Spiders...

[ummmm]

Hope Ratter sees this :-)

I thought I seen a silverfish so decided to give the kitchen a deep clean and put some ant powder down.

I pulled the cooker out to clear any food debris that might be under it and found loads of, quite impressive, spider webs. They had made webs between the tiles and the levelling MDF.

What I'd like to know is would ant powder hurt the spiders? And, if there are silverfish would the spiders eat them? The spiders looked well fed!! I'm reluctant to put powder down if it will kill them.

[boxtops]

Spiders won't eat silverfish, I remember having shedloads of both in the house when I was a child. I don't know that ant powder will clear the silverfish, either!

[Prudie]

I always put antpowder down in my doorways to deter spiders ummmm as I've seen some evidence that it does kill them.

[ummmm]

Ant powder works a treat. I did a search on here and Ratter recommended it in another thread. We put it down and woke up to lots and lots and lots of dead silverfish. Didn't see one again until today, if that is what I saw.

[boxtops]

conkers are supposed to have the same effect - but I like spiders, my mother always said that you only get spiders in a happy home :-)

[ummmm]

That's a pity, Prudie, I would rather not kill them.

[Prudie]

Neither would I really but they are my one terror. I used antpowder in my conservatory when I had an invasion. Next day not only were all the ants dead but also 2 reasonably hefty house spiders were crumpled on the floor.

[ummmm]

Luckily they don't bother me. Saying that, I would want to pet one :-)

[Old_Geezer]

You don't need a Ratter, you need a Silverfisher !

[Arksided]

Poor ants save the Spiders yeah, but well armed to take out a colony ;-)

[ummmm]

I was just hoping that spiders ate silverfish, really.

[Arksided]

don't be silly, who would without any chips or ketchup.

[ummmm]

Lol....maybe if they were battered and a side of mushy peas :-)

[Arksided]

yep, now your talking, no spider on the planet wouldn't be tempted by that ;-)

[RATTER15]

Yes ant powder will certainly kill spiders, they are based on broad spectrum insecticides which will kill almost any insect.

[RATTER15]

I really dont think spiders will eat silverfish either, a very dry environment will rid the silverfish and save the spiders.

[ummmm]

They seem to only appear in the kitchen so I'm guessing its the conditions, we have underfloor heating, spilt goodies (my son is a nightmare!) but I don't think it's particularly moist.

[RATTER15]

Silverfish will generally only live in areas that are damp and moist, usually associated with bathrooms for that reason. it maybe worth investigating further.

[ummmm]

We have. We've had the dishwasher out and checked under the sink. Nothing. All I can think is it's from when we had new tiles laid and like many typical males he didn't get round to grouting them for quite a long time so moister would have lingered in the gaps after the floor had been cleaned. The tiles have been grouted now...

[FredPuli43]

And why kill silverfish? They are harmless enough though they quite like starch and never seem to be around in large numbers. They are not a sign of an unclean house. You normally see only a few. Changing the environment in which they are found should deter them.