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Rexxed posted:If it's stupid but it works, it's not stupid. I put some of those out last night, along with piles of diatomaceous earth. They keep boiling up out of the floorboards as I walk across them. And also out of the base of the kitchen faucet if I turn it on. I mean, it's not spiders or cockroaches, and they don't bite, but I'm super unsettled and not okay with the situation. I think the traps aligned with the places the ants are coming in from, but it's hard to tell because, again, they're under the floorboards like some barely visible version of that one scene from the end of The Craft. It's all good for about 5 minutes, but then it's like my footsteps and the food smells wake them up and NOOOPE LOOKS LIKE I AM ORDERING TAKEOUT ALL WEEK KTHX. Also ordered plexi-walled pet food dish risers for the cat food, which I can put on a plate with some Borax and diatomaceous earth spread underneath. Eagerly awaiting their arrival.
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Feb 21, 2019 00:06
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there wolf posted:Borax doesn't kill anything. It just deters bugs from walking across it. Good if you're like me and have a bunch of flying cockroaches that live outside, but like to come in to find water and snacks at night. Not so great for stopping an active infestation of ants or anything else. Borax kills ants if they ingest it. It basically shuts down their digestive system. They ingest it because you mix it with water and sugar (or buy Terro baits so that was already done for you). It's particularly effective because it's slow. The worker ants bring it back and the whole colony gets some.
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Feb 21, 2019 00:21
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Motronic posted:Borax kills ants if they ingest it. It basically shuts down their digestive system. They ingest it because you mix it with water and sugar (or buy Terro baits so that was already done for you). It's particularly effective because it's slow. The worker ants bring it back and the whole colony gets some. They sell boric acid at the hardware store. That dissolves their carapace and they drag it around everywhere which kills the pheromone trail.
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Feb 21, 2019 02:46
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There's also this magical poo poo, which clings to their exoskeletons, eats at the protective coating, and causes them to dehydrate. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diatomaceous_earth#Pest_control Also works on bed bugs!
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Feb 21, 2019 04:16
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The worst bit about Diatomaceous Earth is that it's like a pain to sweep, mop, of vacuum up. It nearly killed my buddy's Dyson when he went HAM with it.
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Feb 21, 2019 17:59
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FilthyImp posted:The worst bit about Diatomaceous Earth is that it's like a pain to sweep, mop, of vacuum up. At this rate, I will live with my house looking like Scarface's forest vacation home if it means the ants go the gently caress away.
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Feb 21, 2019 18:14
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Dirt Road Junglist posted:There's also this magical poo poo, which clings to their exoskeletons, eats at the protective coating, and causes them to dehydrate. Came here to post this, Saw two ants at my current apt when I moved in. Office gave a warning that cockroaches were spotted in the building so I ordered a bag of Diatomaceous earth, put a little bit around the walls of the apt, and a big bit under any immobile furniture. No more ants, no cockroaches either. It's good stuff. Dirt Road Junglist posted:I put some of those out last night, along with piles of diatomaceous earth. They keep boiling up out of the floorboards as I walk across them. And also out of the base of the kitchen faucet if I turn it on. I mean, it's not spiders or cockroaches, and they don't bite, but I'm super unsettled and not okay with the situation. I think the traps aligned with the places the ants are coming in from, but it's hard to tell because, again, they're under the floorboards like some barely visible version of that one scene from the end of The Craft. It's all good for about 5 minutes, but then it's like my footsteps and the food smells wake them up and NOOOPE LOOKS LIKE I AM ORDERING TAKEOUT ALL WEEK KTHX. Under the floorboards... no basement or crawlspace I'm guessing? hit the outside foundations with DE, might work. Otherwise call an exterminator.
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Feb 21, 2019 19:40
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Motronic mentioned Terro. (https://www.lowes.com/pd/TERRO-1-Oz-Liquid-Ant-Killer/3047748) You need very little of the Terro. Figure out where you ant super highways are--you'll see lines of ants going back forth. Place a couple tabs with a drop or two of Terro. Check back in 15-30 minutes and you should see the dabs swarming with ants. A few fresh dabs of Terro every day or so won't hurt. Ants will slow down every day until about a week when you won't see any more. You don't see any more because those initial ants took the Terro back to the nest and killed off all the ants. You can mix your own Terro with sugar, borax, and water. But for $4--the 1oz of Terro will last you a very long, long time. (I've haven't even gotten past the 10% mark on my 5+ year old bottle and have to deal with sugar ants every year during the warmer months.) edit: Straight borax spread in the carpet and left of a few hours if you have fleas. DE around the perimeter to deal with all manner of creepy crawlers works well. SuspendSC--1.5oz to 3oz per gallon along the top edges of porches/in front of security cameras to eliminate spiders. HycoCam fucked around with this message at 20:00 on Feb 21, 2019 |
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Feb 21, 2019 19:56
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terrenblade posted:Under the floorboards... no basement or crawlspace I'm guessing? hit the outside foundations with DE, might work. Otherwise call an exterminator. No basement, and the crawl space is just a small access panel under one of the closets. Any word on whether spreading it outside works when it's wet? We're in semi flood conditions right now, which is not helping since that makes pests come inside. I rent a connected townhouse, so not sure what the owners would want to do re: extermination. The building inspector was here recently and his entire evaluation was, "Yep, that sucks. Baits work. Oh, can I get a photo of that diatom stuff? My girlfriend also has ants." Not terribly inspiring as a response.
