Regardless, I have sprayed against the foundation but the spiders seem to return. I don't really mind them being outside as much but I definately don't want them in my house or even in my crawlspace (Which I know is next to impossible). I have been thinking about contacting a company to come in and put in thicker vapor barrier and even install a sump pump and/or some kind of dehumidifer for that area but I don't have the cash flow to warrant it. My big concern is one of these spiders gets into the house and bites my 1 year old son. I have searched far and wide for solutions online but all I see are to get the traps(Which don't really prevent infestation) or use dust(Again, not a prevention). I think the best solution is to mitigate moisture. In the summer I plan on doing some foundation work like ensuring proper grading and doing some landscaping work. I don't have debris near the foundation, just dirt. Other than that I am not sure what else could be employed as the crawlspace has to be vented, I live in the PAC NW.

I have also heard mothballs are a good measure but I don't want the smell of mothballs creeping up into my house from the crawlspace. Help!

I'm from the PNW, and lived in two houses with spiders very similar.....I wonder....

Barbara

The Hobo Spider is everywhere in the Pac NW, in fact I'm willing to bet you will find more of these spiders per SQ Yard than you would a brown recluse.

It's strange because I grew up in the Southeast and I did see my fair share of Black Widow spiders when turning over a rock or moving things in the garage but I had only encountered a brown recluse once..once in my 21 years there. Now that I have moved here I had hoped to escape the bugs and spiders but apparently the Northwest has these critters all over and they are just as bad if not more of a problem than the brown recluse.

I have seen these spiders under buckets outside, inside outdoor furniture covers, on the back porch(When the lights are off, shine a flash light on them will scare them away) and in webs at corners or cracks/holes in the foundation. I have even seen them in woodpiles when I went to Friday Harbor, WA. They're everywhere. Regardless, I haven't been bitten (That I know of), and will definately avoid them. I will say that it may actually be good that I have a crawlspace because if I didn't I am sure they would be in my house, either my garage(if I had one) or the basement. At least in a crawlspace I don't have the opportunity to deal with them in my living space.