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Narcius · Sep 1, 2008, 04:42 PM

I have just gotten married last week and me and my wife have lived in our one bedroom apartment for almost a month. Within the first night we found 3 spiders. One on the ceiling above our bed and two in the living room. A few nights later I found a violin spider crawling on my chest as I began to doze off. Immediately I called the caretaker and told him about the problem. It took a few days for him to responde but he finally showed up and sprayed a chemical around and told us he would be by next week to spray once more. He never showed up but we didn't see any spiders for awhile. When they started showing up again I tried calling him but he never answers his phone and doesn't call back so I call the realtor. She says he will be over but there was no sign of him. Recently I was bitten on my side while laying in bed by a recluse. At first I didn't know because the lighting sucks but today we saw the little bastard laying on the floor next to the bed. Overall we are killing around 5-7 spiders a week and 70% of them have been larger than a quarter and much bigger than that as well. I don't know what I can do besides continually complain to the realtor. Our landlord lives in Florida and the realtor does not think it is a big problem. As for the caretaker we can never get ahold of him. What can be done?

JudyKayTee · Sep 1, 2008, 05:10 PM

Originally Posted by Narcius

I have just gotten married last week and me and my wife have lived in our one bedroom apartment for almost a month. Within the first night we found 3 spiders. One on the cieling above our bed and two in the living room. A few nights later I found a violin spider crawling on my chest as I began to doze off. Immediatly I called the caretaker and told him about the problem. It took a few days for him to responde but he finally showed up and sprayed a chemical around and told us he would be by next week to spray once more. He never showed up but we didn't see any spiders for awhile. When they started showing up again I tried calling him but he never answers his phone and doesn't call back so I call the realtor. She says he will be over but there was no sign of him. Recently I was bitten on my side while laying in bed by a recluse. At first I didn't know because the lighting sucks but today we saw the little bastard laying on the floor next to the bed. Overall we are killing around 5-7 spiders a week and 70% of them have been larger than a quarter and much bigger than that as well. I don't know what I can do besides continually complain to the realtor. Our landlord lives in Florida and the realtor does not think it is a big problem. As for the caretaker we can never get ahold of him. What can be done?

I would go right to the landlord and possibly the Health Department - would appear somewhere there are nests.

(and you have given me a terrible case of the creeps! I can't imagine!)

plonak · Sep 1, 2008, 07:05 PM

Brown recluse bites are deadly.. you really should go to the doctors for the bites...

Can you bomb your room? You can buy the bomb at a local drug store or grocery store..

JudyKayTee · Sep 2, 2008, 05:57 AM

Originally Posted by plonak

brown recluse bites are deadly.. you really should go to the doctors for the bites...

can you bomb your room? you can buy the bomb at a local drug store or grocery store..

And my friend in Florida tells me - who knows if she's right? - that they can be reported to the Health Department and they are grounds to vacate if there's a lease.

excon · Sep 2, 2008, 07:16 AM

Hello N:

Out where I live, you can't keep spiders out of your house. My bet is that the spiders where you live do the same thing. When it gets cold, they come inside.

It's NOT like an infestation of termites or even mice or rats. I can't see how a landlord (or ANYBODY) could keep them out, and I can't see how a landlord would be responsible for doing so.

excon

JudyKayTee · Sep 2, 2008, 08:13 AM

Originally Posted by excon

Hello N:

Out where I live, you can't keep spiders out of your house. My bet is that the spiders where you live do the same thing. When it gets cold, they come inside.

It's NOT like an infestation of termites or even mice or rats. I can't see how a landlord (or ANYBODY) could keep them out, and I can't see how a landlord would be responsible for doing so.

excon

My understanding is that it's the location of the nest (or nests) and the type of spider.

And, no, I don't want any spider related photos.

excon · Sep 2, 2008, 08:26 AM

Hello Jude:

Ok, no pictures... But, a little more info. As you can tell, I actually LIKE spiders. They KILL all the bugs I DON'T like.

Many people are afraid of spiders. This fear is partly due to myths and to the notoriety of harmful species such as the brown recluse spider and the black widow spider. Several species of sac spiders (clubionids) are suspected of being responsible for most spider bites, especially ones occurring indoors. Sac spider venom is cytotoxic, causing tissues at the bite site to die. However, the vast majority of spiders are harmless to humans.

Although spiders are often unpopular, the venom of most species is not very toxic to humans, usually resulting in no more than a slight swelling, inflammation, or itching sensation. Most spiders' fangs are too small or weak to puncture human skin. Spiders usually will not attempt to bite unless accidentally trapped against the skin or grasped, although some species actively guard their egg sacs or young.

Spiders are beneficial predators that reduce pest populations (flies, crickets, mites, etc.) in and around homes, yards, gardens, and crops. Wholesale destruction of spiders should be avoided.

excon

JudyKayTee · Sep 2, 2008, 08:35 AM

Originally Posted by excon

Hello Jude:

Ok, no pictures.... But, a little more info. As you can tell, I actually LIKE spiders. They KILL all the bugs I DON'T like.

Many people are afraid of spiders. This fear is partly due to myths and to the notoriety of harmful species such as the brown recluse spider and the black widow spider. Several species of sac spiders (clubionids) are suspected of being responsible for most spider bites, especially ones occurring indoors. Sac spider venom is cytotoxic, causing tissues at the bite site to die. However, the vast majority of spiders are harmless to humans.

Although spiders are often unpopular, the venom of most species is not very toxic to humans, usually resulting in no more than a slight swelling, inflammation, or itching sensation. Most spiders’ fangs are too small or weak to puncture human skin. Spiders usually will not attempt to bite unless accidentally trapped against the skin or grasped, although some species actively guard their egg sacs or young.

Spiders are beneficial predators that reduce pest populations (flies, crickets, mites, etc.) in and around homes, yards, gardens, and crops. Wholesale destruction of spiders should be avoided.

excon

I'm not buying what you're selling.

Synnen · Sep 2, 2008, 08:54 AM

I am not exactly FOND of spiders, but don't generally kill them, either. If possible, I'll take the little suckers outside and shut the door.

However, I did live in Seattle for a while, and the spiders out there are the big ol' hairy kind--some were as big as my kitten at the time! They gave me the creeps pretty badly--enough to kill them first and ask questions later.

I also lived in TX---where your average bug is deadly to you. Mosquitos, at least 2 kinds of spiders (and yes, I did have to kill a black widow once), scorpions, you name it--if it crawled or flew, it could probably kill you. I killed ALL spiders in Texas. I heard too many stories about the BAD kinds of spiders to be tolerant of the GOOD kinds. Basically, if it was in my house, it was BAD.

The OP said one of the spiders he had was a recluse---Are you talking about a BROWN recluse? If so, you need to go to the hospital.

The next thing you need to do is provide a WRITTEN complaint to your landlord and the realtor. Send copies by certified mail, and send a copy to yourself in the mail as well, and don't open it when it comes back to you. Most leases specify a WRITTEN submission of a complaint. Let them know in your letter that should the problem NOT be taken care of, that you will need to contact the health department regarding the fact that you are not being taken seriously regarding a pest on your premises.

JudyKayTee · Sep 2, 2008, 09:13 AM

Originally Posted by Synnen

I also lived in TX---where your average bug is deadly to you. Mosquitos, at least 2 kinds of spiders (and yes, I did have to kill a black widow once), scorpions, you name it--if it crawled or flew, it could probably kill ya. I killed ALL spiders in Texas. I heard too many stories about the BAD kinds of spiders to be tolerant of the GOOD kinds. Basically, if it was in my house, it was BAD.

Memories of working in Panther Junction, Arizona where lesson #1 was to ALWAYS turn your shoes upside down and "tap them out" before putting them on.

I still have the habit - which draws strange looks - and now I'm traumatized all over again.

rockinmommy · Sep 2, 2008, 10:25 AM

Ok, I have to jump on the EXCON bandwagon on this one...
(Please tell me you copied and pasted that... )

Original Poster, like someone suggested. Send your landlord (send copies to owner, manager, realtor - everyone & keep one for yourself) a written request. Read your lease and make sure who is actually responsible for pest control, by the way. In some leases, it's the tenant - at their option.

Most exterminators will actually tell you that they can't ever really exterminate against spiders. They kill the other bugs which are the food source for the spiders and then the spiders will migrate away looking for food elsewhere.

The key to this is in your lease. Follow the correct procedure for requesting maintenance, and then follow through with whatever remedies your lease provides, as well as your state's landlord / tenant law.

Also, go to walmart and buy a jug of Ortho Home Defense. It comes with a handy little sprayer and you can spray as much as you want wherever you want and it costs $12.00. It says right on the directions that it specifically kills Brown Recluse Spiders (which my exterminator will argue that it DOES NOT till he's blue in the face). That should at least make you feel a little better temprorarily.

And last, no offense, but it is possible, but unlikely that it was actually a brown recluse that bit you. Not if it was crawling on your chest and then bit. You would typically have to roll over on it or something to get it to bite. If it indeed was, or you believe it was, you need to get to the doctor before the bite area rots and becomes infected (that's for you JKT).

excon · Sep 2, 2008, 10:30 AM

Originally Posted by rockinmommy

Ok, I have to jump on the EXCON bandwagon on this one.............
(Please tell me you copied and pasted that.....)

Hello again, mommy:

Of course I did. I ain't that smart.

excon

froggy7 · Sep 2, 2008, 09:50 PM

Actually, it might be a hobo spider. Still poisonous, looks a lot like a brown recluse, but definitely not a reclusive spider!

And, as I learned on "Dr. G"... apparently MRSA (that's methyllcillin resistant staph, and no, I don't know how to spell it) infections are often misdiagnosed as spider bites. Just something to think about if you have "spider bites" but don't remember seeing a spider.