13 January 2013

Pest control and DHCS

| T1G3R
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Hi folks,

With all this heat I’ve been finding quite a large amount of spiders. Usually adult wolf and huntsman spiders. This i can take care of, just yesterday i killed a six legged wolf spider no problem.

My problem today is that i have just terminated the lives of 20 tiny babies. They were making a nest between my hallway and bathroom. and i walked through them and i’m officially freaked out as they might be on me, in my hair and just everywhere. It is giving me the major shivers. Anyway usually when there is a few i know there’s a lot more and not knowing who or where the mother of these dumplings are.

I’m currently a DHCS tenet and wanted to know if anyone else encountered similar infestations and what if anything maintenance did or if i have to fork out 200 for the extermination.

Under normal circumstances i wouldn’t mind paying but i only get 200 bucks a week and that’s not counting food and bills so, i’m tight on budget. I know there’s bug bombs out there but i’m a little skeptical on their efficiency.

Any helpful advice will be greatly appreciated.

Kind regards,

T1G3R

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Hi just get two big cans of Mortein surface spray, someone I know who is in public housing used this method, as housing would not come would not help, she had the same problem as you, and that is what she did, I recommend the Mortein, used it many times, for Red-back spiders, outside the house also, mainly because of my young grandson.

I leave huntsman’s in as they reduce flies and rarely crawl along the floor, preferring the walls instead. Redbacks have lived ten year periods on the brick walls and at my car door in the garage, never a problem (they watch to ensure I have not accidentally brushed up against them when stretching out on their webs sometimes). Most spiders will not bite unless attacked or feeling threatened from the vibes towards them, ditto brown snakes and had those at my feet twice.

For Huntsmans who are jumpy, I use a soft mop to put them outside or a broom.

Vinegar and water sprays one part to three parts water on windows and around door frames; most insects I have discovered do not like the smell; hornets and wasps included.

A couple of weeks ago I suffered my first spider bite in the garden as it was my fault walking through with sandals. Fever and pain for 5 hours with swelling and then all gone! No antihistamines required.

Out of all spiders I feared the white tail spiders for a few years after reading horror stories until a relative was bitten by a white tail, pain, swelling and a scar left for a few weeks (mild bite). They enjoy getting into clothes, particularly on the floor if left in a basket or on the bed as she had done. These are breeding later in Canberra over the past two years as it used to be typically August/September/October, and it is now 6 weeks later being October/November when appearing.

Thorough and regular vacuuming is the key to moving these critters along and keeping an eye on linen cupboards with moth balls.

Most spiders do not like moth balls strategically placed.

Best wishes

You can get a concentrated pest control mixture from Bunnings (ive forgotton the name) but its approx $40 for about 500ml. You mix 100ml with approx 6L of water into a hand held do it yourself spray bottle..

Ive been doing my own pest control for as long as i can remember (once every 4 months)…Do all doorways, windows, entriers etc, and i can honestly say ive not seen a roach or spider in my home for at least 5 years…

Chop71 said :

Spiders must be the governments fault so best get them to fix the problem at the general tax payers expense eh. Oh, so blessed to be in government housing.

You’re retarded. If you didn’t notice the post had no one to blame and it was looking into viable options for a disability pensioner. Arrogant prick.

Chop71 said :

Spiders must be the governments fault so best get them to fix the problem at the general tax payers expense eh. Oh, so blessed to be in government housing.

1. You are so awesome!
2. In a rental property, an ‘infestation’ would be the landlords responsibility. Everyday pest control is the responsibility of the tennant.
3. You are still so awesome!

According to a number of sites, spiders dont like the smell of lemon. So if buy a bottle of lemon oil (get the stuff used for incense burners) and put a few drops on a cloth and smear it around the house. Yes, your house smells uncomfortably lemony for a few hours, but it fades pretty soon.

Its hard to assess how well it works, but I use it in the shed and places which are usually highly webbed and it seems to work for several months. Actually, in the shed I mix the lemon with water in a spray bottle and just spray (because I’m lazy).

Google ‘shannon lush’ and ‘spiders’ for further info.

Spiders must be the governments fault so best get them to fix the problem at the general tax payers expense eh. Oh, so blessed to be in government housing.

