Homeowners have been urged to spray peppermint oil on their curtains to avoid an unwelcome visitor this autumn. You’ll likely have spotted a few spiders around the house this month as males go searching for females during mating season.
However, if you have a phobia, there are a few natural hacks that can help prevent spider invasions, without using any nasty chemicals. Plus, if you don’t want your house to smell like toothpaste, you could also try lavender oil, which is also effective at putting off the creepy crawlies.
Daniel Steward, Managing Director at Shield Pest Control, said peppermint overwhelms spiders’ delicate sensory receptors, which repels them because they find it harder to navigate.
Lavender also disrupts spiders’ ability to track scent trails, which they use for navigation and communication. This makes it harder for spiders to find safe nesting locations, discouraging them from staying in the area, reports Ideal Home.
So Jess Steele, heating technology expert at designer radiator specialists BestHeating, came up with a clever solution – to spray a fragrant solution on the curtains and protect common entry points.
Jess recommended combining peppermint oil with water to make a spray before spritzing it onto the inside of curtains, reports the Lancashire Telegraph.
You could also spray it around windowsills, door frames, or the corners of carpets, which are common places where spiders hide or enter the home.
Another trick is to soak cotton balls in the solution and strategically place them in areas where the spiders commonly appear.
Snug Scent recommends mixing both scents. To make the solution, add 15 drops of peppermint oil and 10 drops of lavender oil to one cup of water.
There are more than 50 to 670 species of spider in the UK. While most are harmless to humans, a few species can bite, though these bites are generally not serious.