Spider Control in Electric City

Electric City is a tight grid of family homes on the Blue Downs side of the Cape Flats, where most yards hold a main house, a backyard room and a washing line within a few metres of the boundary wall. A rat problem here is rarely one household's problem, so we usually end up talking to the neighbours as well.

Electric City: what drives crawling insects here

German roaches hide behind fridges and in the warm motor housings of appliances, and they travel between attached units through gaps around pipes. Black ants and Argentine ants nest in the loose sand and come indoors after sweet things in summer.

The original houses are small brick units, and over the years most have grown sideways and backwards with extra rooms, carports and wendy houses. Every add-on leaves a join between old and new roof sheeting, and those joins are where roof rats and pigeons find their way in. Wendy houses sitting straight on sand give rats a dry floor to tunnel beneath. With walls almost touching, a cockroach colony in one kitchen does not take long to reach the next.

Something most people miss

The first thing a technician checks is not the spider but what it is eating. Bright security lights, damp areas with lots of small insects, or an ant trail along the wall will keep drawing spiders in no matter how often you spray.

Tell-tale signs

1. Someone in the house wakes with a small, red, sometimes blistered bite that was not there the night before.
2. Fresh webs reappear in the same corners, window frames and eaves within days of being brushed down.
3. Untidy, tangled webs show up under outdoor chairs, in the meter box or around the pool pump.
4. Egg sacs, often round and papery or spiky in the case of the brown button spider, are stuck to brickwork or furniture.

Our process, step by step

We start by identifying the species, because a rain spider on the wall and a nest of button spiders by the jungle gym call for very different responses. Webs and egg sacs are removed by hand or vacuum first, which takes out a surprising amount of the next generation. We then apply a residual spray or a fine insecticide dust into the places spiders actually live: roof voids, behind fitted units, wall cavities, garages, eaves and window reveals, keeping it away from where children and pets play. Where insects are drawing the spiders in, we treat or advise on that food source too, because spiders follow their prey. Finally we point out gaps around doors, vents and pipes that need sealing.

Want the full step-by-step? See how our spider control service works.

Prevention that actually works

• Pull beds slightly away from the wall and keep bedding off the floor to reduce night-time bites from sac spiders.
• Fit fine mesh to vents and seal the gaps around pipes and under doors with sealant or brush strips.
• Swap white outdoor bulbs for warm yellow or LED ones so fewer insects gather, which means fewer spiders setting up around your doors.
• Keep stacked wood, bricks and old pots away from the house walls, because these are prime spots for button spiders.
• Brush down webs regularly and vacuum the corners and the backs of cupboards, which gets rid of egg sacs before they hatch.

How much will it cost?

The cost depends mainly on the size of the property and how many outbuildings, garages and roof spaces need treatment. A house with a heavy insect problem feeding the spiders takes more work than one with a few webs in the corners. We give a free quote after a quick look or a WhatsApp photo, and contract clients get spiders covered as part of their routine visits.

Spider activity climbs from late spring and peaks in the hot, dry months from January to March, which is exactly when rain spiders come indoors and people start to notice them. Button spiders are most visible in summer around gardens and pools. In the wet winter months many spiders retreat into roof spaces and garages, so a treatment then catches them where they shelter.

Questions we get asked in Electric City

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