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Feb 21, 2019 19:59
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HycoCam posted:Motronic mentioned Terro. (https://www.lowes.com/pd/TERRO-1-Oz-Liquid-Ant-Killer/3047748) Terro is the absolute best thing i've found to get rid of ants. I buy the little traps though. Set one out, within an hour there will be a highway of ants headed back and forth. The next day- no ants at all.
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Feb 21, 2019 20:23
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HycoCam posted:SuspendSC--1.5oz to 3oz per gallon along the top edges of porches/in front of security cameras to eliminate spiders. Why the hell would you want to eliminate spiders? They don't damage anything, they just kill off the actual pests
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Feb 21, 2019 20:25
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PurpleXVI posted:Why the hell would you want to eliminate spiders? They don't damage anything, they just kill off the actual pests Not to mention that predators don't go where there isn't prey. If you have spiders, you have other bugs. Once the other bugs are gone, the spiders will leave. Edit: widows are pretty chill, though. I've had them on me before. Not voluntarily, obviously; point is they're not aggressive, and they and their webs are distinctive so they're easy to avoid. VVV Blue Footed Booby fucked around with this message at 20:52 on Feb 21, 2019 |
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Feb 21, 2019 20:41
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I have zero issues with spiders not being where I want to be. As for spiders not hurting you--we have both recluse and widows in our area. Nothing like having your kid carry over a salt lick only to find out there is a black widow bigger than her hand to make you not like spiders. 
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Feb 21, 2019 20:44
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I gis'd diatomaceous earth and half the results were for pest control, the other half were 〜herbal wellness〜 sites. Wtf
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Feb 21, 2019 23:36
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peanut posted:I gis'd diatomaceous earth and half the results were for pest control, the other half were 〜herbal wellness〜 sites. Wtf Well, if you kill all your bugs, I suppose that would improve your mood.
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Feb 22, 2019 00:26
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kid sinister posted:Well, if you kill all your bugs, I suppose that would improve your mood. My mental health will be greatly improved when the ants go away.
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Feb 22, 2019 00:27
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Is not wanting spiders in your house controversial itt?
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Feb 22, 2019 00:33
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advocating spider murder is bad. i mean if it jumps out and scares you i mean hellz yeah grab the neurotoxin but i tend to just leave harmless things alone
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Feb 22, 2019 00:36
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peanut posted:I gis'd diatomaceous earth and half the results were for pest control, the other half were 〜herbal wellness〜 sites. Wtf Don't eat or inhale DE, it chews your insides up good. Spiders rule don't hurt them. I've got some good spider stories from working at a city park in Florida.
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Feb 22, 2019 00:37
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Just wear gloves if you're shoving your hands in the spiders domain, they were there first.
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Feb 22, 2019 00:55
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When I was a pool tech, DE was one of the possible filter media. Not commonly used, but if you poured it into something it would make an oversized cloud of sharp razor bits waiting to cut you from the lungs on downward. That’s the warning I got about it anyways, supposedly it was more popular in FL (Florida Man antics not withstanding).
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Feb 22, 2019 01:53
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Yeah y'all can get hosed if you think I'm not murdering the hell out of the black widows that live everywhere here, including from my crawl space vents to the ground at a 45 degree angle outside in our main walking path. I try to leave the daddy long legs and brown widows alone because they eat the bugs and are generally chill.
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Feb 22, 2019 01:56
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Burt Sexual posted:Is not wanting spiders in your house controversial itt? Pretty sure there's literally no spider in the world that will attack a human that isn't threatening/endangering it in some way, they don't damage anything you own, they don't gently caress with your food, they kill other pests and they're cute. Spiders are probably the most useful freeloader animals on your property aside from any potential bees. I mean obviously yeah if you can't get out of your front door for all the spider webs, you probably have good reason to want to get rid of some spiders. But otherwise it just seems pointlessly murderous to me.
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Feb 22, 2019 02:13
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PurpleXVI posted:Pretty sure there's literally no spider in the world that will attack a human that isn't threatening/endangering it in some way, they don't damage anything you own, they don't gently caress with your food, they kill other pests and they're cute. Besides the freak out wife, how do you explain the spiders all over your walls and counters to guests at gatherings. People come into my house and socialize.
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Feb 22, 2019 02:21
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“It’s OK. These are working spiders.”
