Blog
Brown Recluse Hiding In Holiday Decorations
12/4/13
Now is the time of year where most homeowners are digging their holiday decorations out of their attics, closets, and basements in order to make their homes warm, cheery and festive for family and friends. However, this happy time could be made not so joyful if you are not careful to look at and inspect holiday decorations for signs of brown recluse spiders and other insects. Brown recluse spiders in Tennessee can inject dangerous venom into their victims if they are startled or disturbed. As their name suggests, they are a species that generally stay hidden away, but people can accidentally come into contact with them while searching and sifting through stored items like holiday decorations.
Brown recluse spiders often move indoors in the fall and winter months and while the weather may not get as cold in Tennessee as in other parts of the country, it does cool down enough to where brown recluses want to move indoors to find safe, warm shelter. Once inside your home, a perfect place for them to hide is in dark, humid areas like closets, basement, attics, and in boxes; coincidentally all the same places where many homeowners also store their holiday decorations. So in order to protect yourself and loved ones when getting your decorations out from storage, make sure to carefully inspect and shake out items like tablecloths, garland, and like items before handling them and placing them around your home. You will also want to inspect firewood, along with Christmas trees and wreaths for brown recluse spiders and other types of insects and spiders before bringing them inside your home.
Along with inspecting your decorations, before grabbing for them and placing them around your home, there are a few other things that you can do to prevent problems with brown recluse spiders. Brown recluse spider prevention tips include:
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Inspecting your homes foundation and sealing any openings or gaps that will allow them inside.
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Caulk gaps around windows and doors and make sure that screens are intact.
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Trim trees and bushes away from the exterior of your home.
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When storing holiday decorations, keep them in plastic containers with lids and instead of in plastic bags for added insect and spider protection.
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Use a flashlight to inspect dark closets, attic and basement areas before reaching in to move items around.
If you do discover this holiday season that you have problems in your home with spiders or any other pests, it is advised to contact a professional pest control company right away to eliminate potentially dangerous spiders from your home. Brown recluse spiders are a poisonous species and professionals will have the technology to find the spiders that are hiding throughout your home, safely eliminate them and put into place a plan to protect your home year-round from these and other dangerous and nuisance pests. Contact All-American Pest Control today for more information!