Sure, spiders might be natural, and they don’t mean us any harm – but not everyone wants them hanging around where we live! And not everyone wants to use possibly harmful chemicals to get rid of spiders. So how do we get rid of spiders naturally? With Diatomaceous earth!
Diatomaceous earth is a relatively safe and natural way to kill spiders. So put away those other pesticides, and learn how this cheap product can rid your home of those unwanted critters.
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How Diatomaceous Earth Works on Spiders
Diatomaceous earth is a fine powder like substance that is made up of the fossilized remains of tiny sea creatures (called diatoms). These sea creatures’ skeletons are made up of silica and collect at the bottom of rivers, lakes and oceans.
These areas are now mined by humans to extract the silica, and this is then used to make diatomaceous earth.
For the purpose of this article, we will focus on spiders, but diatomaceous earth actually kills all types of insects.
According to the national pesticide information center, it works by getting stuck on the spider’s exoskeleton, which it then damages and absorbs the oils and fats causing it to dry out, ultimately killing the spider.
Top Quality DE
Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth
How To Use It
Applying diatomaceous earth for spiders is quite simple. It’s just a matter of applying an even coating wherever spiders may lurk or travel. It should be noted that the area where you are using Diatomaceous earth should be as dry as possible.
Now obviously this is not possible on vertical surfaces, but you can use it everywhere else.
We recommend using a dust spreader to apply it, but you can also spread it evenly by hand in the following types of areas:
- Along edges of walls or stairs
- Garden beds or pot plants
- Around the outside of the building
The diatomaceous earth will work for as long as it remains in place, so if you have an ongoing spider problem then you will want to re-apply regularly.
We have an in-depth guide here: How to Apply Diatomaceous Earth.
Safety Precautions
While diatomaceous earth is not poisonous, it can cause irritation to humans so it is important to take certain precautions when using it.
- Wear gloves – people with sensitive skin may experience some irritation and dryness when handling diatomaceous earth
- Wear a breathing mask – if inhaled, diatomaceous earth can irritate the nasal passages and may cause shortness of breath and/or coughing
- Use food grade diatomaceous earth – using a food grade product means that it has been purified and is considered safe to be used around food preparation areas
Top Quality DE
Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth
- A natural product composed of ground Diatomaceous Earth (fresh water type) Amorphous Silica – food grade
- Produced in the USA
- A natural, organic insect killer, DE kills by physical action and not chemical
- Use on animals, plants, stored grain & around the house to control household & plant pests
Want to learn more? See our guide on natural ways to control pests
Other Ways To Get Rid Of Spiders
If using DE isn’t your ideal way to get rid of spiders, then check out our guide on how to get rid of spiders and keep them away.
Related Article: How to get rid of spiders in the basement.
We get creepy black spiders every year in October and they love to hide in our doorways then they run in when the door is opened! What a pain! I hate when my hubby uses pesticides so I checked out [googled ] DE and spiders. I appreciate this article. I have a huge bag of DE I used to ingest but it feeds fungal/Candida, in my opinion, so the spiders are my next use.
Will Diatomaceous Earth stick to spider webs ?
Been using diatomaceous earth for 20 yrs to get rid of spiders and ants, and it’s worked brilliantly! Wiped out an ant infestation that three visits by the Orkin guy couldn’t. Great stuff!
Does it literally kill them as soon as it touches them or can they still crawl further than the DE and eventually die?
No, it is not an instant kill. It can take hours or even days depending on the type of insect and how much they were exposed to.
Every article I have found has pictures of beautiful white diatomaceous earth. My diatomaceous eath is red lake and kind of makes surfaces look dirty. The only white diatomaceous earth I’ve found was not food grade.
Is one better than the other?
The DE you are getting is probably Red Lake Diatomaceous Earth. It has the reddish color because it also contains a clay that occurs in this type of DE deposits. If you really don;t want the red color, you will need to find a brand that does not use red lake DE.
I believe you are confused on the difference between a horizontal surface and a vertical surface. However, this was a great write-up.
Thanks Matt! That one slipped through the editing process. Fixed now.