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Feb 22, 2019 02:47
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Burt Sexual posted:Besides the freak out wife, how do you explain the spiders all over your walls and counters to guests at gatherings. People come into my house and socialize. As already pointed out, if you have a severe infestation of spiders, you have an even more severe infestation of spider food, and you should take care of that, pronto.
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Feb 22, 2019 03:25
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Meet a hundred million spiders.
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Feb 22, 2019 03:32
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Unfortunately, you can 'threaten' or 'endanger' a spider without actually realizing it, like if you bumble into their web or sit down on a toilet where some funnel web has set up camp. Or if you have a child who might decide to poke at something new and interesting. I like spiders and I don't like to kill them, but ones that are potentially harmful, even if only 'provoked' are fair game to purge. Yes, if you have spiders you have food for them, but often their prey isn't harmful.
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Feb 22, 2019 03:55
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Like if you have a black mamba in your house, you may have a rat problem, but you should absolutely get rid of the snake that may kill you despite that. There are less risky ways to handle the rats.
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Feb 22, 2019 03:58
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PurpleXVI posted:I mean obviously yeah if you can't get out of your front door for all the spider webs, you probably have good reason to want to get rid of some spiders. But otherwise it just seems pointlessly murderous to me. I periodically get fishing spiders in the house. They can be big enough to hear moving and have a tendency to pop up on my nightstand when I'm trying to sleep. The ones that stay outside, or between my window and screen get to live. The ones that make it to the bedroom get squished or vaccumed up. The normal-sized, non-swimming spiders can take care of any bugs that make it inside.
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Feb 22, 2019 04:01
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I've been looking into fishing as a hobby, and now I'm not anymore, thanks
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Feb 22, 2019 04:36
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i like nice words
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Ashcans posted:Like if you have a black mamba in your house, you may have a rat problem, but you should absolutely get rid of the snake that may kill you despite that. There are less risky ways to handle the rats. This is the cool and right answer. Judge each spider on its individual merits, and find a less risky way to take care of your bugs than a black widow biting you because you spooked it. hth
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Feb 22, 2019 05:43
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I have a huge huntsman spider that is usually on the wall of my lounge room somewhere. I say hello every time I see it and continue on my way.
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Feb 22, 2019 09:40
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Suspect Bucket posted:Don't eat or inhale DE, it chews your insides up good. You can get food grade diatomaceous earth which should be safe to consume, but I don't really see why you would want to ever eat the stuff. Apparently there's also filter grade which is full of silicates which you definitely don't want to breath in or eat. When we had ants in the house I got the food grade stuff because I din't trust our cats not to mess around with it!
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Feb 22, 2019 10:26
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PurpleXVI posted:Pretty sure there's literally no spider in the world that will attack a human that isn't threatening/endangering it in some way, they don't damage anything you own, they don't gently caress with your food, they kill other pests and they're cute. I take it you’ve never had a Sydney Funnel Web bumble their way through the front door. They way they bread is the male goes looking for a partner after rain and is an aggressive gently caress while doing so. They’ll come in the front door with their front legs up on the attack. The one time I had it happen I ripped my pants getting up as quickly as I did. I killed the gently caress out of that thing but it took a decent amount of work. Only spiders that I nope out of completely on are funnel webs and red backs which are similar to American widows. I’ll let the goofy loving huntsmans hang out cause they’ll get rid of red backs and white tails.
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Feb 22, 2019 10:44
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Burt Sexual posted:Besides the freak out wife, how do you explain the spiders all over your walls and counters to guests at gatherings. People come into my house and socialize. You can catch and relocate as necessary, and clear out webs as appropriate and/or as they accumulate stink bugs.
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Feb 22, 2019 12:21
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Them funnel web spiders can kill you in 8 seconds just by looking at you. https://youtu.be/CGKVAblvDlY?t=34 gently caress spiders. I hate those fuckers.
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Feb 22, 2019 12:25
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Burt Sexual posted:Besides the freak out wife, how do you explain the spiders all over your walls and counters to guests at gatherings. People come into my house and socialize. Well, you may in fact be living in a cave in Spiderville, Spidervania and should consider a move, if spiders are swarming across every surface in carpet-thick mats of legs and hair. Because the only visible webs I have, while making absolutely zero effort to annihilate my arachnid friends, are the disused ones in a few high corners that get all dusty, and which I clear out because no spiders are inhabiting them anyway. The spiders themselves usually keep to their webs in the high corners as well as the dark places where there aren't constantly big, disruptive mammals getting up to things. And if the occasional spider web in a corner is the sort of thing that makes your guests imperiously demand an explanation or mock you, perhaps you need to socialize with a better kind of person.
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Feb 22, 2019 12:59
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There hasn't been a death from a funnel web spider since the antivenom was introduced.
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Feb 22, 2019 13:10
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Had a roommate in college get bit by a brown recluse while sleeping. It was a disgusting wound. So, I'll continued to kill spiders in my home.
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Feb 22, 2019 14:30
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