Why Are There So Many Spiders Around My House in the Fall?

If it seems like spiders suddenly start showing up everywhere around your home when fall arrives, you're not imagining it. Late summer and fall are some of the most noticeable times of year for spider activity in Northwest Ohio.

You may start seeing webs around your porch, windows, siding, garage, basement, or landscaping. Some homeowners also notice spiders making their way indoors as temperatures begin to cool.

So, why does this happen—and what can you do about it?

Why Are Spiders More Noticeable in the Fall?

One of the biggest reasons you notice more spiders in late summer and fall is that many spiders have reached maturity.

Spiders that were small and difficult to notice earlier in the year are now larger, more active, and easier to spot. This is also a time when many species are actively looking for mates, which can cause them to move around more than they did earlier in the season.

At the same time, cooler nights and changing insect activity can bring spiders closer to homes, garages, sheds, and other protected areas.

Your Home May Be Providing a Food Source

Spiders go where their food is.

If your property has a lot of flies, mosquitoes, moths, ants, crickets, or other insects, spiders have a reason to stick around.

Exterior lights can make this especially noticeable. Lights around doors, garages, patios, and porches attract flying insects at night. Spiders quickly learn that these areas are excellent places to build webs and catch prey.

That's why you'll often find some of the heaviest spider activity around:

• Porch lights and exterior lighting

• Windows and doors

• Rooflines and eaves

• Garages

• Decks and patios

• Bushes and landscaping near the house

• Sheds and other exterior structures

Reducing the insects around your home can therefore be an important part of reducing spider activity.

Why Do Spiders Come Inside?

Most spiders would rather stay somewhere they can easily find food and shelter, but they can occasionally make their way indoors.

Small gaps around doors, windows, utility penetrations, foundations, siding, and garage doors can provide entry points.

Once inside, spiders may settle in quieter areas such as basements, crawl spaces, garages, storage rooms, closets, and corners.

Seeing an occasional spider indoors doesn't necessarily mean you have an infestation. However, frequent spider sightings can indicate that your home has favorable conditions for spiders or the insects they feed on.

Are Spiders in Ohio Dangerous?

Most spiders homeowners encounter in Ohio are more of a nuisance than a serious threat.

That doesn't mean you should handle spiders you can't identify. If you're concerned about a particular spider, it's best to avoid touching it and have it properly identified.

For many homeowners, the bigger problem is simply the number of spiders and webs around the house.

Nobody wants to clean webs off their porch only to find them rebuilt a few days later.

How Can You Reduce Spiders Around Your Home?

Spider control is about more than simply spraying a spider when you see one.

A good pest-management approach focuses on the areas where spiders live, the places they're entering, and the insects they're feeding on.

Homeowners can help by keeping vegetation trimmed away from the house, sealing obvious gaps and cracks, reducing clutter, cleaning up webs, and limiting unnecessary exterior lighting.

Professional exterior pest control can provide another layer of protection by targeting common pest activity around the perimeter of the home.

At ProGuard Pest & Lawn, our pest control treatments are designed to address the pests around your home while also focusing on common harborage and entry areas.

Is Fall a Good Time for Pest Control?

Absolutely.

Fall is an important time to think about pest control because spiders aren't the only pests looking for protected areas as temperatures begin dropping.

Stink bugs, lady beetles, crickets, and rodents can all become more noticeable as we transition from summer into fall and winter.

A fall exterior treatment can help reduce pest activity around the home before colder weather arrives.

Need Help With Spiders Around Your Home?

If you're tired of walking through spider webs every time you step onto the porch, ProGuard Pest & Lawn can help.

We're a locally owned pest and lawn company serving Van Wert and surrounding Northwest Ohio communities, including Celina, Paulding, Delphos, and nearby areas.

Our goal is simple:

Control Pests. Save Lawns. Serve God. Impact People.

Contact ProGuard Pest & Lawn today to schedule your fall pest control treatment and help keep spiders and other unwanted pests away from your home.