Wolf spiders are mottled grey and brown in color. Their body length varies from 15mm-25mm. They are basically ground dwelling hunters that hide in the shadows and dark corners. They aren’t aggressive and can move fast if disturbed. While their bites are not fatal, they can still become a major pest if an infestation occurs in the yard or a home.

People living in North Shore often face the problem of wolf spiders infesting their yards or homes.  To get rid of them, here is what needs to be done:

Clear the clutter and debris

Dark places usually attract wolf spiders more. They usually hide in areas like piles of leaves, mulch, grass clippings, compost or firewood. So, clear these clutter and debris in the yard as much as you can. Even objects such as stones, grills, heavy ground covering plants and empty planters can provide dark hiding places, which will attract these creatures. Expose your yard to sunlight as much as possible and make the area unappealing for wolf spiders.

You should also clean up the piles of books, boxes, dirty clothes or magazines kept inside the house.

Seal the cracks and holes

Ensure that all the gaps and cracks leading from outside in are patched preventing the wolf spiders from moving in. Use caulk for filling in the cracks, holes and gaps in side of foundation or along exterior wall. Also apply caulk around the small cracks as well as cables, which lead to outside. If your window screens are broken, patch up or replace them completely. Also add weather stripping to the windows and doors for minimizing the risk of allowing the wolf spider to move in beneath.

Set up insect screens

Pay attention to the foundation vents. While these creepy creatures may get into your house through the chimneys and attic vents, they are mostly ground-dwelling hunters and are likely to creep in through the vents. A fine mesh screen needs should be tightly fixed over all the vents, which lead to outside.

Change or remove your outdoor lighting

Lights that are placed outside of the house attract moths, flies and other kinds of insects during night giving an appealing source of food for the wolf spiders. So, turn off the lights as much as you can for limiting the number of insects drawn to your house. Draw your shades or binds closed for keeping the indoor lighting from being flooded out. Use sodium vapor lights rather than the standard outdoor lights because they have a soft yellow hue which doesn’t attract bugs much.

Vacuum the home daily

Use a vacuum cleaner or broom for cleaning the floors of a house. Sweeping or vacuuming basically removes crumbs, the food source for insects. This means if there are no crumbs, there won’t be insects in your house and no insects mean no food for wolf spiders. So, keep the spaces where wolf spiders are likely to be seen clean. This will deter them from lingering in the area. Also remove webs if you ever see them in your house. Removing them discourages the spiders from resettling in that same area again.

If homeowners in North Shore still find wolf spiders in their homes or yards after applying all these techniques, they should get in touch with R.I.P Pest Management, the pest services in North Shore. We are always there to serve our customers with our Integrated Pest Management techniques.