Are Spiders Attracted to Light? (Plus Tips to Keep Them Away)

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Spiders are commonly thought of as scary and unpleasant creatures to encounter. Many people have a deep fear of spiders because of how they look.

For some, even just imagining spiders and the way that they move around is enough to give them the creeps. If you’re someone who is deathly afraid of spiders, then you might run in the other direction when you happen upon one.

There are people who feel safer from spiders when the lights are on at night. They might think that the spiders will be less likely to enter their bedrooms if they keep the lights on.

However, this isn’t necessarily the case. You might have heard from some people that spiders actually seem to like light.

There’s conflicting information about this in many ways, though. Are spiders attracted to light or not?

Read on to learn more about spiders and how they feel about light. You’ll be able to figure out whether sleeping with a night light on is a practical step to take or if it’s actually making things worse for you.

Many Spiders Are Attracted to Light

If you think that keeping the lights on in your room at night will protect you from spiders, then you’re going to be disappointed. You see, many spiders are attracted to light and will be more likely to go toward lights.

They aren’t necessarily as drawn to light as moths or mosquitoes, but they do indeed follow the light in many cases. This is often because spiders understand that insects gather near light sources and this will give them a chance to find something to eat.

The majority of spiders seem to be attracted to the light. There are even certain spiders that prefer hunting during daylight hours.

You shouldn’t turn on your lights as a way of trying to keep spiders at bay. It’s more likely that you would attract spiders to your room by keeping the light on while you sleep.

They Might Be Attracted to Really Bright Lights

It’s worth noting that spiders often seem to be attracted to really bright lights. If you have a bright lighting system, then that’s going to be more likely to attract spiders.

For instance, you might have very bright lights on your porch so that you can see at night if you have to go outside. It’ll be common to see insects and spiders gathering at that spot.

Many insects such as mosquitoes and moths will stick close to sources of bright light. Spiders will do the same and they’ll catch these insects in their webs so that they can enjoy a meal.

If you’re merely turning on dim lights in your bedroom, then it’s less likely that spiders will be attracted to the area. Night lights or dim lamps shouldn’t attract spiders, but that doesn’t mean that it’s impossible for spiders to seek out dim light.

It’s just more likely that a spider will look for bright light sources since they know that this is where the prey will be located. If you’re someone who needs to sleep with the lights on for whatever reason, then you don’t necessarily need to be concerned about spiders.

Some people sleep with the lights on because they have vision issues. Others just find the presence of dim light to be comforting.

Does the Color of the Light Make a Difference?

Another thing that people wonder about is whether or not spiders are attracted to specific colors of light. Some spiders do seem to be drawn to specific types of light, but this information varies depending on the spider species that is being discussed.

For example, wolf spiders are known to be attracted to green light and ultraviolet light. Wolf spiders are actually color blind, but they can see a light that has a green wavelength.

There are different instances of certain spiders being attracted to certain wavelengths of light. While this is interesting, it probably isn’t anything that you need to concern yourself with.

You might even notice that some nocturnal spiders will be drawn to the light that comes from computers, televisions, and smartphones. This is because the blue light of those screens has the right wavelength that those spiders will respond to.

Below, you can learn a bit more about nocturnal spiders. It’s important to know that not all spiders are attracted to standard bright lights.

There Are Nocturnal Spiders as Well

Now that you know that most spiders are attracted to light, it’s going to be important to recognize that there are nocturnal spiders. Some spiders are going to be much more active during the night.

Spiders that hunt during the night are generally not considered to be attracted to light. They simply evolved differently and they go about hunting in different ways when compared to other spiders.

There are even some nocturnal spiders who will take down their webs during the day and then build new ones at night. It’s very interesting to see the differences between spiders when you think about it.

Technically, keeping a light on might help you to avoid spiders like this. You could try to find out if there are nocturnal spiders in your area by doing a search for local spiders to see which ones you need to know about.

Just keep in mind that nocturnal spiders are generally not going to want to bother you. They’re trying to hunt and catch insects in their webs so that they can eat.

Unless you have many insects in your room, it’s not very likely that your bedroom will be super interesting to a nocturnal spider. The same goes for any other type of spider really.

Ways to Keep Spiders Away From Your Bedroom

You know a lot more about light and you understand that many spiders are attracted to light sources. If you’ve been using light as a means of protecting yourself from spiders, then you’ve been misled all this time.

That doesn’t mean that you can’t take other steps to protect yourself from spiders, though. There are actually a number of different things that you can do to keep spiders out of your room.

