Spider season is here and they are showing up in our homes now. If, like me, you are scared of spiders or if you just want them out of your home, why not try one if these little tricks?
I use these every year when the spiders start to show up again. I don’t want to kill them, as they deserve to live just like us- I just prefer them to stay outside.
Conkers
When you are next out on a walk, collect conkers from a park or woodland and put them by windows and doors. Spiders don’t like them and so stay away.
Repellent Spray
Sometimes, conkers aren’t enough, or you can’t go around to collect them soon enough.
10ml essential oil(s)
15ml 70%+ Isopropyl Alcohol (IPA)
75ml water
I mix 10ml peppermint essential oil (use pure, aromatherapy grade essential oil. I recommend FreshSkin and Naissance brands- I tend to use these as they are top quality products) with IPA and water in a spray bottle, and shake it up.
Other Essential oils to keep spiders and other critters out that you can add into your blend include: Pine, Eucalyptus, Clove, and Lavender. For something year-round, you can also add citronella and tea-tree oils to keep away mosquitoes and gnats. When I do this, I mix the oils together then add 10ml of the essential oil blend to the water and IPA. It can smell strong and you can play around with amounts of each oil to use in this base oil blend to find something you'll like.
I like to label my blend so I know what is what (I realise I wrote Pine down twice, and ommitted the peppermint- but peppermint was the main oil in this blend)
The IPA helps to preserve the mix and stop the water going funky or nasty from bacteria and germs. It’s best in a darkened glass container if you can get that, which I upgraded to recently, but I also have an old plastic spray that use to be for a body spray that I repurposed for this.
It's best to keep your mix in the fridge to last longer, as bacteria can still grow in the mix- especially in plastic or bottles that are not sanitised.
When first using this, spray from the center of the home going outwards towards windows and doors. You’ll want to do this every day or two at first to get the spiders that are hiding in your home to come out of their nooks and escape. You’ll likely see more spiders around now- don’t worry, this means it’s working as they are coming out to escape. You can take them outside using a cup and piece of paper or can buy spider tools online that will safely trap them for you to remove outside. After a week or two, you can start just spraying around the inside of doors, windows and any places that spiders could come in. This stops more of them coming in.
When I do this, I always find that it works really well for me. Spiders can taste through their feet, and they really hate peppermint oil.
I hope that this helps you- let me know in the comments below if you tried this out, or feel free to share your own natural hacks to keep spiders out of your home!
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