Hi folks cheers for all the advice. Dont get me wrong I don’t mind big hairy fellas hanging around but it’s the mean black babies I’ve been sighting. Unfortunately with the crazy amount of birds and huntsmen I get, there are still alot of venomous arachnids getting inside.

Seems like the insects have formed an alliance for the purpose of invading my personal space. I might opt for the bombs in this case as it sounds the most efficient on a budget.

By the way I found and killed a mother red back larger than a 10 cent piece. I suspect it’s her spawn swarming my doorways and sliding door cavities :-/

trickyxr said :

I used to work for a compant that had the housing contract for pest control and we did spray for spiders,Mainly if there was red backs or white tails inside the house.On the other hand i now work for myself and would be happy to give you a good price

Spraying for white tails is silly if you know anything about their behaviour.

LSWCHP said :

Dunno about that. When I was a kid the lady next door got bitten on the leg by a red-back, and nearly 50 years later I can remember the terrible effects it had on her.

Painful to be sure, but only a small proportion of people bitten, about 10-20% need the anti-venom. Usually the symptoms are mild to non existent.

Important not to use pressure bandage for red-back bites. Because of they type of venom, it won’t do anything except make the localised pain worse.

Comic_and_Gamer_Nerd said :

Antagonist said :

TheDancingDjinn said :

Maintenance won’t help in this situation. I have used the bombs for the exact problem before, i moved home and bought in a mother and many many babies by accident. Bomb the house, don’t use more than one at a time.

+1. I also recommend the $20 ‘Mortein Professional’ type insect control packs for doing outside the house – like up under the eaves, around doors etc. I am actually about to head outside to do mine right now. It isn’t the same as a professional pest controller, but it is a LOT cheaper and makes enough difference to keep Mrs Antagonist happy.

How long do you find it lasts for until you need to re-apply?

I sweep the webs away and apply the spray. After about 3-4 months the webs start to slowly reappear. By 6 months it needs doing again, but to be honest I really only get around to it every 9-12 months.

And the belief that white-tailed spiders cause necrosis is a myth, so no need to kill them either. Here’s the Wiki page, but there’s plenty of evidence if you need more http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White-tailed_spider#Bites_to_humans

boo said :

How about not killing them? They can’t do anything to hurt you. Most of the babies will eat each other and you’ll end up with a few adults helpfully polishing off any cockies and silverfish for you. You’ll save yourself the hassle of cleaning up the chemical residue on every surface of your house, and it’s free!

White tail bites can be very nasty. The few I have seen inside my house have swiftly met the sole of my thong. Huntsman’s get moved outside, and the big evil black ones that live on the outside of my window frames are left alone until they look like becoming a mother and then they are “removed”.

T1G3R, this probably won’t help you being a DHCS tenant (I’m assuming on your budget you don’t want to invest too much into your outdoor areas, and rightly so…) we moved into our place a few years ago and the extent of our ‘gardening’ was adding a birdbath. Our house is 70’s so I expected the same frequency of spider sightings inside this house as our previous place, but I can count on one hand how many huntsman’s we have had to shift.

I put it down to: a) rocks near water in our yard where big lizards apparently live (they eat the spiders before they get to the house); b) the birdbath attracts birds who in turn eat spiders – not just in the garden but off the window frames and eaves; c) native flowering plants which attract birds (see b); and d: the window frames on the house that are shaded have little geckos living in them – our last line of defence, and rarely does a spider or moth make it past them!

Bug bombs might be the way to go to start with, but putting a few shallow containers of water in your outdoor areas to attract birds wouldn’t hurt. I suspect spiders are quite smart (*shudder*) and won’t hang about where birds frequent. It’s not a quick-fix but it may help long term.

Meh. I let Mr Pea-Beau do the hard work.

I used to work for a compant that had the housing contract for pest control and we did spray for spiders,Mainly if there was red backs or white tails inside the house.On the other hand i now work for myself and would be happy to give you a good price

I see spiders as free pets, like some other here. Interesting and harmless. If one has to be taken outside, I am the person to do it as Mr Poetix is more freaked out by them than I am.

There really is no need to fill your house with expensive toxic chemicals to get rid of them.

boo said :

…you’ll end up with a few adults helpfully polishing off any cockies …

Mind you if they’re eating cockatoos there may be a bit of a problem.

c_c™ said :

Wolf spiders do not have hazardous venom, in fact there are only three species in Australia that do. And of those three, only the funnel web is really a danger.