Read on to learn about ways to keep spiders away from your bedroom. This should help to give you the peace of mind that you need so that you can sleep better at night.

Use Peppermint Oil

One of the most practical ways to keep spiders out of your bedroom involves using peppermint oil. The strong scent of peppermint oil is going to make spiders want to stay away.

If you’re wondering why peppermint oil works so well, then you should know that it’s because peppermint oil overwhelms the senses of the spiders. Spiders will sense smells through the tiny hairs located on their legs, and the peppermint oil is strong enough to bother them.

Some people use peppermint oil as a base ingredient to make a special repellent spray. To do this, you’ll just need to fill a spray bottle with water and approximately 16 ounces of peppermint oil.

It might be good to add some dish soap to the mix to get the peppermint oil spray to stick to surfaces. Once the spray has been made, you’ll be able to use it all around your bedroom to protect yourself from spiders.

You might find it more convenient to buy an essential oil diffuser, though. You can use peppermint essential oil and have it dispersed in your room at regular intervals as a spider repellent method.

Lavender Also Works Excellently

You will also be able to use lavender to scare spiders away if you prefer that scent. Lavender is something that most people find to be very pleasant, and some people like to use lavender essential oil when they’re trying to relax.

This is going to work much the same way as the peppermint oil idea from above. You can buy lavender essential oil and then put it inside of a diffuser of some sort.

Doing this is a very easy way to protect your room from spiders. You can place these throughout your home if you want to try to keep your house spider-free.

You can also use the same repellent spray idea and use lavender oil to repel spiders that way. Get your spray bottle and fill it with water and 16 ounces of lavender essential oil.

When it comes to choosing between lavender oil and peppermint oil, it’s just going to be a matter of preference. Some people might prefer one scent or the other, but it’s up to you to decide which one you want to use.

Citrus Sprays

Citrus sprays can work really well to keep spiders out of certain spots. You could go out to a store and buy a citrus-based spray to use as a spider deterrent.

Simply walk around your room and spray the citrus spray in various spots. It should do an admirable job of keeping the spiders from entering the room.

The reason why citrus is capable of repelling spiders has to do with how spiders react to acetic acids. They hate acetic acids, and citrus contains enough acetic acid to give spiders pause.

Technically, you could even scare spiders away using lemon peels and orange peels. Buying a citrus-based spray might be more practical, though.

Try Putting Certain Houseplants in Your Room

Have you thought about using houseplants to try to repel spiders? This idea can work really well and it’s definitely worth a shot.

There are quite a few common houseplants that are going to do a good job of repelling spiders. You could try keeping peppermint plants or lavender plants in your room.

These plants repel spiders because of how they smell, and the idea isn’t any different from using lavender or peppermint essential oils. If you keep these houseplants in your room, then you’ll likely not see any spiders in your bedroom moving forward.

Other plants can do a great job as well such as basil. Just choose a houseplant that you like and then care for it to the best of your ability.

Clean Your Room Thoroughly

Cleaning your room thoroughly will help you to keep spiders from coming around. One of the biggest reasons why spiders can be seen in certain areas has to do with a lack of cleanliness.

If you don’t take the time to dust certain parts of your home, then they might be more appealing to spiders. Spiders are going to be interested in dusty areas because they attract tiny insects that they can feed on.

Also, cleaning regularly will allow you to take down any spiderwebs that happen to form. If a spider makes a web, then you should take it down right away, and you’ll always notice that a spiderweb is present if you’re cleaning the room thoroughly.

Try to be more proactive about cleaning and you’ll see far fewer spiders in your house. It might not be possible to completely avoid seeing spiders, but it’ll become an uncommon occurrence if you focus on cleaning.

Final Thoughts

Spiders are indeed attracted to light and most of them are going to be specifically attracted to bright lights. The spiders are likely just trying to go where the food is, and they understand well that insects seem to congregate near bright lights.

Some spiders might also use light as a way to help them see better. They might be drawn to artificial light since it’ll allow them to navigate easier and potentially find some food.

Keeping the lights on in your room won’t be an effective way to keep spiders out. It might wind up attracting spiders, which is the opposite of what you want to do.

Thankfully, you’ve learned about many spider repellent options that can be convenient to use. You’ll be able to use essential oils such as peppermint and lavender to repel spiders.

You could even place houseplants in your bedroom to repel spiders. Lavender, peppermint, and basil plants will work wonders in this regard.

Even just keeping your room very clean will be helpful when you’re trying to avoid spiders. Do what you can and you’ll be able to sleep at night without feeling so concerned about spiders.

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