Spiders!

[madcat]

Moored at Ellesmere Port boat full of spiders.moved to Oldbury n they all cleared off.moved to Hawne Basin and theyre back again.I dont mind them as they catch the nasty flying things that bite me

[stuart23]

We've noticed that after wiping the woodwork with Golden Oil, for some reason spiders keep away for quite a while

[BlueStringPudding]

Boots apparently, the label say's "Bach Original Flower remedies, White Chestnut" and it's the extract of Horse Chestnut flowers at 5x dilution in grape alcohol solution - according to the back label!

 

Thanks. Although...

 

Hmmm... that sounds like a homeopathic remedy which would have minimal amounts of the actual chestnut oil in it. And being made from the flowers that might be more likely to be an infusion or tincture. I think I'd prefer to use an oil... if such a thing exsists. I know you can buy horse chestnut tincture online but not sure if that's the way to go.

 

I already treat the wooden window frames inside with tea tree oil and they look great on that. Not sure how good alcohol would be for the varnished wood.

[WJM]

"I have managed to find some "Insecticide Bombs" that you place throughout the boat.. set them off.. and leave it airtight for a few hours while it fills the boat with a smoke/mist. Will give them a go, then get the expanding foam out to fill the 'hidey holes' ! "

 

 

In the days of the working narrowboats 'fumigation' of the living area was normal practice, particularly when a boat had a change of occupants.

[LongShen]

Hmmm Chestnuts.

Bought a load of Chestnuts last Christmas as a treat for roasting on top of the stove (yum). Thing was I had some left over (passed their best) which I left in a bowl to one side. It's still there. Seems odd that I have had so few spider visitors this year, where as in previous years they have driven nuts . Loads on the outside of the boat, they especially like the swan neck and the mooring ropes as an easy place to build webs, but I can put up with that.

 

Neighbours complain about having had lots of spidies but I've had practically none inside so far. So come Christmas I'll be buying more Chestnuts, some for me and some for the spiders.

Steve

[PaulG]

apparently if you place conkers all round the boat they tend to leave don`t know if its true or an old wives tale tho

 

Sorry, Denboy. In my experience it's an old wives' tale. Tried it last year. No discernible difference in the numbers of our 8-legged friends.

 

Rows of conkers along the window sills looked nice, however!

[chieftiff]

Thanks. Although...

 

Hmmm... that sounds like a homeopathic remedy which would have minimal amounts of the actual chestnut oil in it. And being made from the flowers that might be more likely to be an infusion or tincture. I think I'd prefer to use an oil... if such a thing exsists. I know you can buy horse chestnut tincture online but not sure if that's the way to go.

 

I already treat the wooden window frames inside with tea tree oil and they look great on that. Not sure how good alcohol would be for the varnished wood.

 

I think you are right but my neighbours son (not a child but like me he shares a childs mind) has been experimenting with this today and he can't get a house spider to cross the line of oils it immediately turns around and faces the stick he is poking it with rather than walk over it, so it seems to work. I've been watching from a distance!

 

No spiders were harmed in this experiment

[BlueStringPudding]

I think you are right but my neighbours son (not a child but like me he shares a childs mind) has been experimenting with this today and he can't get a house spider to cross the line of oils it immediately turns around and faces the stick he is poking it with rather than walk over it, so it seems to work. I've been watching from a distance!

 

No spiders were harmed in this experiment

 

Excellent experiment!

[Aunty_Rinum]

...so far I haven't seen any largwr house spiders. I think its because I'm usually moored on a pontoon in the middle of a basin and its a long trek for them!

I'm moored on a pontoon in the middle of Brighton Marina and I still get spiders. I think they float in using their little silken threads as parachutes when they're tiny. Then they grow to an enormous size and run about on our faces while we're asleep.

[chieftiff]

Then they grow to an enormous size and run about on our faces while we're asleep.

 

 

Don't! I'm off to the Middle East at the end of next week and the spider nightmares are starting already, that image isn't going to help

[Aunty_Rinum]

Don't! I'm off to the Middle East at the end of next week and the spider nightmares are starting already, that image isn't going to help

A friend in Saudia turned over a rock with his foot and a huge cockroach ran up his trouser leg. Worse than a spider but only just.

