I have read that ants dislike cinnamon. I haven't tried it, though. If you find something to get rid of spiders, let me know. I'm constantly battling them.

Thank you so much, will try the cinnamon. I still have some cornstarch out there even though I cleaned up, lol.

Cornstarch won't deter ants. It's basically powdered ground-up sugar, and it provides food for ants. I have heard of using boric acid powder to kill/deter roaches and other creatures. Spiders aren't afraid of anything. They can be killed only if you actually spray them directly on their bodies. If you spray aqround the floor and perimeter of a room, spiders are immune to the insecticide residue and walk over it with no problems. . I've found the best thing is to be really vigilant about cleaning. Don't allow paper bags and such to pile up. Spiders like to hide inpside cluttery things. And use your vacuum and attachments to clean ceilings, walls, chandeliers,etc. at least once a week. If you get rid of all the insects with insecticide, the spiders will have mothing to eat and will move on outside where they belong. Good luck! I hate/fear spiders and their disgusting webs too!

Thank you Jannie those spiders are tough even though I did spray them right on their body they just bundle up and then later take off. I HATE them. A friend of ours was bitten by a recluse and has the biggest scar you can imagine from it. I'm terrified of them. I am sure these are probably just wood spiders but still they are the creepiest things ever and sometimes there are really big ones. I have to say again I HATE them!!!! Calling a pest control today...

Every time you see ants, use a wet cloth and wipe off the trail. They follow the scent trail. I have had ants a couple of times at my last house and it worked like a charm. I was in olive garden there were ants on the window sill and they used a mixture of water and ammonia.

thanks everyone I ended up calling a bug man and he is coming on Wednesday. Signing a contract for services. We used to have them and thought it wasn't worth the money, I might have been wrong about that! Not sure if it was the mild winter or lack of bug service each month. We'll see how it goes, we have few areas of clutter they are just in love with the wood windows inside and out, it is weird. I hate it!!! I have arachnophobia for sure...

My Grandmother was a very practical old lady from Germany. She had buried 2 husbands and survived thru the Depression by turning her home into a boarding house. Her remedy for ants was this: She'd peel a cucumber and lay the wet peels around the perimeter of a room. Maybe the odor is offensive or they won't touch anything wet, not sure. But at least it's not toxic. I am well aware of what arachnophobia is. I have it big time. I sometimes dream about being caught in sticky spider webs. Yuck! In your situation, I think a professional exterminator is best. I had an aunt and uncle who moved to Florida. They had an exterminator in once a week. again, good luck!

How is the spider situation lately? I empathize with everyone. I hired Terminex for over a year to prevent and eliminate spiders, but I still had lots spiders. It was a waste of money to hire them. And since I stopped using Terminex, I have not seen an increase in spiders or other bugs. I've also bought insecticide and sprayed it around the inside and outside of my house, but spiders will not die when they walk on the residue.

Have you heard of using Diatomaceous Earth (DE)? I read that it's a non-chemical means of insect and spider control. If you buy it, be sure to get the "food grade" diatomaceous earth or at least one that says it's safe for pets. You can actually mix the FOOD GRADE diatomaceous earth with a beverage and drink it, that's how safe it is. Just make sure to wear a dust mask when applying it to prevent breathing in the DE. I am definitely going to buy DE very soon because insecticides aren't working. You can look up diatomaceous earth on Google to read more about it.

I have to deal with spiders from around April to mid-November in my house. When it starts to get cooler out, the spiders want to retreat inside my home where it's warmer, so I see a bunch more spiders in October. I rarely see them in December/January (knock on wood). I live in an older house, and it's impossible for me to seal every little crevice. I hate this so much! In the last place I lived in, I saw a total of 5 spiders within the 5-1/2 years that I lived there and not a single web inside. That was bliss. Now since living in this house, I developed a fear of spiders because of encountering them so often.

Thank you so much Mia for the information. You know once it got really hot down here I haven't seen them at all. I hate to think they will be back in October!! I do have cobwebs again in some of my windows and I just had my windows cleaned by a professional not too long ago. I hate spiders maybe as much as snakes!!! We built this house 15 years ago and have never had a problem ever. I tried to hire a bug man but they more or less no showed and then never called me back. Typical for around here, but it never ceases to amaze me how some people run their businesses. I would say most of them but I digress. My husband is doing the spraying now and it does seem to help. Also set out some traps for ants etc. So far so good!!! Thank you again and I will look into the DE.

It said in our local newspaper ants leave a scent trail and all you have to do just use a wet cloth and wipe the scent trail. Works for me.

I am well aware of the problem with having tradesmen just "show up". I've called professionals listed in the phone book, made appointments for them to come for cleaning, repairs, whatever, they don't show up or phone
. Maybe the answer is to file reports with "Angies List" or Better Business Bureau. I don't know. Regarding spiders,, there are sprays you can buy on Home Depot,etc that supposedly keep all bugs and crawlies out of your home for up to a year. Non toxic to people, pets and plants. I bought something called "Ortho Home Defense Max" and I've sprayed it around doors and windows inside and out. It seems to be working.

