-widow-spider

Getting rid of black widow spiders is something some people want to know how to do out of fear of getting bit by one. Many people believe that if bitten by a black widow spider that death will occur soon after, but the truth is death is unlikely to occur since hospital emergency centers can now treat black widow bites with medicine.

The side effects from black widow bites are serious and warrant wanting to repel these spiders from around your home and property.

What are the side effects of a black widow bite?

The side effects of a black widow bite are fifteen times worse than a rattlesnake bite. Those symptoms are:

  • Extreme Muscle Aches
  • Paralysis
  • Nausea
  • Vomiting
  • Dizziness
  • Breathing Difficulties
  • Excessive Sweating
  • Fever
  • Rashes
  • Blood Pressure Issues
  • Possible Heart Attack
  • Stroke
  • Fainting
  • Abdominal Pain
  • Extreme Weakness
  • Chest Pains
  • Headaches

Death is unlikely to occur if a human is bitten by one, but children, the elderly, babies, and people with weakened immune systems can die from a bite if not medically treated quickly.

Again, black widow spiders rarely ever bite humans unless they are feeling the need to defend themselves against harm such as the fear of being squashed or you sitting on top of one by accident.

Sometimes while gardening or cleaning out shady leafy spots where they tend to build homes are where bites are likely to occur as well because again it is where they live and the spiders feel the need to defend their home and space.

How to recognize a black widow spider

Black widow spiders have distinct features. These tiny, carnivorous bugs have a lifespan of three short years and are about 1.5 inches long and 0.25 in diameter, and way less than a gram.

The insects are most common in North America and are venomous spider that is black in color with a red marking on their belly that resembles an hourglass shape.

The black widows love exploring the garden and tend to hang out in areas that are dark and in the shad such as inside a flower pot, under crawl spaces, and wherever there are a generous amount of flies, mosquitoes, grasshoppers, beetles, and caterpillars, which are insects these spiders enjoy capturing in their webs and dining on.

Video explaining some signs of black widows (HINT: analyze the spider webs you see close to the ground)

What are some of the ways to get rid of black widow spiders?

There are several ways to eradicate black widow spiders if you do not care to share your space with them.

One of the simplest ways is by making sure all the clutter around your yard and home are cleaned up. Black widow spiders love building their home in old boxes, paper bags, clothing, old garden boxes, lumber piles, landscaping timber, stones, firewood piles and tall grassy areas.

Making sure small cracks, openings and any crevasses around your home, shed and crawlspace areas are sealed up properly can help make sure the tiny insects stay out and away as well.

Some people even goes as far as sprinkling caulk dust around the foundation of their home because caulk dust is a natural remedy that repels the spiders away. Other ways to repel and rid black widow spiders away are:

  1. Planting peppermint or mint plants around your home or garden areas.
  2. Spraying pesticides such as spider repellent along the foundation of your home.
  3. Exterminate with a black widow repellent spray.
  4. Sprinkle dust insecticide spray around foundation.
  5. Vacuum the spiders up with a vacuum cleaner.
  6. Squashing the spiders with a hard object.
  7. Eliminating the egg sacs with bleach to prevent infestation.
  8. Calling an exterminator for help with removing large infestations.
  9. Making sure entrance ways such as underneath doors are sealing shut properly using weather stripping material.
  10. Making sure cracks around windows are sealed up with cocking or sealant filler.
  11. Switching light bulbs to incandescent or sodium vapor kinds since insects such as spiders are attracted to other kinds that produce heat.
  12. Removing the spiders nest from entrance ways or garden areas physically wearing gloves or spraying it with a powerful water hose.
  13. Carefully relocate the spiders to a new location wearing gloves if killing is not a solution.

What should you do if you are bitten by a black widow spider?

If a black widow spider bites you it is important to visit a medical facility immediately for proper treatment by a doctor. Make sure someone else is driving you there, or you call 911 since again the side effects from a black widow bite can be severe and leave you in a state of being that does not allow you to drive.

The treatments doctors use to eliminate the side effects of a black widow bite are antitoxin and even narcotics to relieve the pain, but it all depends on the reaction and severity of the bite. For immediate care after a bite until medical treatment is received from a hospital warm and cold compresses can be useful along with acetaminophen and ibuprofen.

Black widows love dark areas

The likely hood of being bitten by a black widow spider is rare, but again if you are bitten by one immediate medical treatment is necessary.

If you do not know this fact already, the best way to keep black widow spiders away is to maintain the dark spaces you have in and around your home limited. Black widow spiders are nocturnal creatures and love living in the dark, which means the chances of you finding them in a sunny or well-lit area is extremely unlikely.

Otherwise, the best thing to do when you encounter a black widow spider unless it is inside your home or shed is to leave it be and walk away. The insects are harmless when no threats occur to them.

What repels black widows?

You can try repelling black widows naturally with essential oils (some claim peppermint & tea tree work). You can also use generic spider sprays but check because many of these require direct contact, so they act more like a black widow exterminator than repellent.

Published
Categorized as Spiders

By David Jackson

I enjoy learning about new pest control strategies and sharing what I learn at NeverPest.com. I aim to create a reliable resource for people dealing with all sorts of pest issues.

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