[Guest wanted]

I personally don't mind a few spiders about the boat, makes it feel like a shed! however my good lady hates the things and asks me to remove them. I am sure that at times I have caused the untimely demise of our eight legged friends and am wondering if I am getting bad karma on behalf of my girlfriend, or is she collecting bad points for making me do it? also can I redeem myself by rubbing her with chestnut oil?

 

happy spider hunting

[Machpoint005]

A friend in Saudia turned over a rock with his foot and a huge cockroach ran up his trouser leg. Worse than a spider but only just.

Cockroaches (even big tropical ones) are unpleasant, but harmless.

Spiders aren't even unpleasant (IMO).

 

 

I am wondering if I am getting bad karma on behalf of my girlfriend

No.

No such thing.

 

 

Have you tried feng shui to get rid of spiders? That doesn't work either.

[Smelly]

Probably fair to admit that at about the same time I loaded up with conkers I also gained a kitten with a penchant for chasing and killing small things so not a very scientific test. However I would strongly recommend kittens if that was the true culprit.

[Guest wanted]

This really works! We have just discovered that Indorex flea spray gets rid of spiders! it is designed for furniture/carpets and the like for people who have cats and dogs, however we sprayed the boat and haven't seen a spider since! cost £15 from the vets, well worth it.

[Grasshopper]

This really works! We have just discovered that Indorex flea spray gets rid of spiders

 

Any insecticide, like that one, that is based on Pyrethrin (in this case in the form of Permethrin) will kill them and sprayed on surfaces will tend to repel them for a period of time.

 

But careful how you use it.....................

 

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyrethrin

[bramley]

i throw a fairly large spider out the window the other day, and he was trying to swim to the pontoon, however the wind was having him all over the place, so i set out to rescue him after feeling bad, sadly the ducks came over to see what the fuss was about and the spider was a tasty meal for one of them.

 

[Guest wanted]

Any insecticide, like that one, that is based on Pyrethrin (in this case in the form of Permethrin) will kill them and sprayed on surfaces will tend to repel them for a period of time.

 

But careful how you use it.....................

 

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyrethrin

 

 

I Know, I'm not a big fan of nasty chemicals, so I cleared the boat of spiders first and then sprayed as a repellent, I weighed up the odds, and me not having to get up a three in the morning with my good lady screaming seemed to overrule the chemical debate.

 

cheers

Eagles may sore high, but weasels don't get caught in aeroplane engines!

[Grasshopper]

I wasn't necessarily saying don't use it. Just be aware of its toxicity.

 

I use a pyrethrin intecticide as a repellant in my cratch which otherwise is quickly colonised in between my visits to the boat. A quick spray around the inside before I leave and it saves me having to de-web the cratch every time I go to the boat.

[Orca]

I'm intrigued by this (as an arachnophobe), because one of my biggest worries when moving on to the boat wa spiders - particularly, that larger breed of said species....the House Spider!! In my 2 years on the boat, I have not seen one yet, though Garden Spiders (the ones that weave those gorgeous webs!) are everywhere, though fortunately (unless they are excessively large) do not seem to bother me anywhere near as much. I at least can gently pick them up and throw them outside if required. Whereas, with our larger breed of House Spider (which I have seen as large as 3 inches or more in circumference) would have instantly incurred my steel toe-caps....

[blackelle123]

We have had some real beauties on our boat this year - it always amazes me where they come from. We can give the boat a good hoover (say around 10am) then by the evening there are loads of them. I have come to put with them to a point (still don't like them hanging over the bed), Hubs says we shouldn't mess with the natural balance.

Sometimes they can be real entertainment, especially when two girl spiders scrap over a male spider, or maybe they are just scrapping over territory, but I do draw the line at letting them take over, especially when they don't seem to be doing a brillient job at keeping the fly and knat population down.

[BlueStringPudding]

As a highly scientific experiemnt a couple fo weeks ago, we de-spidered all the windows, and I rubbed chestnut oil into half the window frames, and clove oil in the other half.

 

The next day, the windows treated with chestnut oil already had spiders back on them!

 

In three or four days the windows treated with clove oil had spiders back in them.

 

Verdict: both clove oil and chestnut oil are pretty sh*te.