I heard from someone years ago about the cucumber peelings. I have used this many times & it works! I even used it in Jamaica where 1 missed crumb would brings ants in minutes. I would leave them at entrances & it was amazing to see them turn around once they got near the peelings. As for spiders I have been battling them for years but moving this week. Hope I won't have some problem in new place. Good luck!

Thanks so very much! Will try all the things mentioned. The funny thing is that I actually found the no show exterminator on Angie's List, lol. They never did call back and when I questioned why they didn't show up they said I must have been mistaken, yeah right, I'd only been hysterical about the spiders and would surely be mistaken for someone coming to help. I've had so so luck with Angie's List so far. The coupon people the ones that offer great deals on services have been almost a total bust. I think they are more or less start ups that offer them and do not understand how hard it is to be in business, get discouraged and quit.

I bought an AL coupon for a lady who claimed to be a home organizer and all she did was stuff things in garbage bags that I handed her out of the closets. She wouldn't dust or wipe a shelf (not that I expected her to) but would just start putting things back before I had a chance to clean or dust them. Not to mention she had a challenging attitude and when she left she wanted me to be sure and write her a good report on Angie's List. I paid her $99 so $25 an hour for a one time introductory price which was the coupon price but if I hired her again it would have been $250 for the same amount of time. No thanks. I don't know what I expected but not that!!! I guess I wanted more "help" from her both physical and mental. Also thought she would be bringing a helper or something!!!

gr8day, I'm glad that your spider situation is under control. You may not get them in your home in October where you live. But we always have them coming in to find a warmer place when it starts to get cold. I've been seeing a lot of spiders lately in my house. I don't have ants, so I can't comment on that, but I think that the DE kills ants. You sprinkle the DE in areas that have activity inside and outside. The DE will need to be re-applied after it rains.

I had tried the Ortho Home Defense Max spray and also a permethrin spray, but the (dried) residual does nothing for spiders; the spiders walk right over the residual. These insecticides only work for spiders if they are sprayed on the spiders or if a spider walks into the wet spray. These insecticides won't destroy a spider's egg sac, so the egg sac has to be removed.

I know what you mean about hired workers not showing up for appointments. So frustrating. When I hired Terminex, they showed up a lot when I wasn't home, so they only sprayed the outside of my house and not the inside. I had to keep calling them back to finish the job. They also were supposed to take down any spider webs, but the technician never bothered with removing the webs.

Borax powder or Roach Proof mixed with honey will work well to kill ants. They carry the mixture back to their nest and it wipes out the nest of ants.

I had small ants in my kitchen a short time ago and only one jar lid with Roach Proof and honey placed in their trail worked like a charm. Have not seen them since.

Roger that. Thanks so much!

Look under furniture like nightstands, desks, cabinets for spider eggs. I vacuumed them up and that helped a lot. I even pulled out all the drawers and found some under the drawers and inside the cabinet.

Thanks again everyone. It's been an especially hard year for keeping ahead of the insects. I'm happy to report they seem to have left the building since my husband sprayed the entire house and outside around the house. Yea!!!

Oh I know about the lizards!! I see them but not in the house sometimes in the garage and always on the deck or driveway. Our last house was really in the woods and I saw them more there, even sometimes in the house. Mama isn't all that big, maybe around 7 inches. They don't really hurt us but are a little creepy. Some of them are kind of cute. I think they are geckos.

One spring I found fleas on my dog and she went nearly crazy with scratching and biting herself. . They don't bite me but they really drove the dog nuts with scratching and they jumped on my husband's ankles and bit him. Red welts. You could see them hopping in our carpets. I took the dog to the vet, had her flea-dipped and held there overnight. Meanwhile I set off a Raid bug bomb in every room of my house. Opened all doors and cabinets to make sure fumes went everywhere. Hubby and I spent the night with relatives. Came home and had to wash every plate, pot,glass etc in the house, then vacuumed.Picked up dog and all was well for a very long time. Didn't see any bugs or spiders for at least a year.

I have a real problem with spiders in my road side mail box. A little trick I learned years ago works wonderfully! Lay a clothes dryer fabric softener sheet where you want to drive them away and they will not nest there.

I accidentally spilled coffee grounds on my counter where there were a ton of ants. When I came back to clean it up, all the ants were gone.

Food grade diatomaceous earth is amazing! I add it to pet food, put it in the kitty litter, sprinkle it on carpets and furniture, and add it to vacuum cleaner bags to kill all of the creepies that have exoskeletons. I also spread it around my yard to keep fleas and ticks away. Read about it, y'all. IT WORKS!

Now, spider-specific....get some peppermint oil and spray it all over. Any opening, crack, door window etc. Spiders HATE that smell as much as cats hate pine!