Natural Solutions to Keep Spiders Out of Your Home This Fall 

Spiders are awesome around Halloween, but only the fake ones.

The real ones are slightly less awesome, and they’re not even remotely cool when they’re

inside your house.

Those buggers need to go back outside!

Thankfully, you can keep them out without dousing your entryways in biohazard materials,

which is not very green or good for your health.

Switch Plants for Essential Oils

Since fall is coming, you might be looking to move outdoor plants inside.

If you had herbs on your porch or around your entryway, this could take away some

spider protection.

Luckily, there are plenty of essential oils that can help instead, regardless of the night-

time temperatures.

Most spiders aren’t dangerous to people, but none of them like peppermint.

To keep them from ever getting inside, drop some peppermint essential oil into a spray

bottle, mix with water and spritz it around your door frames and windows.

That will keep out both spiders and mice.

Vinegar for Everything

Vinegar is probably the most versatile household product you can have, and spiders hate it.

This works out well, because the more you use it to clean, the fewer spiders you’ll have.

You can use it the same way you use essential oils and spray it around entry points and

into corners and crevices, if you want to do something quick and easy.

If you’ve been bitten by the fall-cleaning bug, you can use vinegar to clean practically 

everything from your floors, windows, carpets, toilets and even your pets.

The smell will quickly fade beyond what people can detect, but those little eight-legged

buggers won’t be coming in any time soon.

Diatomaceous Earth

Diatomaceous earth (also called DE for short) is a naturally occurring powdery white

substance that has the ability to physically kill dozens of types of bugs (including spiders)

but is completely harmless to humans.

When this powder comes into contact with bugs with an exoskeleton, it gets into the

tiny cracks in their shell and cuts and dehydrates the skin underneath.

The bug dies within 48 hours after contact with DE.

Get a Fur Baby

If you have allergies, you might want to skip this one.

If you don’t, and you like cats, then this is what you need.

Cats are generally attracted to small, quick moving things, like laser pointers and spiders.

That makes them perfect to fill the spider hunter position that seems to be open.

Of course, some cats will be less than interested, and you might also find a dog that enjoys

the occasional eight-legged snack.

If you do get an animal, don’t only get it to eat spiders.

They need love and attention in addition to the extra protein.

Remember – think adoption first.

Keep It Clean  

The last, most annoying and most effective way to keep spiders out of your home is,

unfortunately, to clean it.

Awful news, isn’t it?

Decluttering your home and sweeping out dust, cobwebs, dirt, bugs and everything

else that wants to come in is the best way to keep spiders out.

Basically, cleaning often keeps out bugs – because you vacuum them up – so spiders

have nothing to eat.

Dusting clears out the cobwebs and sends any spiders that have set up shop scurrying

off to find a new place to hang out.

If you’re lucky, you can just tape a long handle onto the duster and send the kids off

to collect the most spider webs.

Winner gets some extra Minecraft time!

About the Author:
Ali Lawrence is a kombucha tea-sipping writer who focuses on healthy and sustainable living via her family blog Homey Improvements. She also writes about DIY projects, home tips and organic gardening. Ali was born and raised in Alaska and dabbles in Pilates and is a princess for hire for kid’s parties. Find her on Twitter at @DIYfolks.

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