Dunno about that. When I was a kid the lady next door got bitten on the leg by a red-back, and nearly 50 years later I can remember the terrible effects it had on her. To this day I have a horror of the nasty shiny little things, and I’ll stomp ’em at the first opportunity. Wolf spiders are OK though, they just get escorted from the premises.

Wolf spiders do not have hazardous venom, in fact there are only three species in Australia that do. And of those three, only the funnel web is really a danger.

Zan said :

boo said :

How about not killing them? They can’t do anything to hurt you. Most of the babies will eat each other and you’ll end up with a few adults helpfully polishing off any cockies and silverfish for you. You’ll save yourself the hassle of cleaning up the chemical residue on every surface of your house, and it’s free!

I agree, do not kill them as they are your friend. They kill all the dust mites and tiny insects. You can make pets of huntsmen spiders. They have the softest velvety feet.

Do they bite us humans?

“just yesterday i killed a six legged wolf spider no problem.”

Are you in the habit of attacking cripples? For Shame!

boo said :

How about not killing them? They can’t do anything to hurt you. Most of the babies will eat each other and you’ll end up with a few adults helpfully polishing off any cockies and silverfish for you. You’ll save yourself the hassle of cleaning up the chemical residue on every surface of your house, and it’s free!

I agree, do not kill them as they are your friend. They kill all the dust mites and tiny insects. You can make pets of huntsmen spiders. They have the softest velvety feet.

Comic_and_Gamer_Nerd3:46 pm 13 Jan 13

Antagonist said :

TheDancingDjinn said :

Maintenance won’t help in this situation. I have used the bombs for the exact problem before, i moved home and bought in a mother and many many babies by accident. Bomb the house, don’t use more than one at a time.

+1. I also recommend the $20 ‘Mortein Professional’ type insect control packs for doing outside the house – like up under the eaves, around doors etc. I am actually about to head outside to do mine right now. It isn’t the same as a professional pest controller, but it is a LOT cheaper and makes enough difference to keep Mrs Antagonist happy.

How long do you find it lasts for until you need to re-apply?

How about not killing them? They can’t do anything to hurt you. Most of the babies will eat each other and you’ll end up with a few adults helpfully polishing off any cockies and silverfish for you. You’ll save yourself the hassle of cleaning up the chemical residue on every surface of your house, and it’s free!

Agreed, Housing is unlikely to help for insects (though I understand they might if you have a serious rodent or bird infestation as those problems would affect the property and could have public health ramifications).

Buy some insect bombs from the supermarket. They often come in a pack of 3. They are easy to use but make sure you follow the instructions. They contain pyrethrum in a form and dosage that ‘gets into nooks and crannies’ and kills the bugs.

You usually need one bomb can per room if doing the whole house.
If just doing one room you will have to close it off so the effect is not diluted. You will still have to evacuate the house for a couple of hours and air it well afterwards. If your property is not detached, let your adjoining neighbours know you are intending to bomb the house, so they can take steps to be out of the house during that period (to protect their children and pets from being affected).

Buckaroo_Banzai3:12 pm 13 Jan 13

When I moved in to a private rental some years back, white tail spiders regularly climbed out from the light fittings late at night with a disturbing scratchy crawling sound. I mentioned something about the lease conditions mentioning ” safe and comfortable” or something like that to the property manager, and the place got professionally sprayed at the landlord’s expense. I just did my own surface spraying each season after that and was fine.

TheDancingDjinn said :

Maintenance won’t help in this situation. I have used the bombs for the exact problem before, i moved home and bought in a mother and many many babies by accident. Bomb the house, don’t use more than one at a time.

+1. I also recommend the $20 ‘Mortein Professional’ type insect control packs for doing outside the house – like up under the eaves, around doors etc. I am actually about to head outside to do mine right now. It isn’t the same as a professional pest controller, but it is a LOT cheaper and makes enough difference to keep Mrs Antagonist happy.

TheDancingDjinn1:42 pm 13 Jan 13

Maintenance won’t help in this situation. I have used the bombs for the exact problem before, i moved home and bought in a mother and many many babies by accident. Bomb the house, don’t use more than one at a time.

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