Vacuuming a spider intentionally or unintentionally is never a good idea…
Autumn is here, and with it comes the return of our eight-legged friends to our homes. Yes, you may have started to find spiders in your home. These little creatures love to find shelter in every corner of the house, especially as soon as the temperatures drop. If you are one of the 40% of French people who panic at the sight of a spider, according to Christine Rollard, teacher researcher at the National Museum of Natural History in Paris and specialist in spiders, interviewed by Psychologies magazine, you may have over the years opted for a radical method: the vacuum cleaner!
However, this is a mistake and it is high time to put an end to this belief. Put away your pseudo-spider weapon of mass destruction today! Although this method seems practical and quick, it is far from being 100% effective. Too often, the little (or big) creature will manage to emerge more or less quickly from your vacuum cleaner. Some spiders will die from asphyxiation from the dust and the power of the vacuum, but this is not the case for all. However, your device can be transformed into a very welcoming home for this little creature.
In the vacuum cleaner bag or in the tank, the spider will be able to delight in your food remains, even the tiniest crumbs. The surprise guest will then easily be able to survive and reappear a few hours, or even a few days later, by following the light at the end of the nozzle of your vacuum cleaner.
Do you clean your vacuum cleaner after each use? Even deprived of its loot, the spider will not be caught off guard. You should know that a healthy spider can survive a very long time, up to 200 days, without eating because it manages to live on its reserves. This is what Swedish arachnologist Kajsa Mellbrand explains in the magazine Illustrerad Vetenskap. As you can see, sucking up spiders to trap them in your vacuum cleaner will have no effect other than putting them into survival mode.
So how can you get rid of them effectively this fall? There is no miracle solution unfortunately. It is not recommended to kill them because they are useful to our ecosystem. In our interior, they will even rid us of certain pests such as mosquitoes, flies or midges. Here is a simple, ecosystem-friendly and effective method:
