# The truth about spiders



## weelee (Sep 15, 2008)

OK

Cards on the table I have read all the threads about spiders even the ones in the archive and the tales that are being posted are quite confusing.

How often do you need to have the house "bombed" and how long does it last?
is it something that can be done by yourself or get someone in to do it?

dont want to sound like a woos but the wife is concerned

thanks


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## Tiffani (Dec 4, 2007)

we've been here a year and although we've heard some tales of the spiders, we have seen very very few,and they were small. 

You'll be more annoyed by the gnats and flies, and we have a bit of a slug problem when the rain comes.


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## interplanetjanet (Jan 7, 2009)

We just stayed at my in-laws house for a few months while they were away, and since they'd had the house closed up and dark for awhile before we got there (they had bug bombed before they left), I had lots of spider confrontations in it. Once my husband picked up my son's pajamas off the floor, and a white tail fell out of them. Another time I was in the shower, and when I started drying off I found a big, black spider on my leg (must have fallen out of my towel). Yet another time a spider jumped off the ceiling, bounced off my face and landed on the floor in front of me. I also found another white tail in the corner of the living room. This was all within the last five months! But as I said above, I think the infestation was due to the house being closed up and dark for a few months before we got there.

We just moved into a new house, and we bug bombed it right away ($15 for each 3-pack at Safeway - we bought two - it takes a couple hours and then another to air the house out). I also bought some surface spray to use around the windows and doors, but I haven't done it yet. So far so good. The experience at my in-laws was a first for me, and I've spent time in Australia in the past and had no such experiences.


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## weelee (Sep 15, 2008)

Thanks for that folks we will just need to make sure that when we are out there we dont leave the house for a considerable amount of time but that will suit us, maybe that can be a start to a new career lizards r us


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## jane35 (Jan 8, 2009)

OMG... you have scarred the life out of me... the spiders are my biggest fear... not for me but my children if any thing will stop me moving over it will be the SPIDER issue...


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## scottishcelts (Aug 5, 2007)

It's not great to be honest with you, before we moved here everyone kept saying "oh you don't see the spiders blah blah blah" but i have seen a variety of them and they are freakin huge, i've seen huntsmen (not fully grown), wolf spiders and a baby tarantula. The spiders were my biggest fear about movin here as i hate them with a passion 

You have to spray/bomb the house every month here in Brissie anyway. There are guys who come around once a year if you want at a price of $100 and they do the roof and whereever else you want but you still have to do it yourself in between and they still manage to find their way in.

Be on your guard all the time and get into the habit of shaking and checking everything.


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## nzboyn (Jul 27, 2008)

What about the apartments? I'll be moving to Brisbane in March and was wondering if apartments get the occasional spiders?


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## scottishcelts (Aug 5, 2007)

From what i know, if you are in an apartment in the city, you are less likely to find anything!


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## nzboyn (Jul 27, 2008)

Thanks Scottishcelts! I would prefer to live in an apartment, although I prefer living in a house back in New Zealand. I could sleep with the windows open (in summer of course!)


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## angelface75 (Mar 25, 2010)

Hello, we are relocating to Melbourne with our 2 year old daughter in June 2010 and I have a fear of spiders and also a worry that the little one won't understand the dangers and I don't want to give her a phobia! Have heard conflicting things about whether to have the house 'bombed' regularly or not and wondered about the dangers of doing so for little tots, does the airing afterwards mean it is safe for children. Yup may seem like an obvious question but all advice welcome. 
Am slap bang in the middle of wanting to believe 'you won't see one' to thinking I'd rather prepare for the reality.
ALso are coastal areas better for less spiders in the house than more inland areas?
Tempting to go for an apartment several floors up after reading some of these messages!
Hope you can advise, thanks.


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## Beastie (Mar 16, 2010)

angelface75 said:


> Hello, we are relocating to Melbourne with our 2 year old daughter in June 2010 and I have a fear of spiders and also a worry that the little one won't understand the dangers and I don't want to give her a phobia! Have heard conflicting things about whether to have the house 'bombed' regularly or not and wondered about the dangers of doing so for little tots, does the airing afterwards mean it is safe for children. Yup may seem like an obvious question but all advice welcome.
> Am slap bang in the middle of wanting to believe 'you won't see one' to thinking I'd rather prepare for the reality.
> ALso are coastal areas better for less spiders in the house than more inland areas?
> Tempting to go for an apartment several floors up after reading some of these messages!
> Hope you can advise, thanks.


We live in the outer East near Yarra Valley winery region so it's a little inland. My husband bug bombs every summer. You can buy the stuff from major supermarkets like Coles or Woolworths/Safeway or have somebody come out and do the job for you. We close all the windows when hubby is spraying the stuff. It lasts for about 3 months.

We don't really get a lot of spiders, not because we bug bomb but our garden is quite bare (and I like it this way !) so I suppose that helps. We do get the occasional huntsman and if hubby is not home, I simply take out the Dyson and well... into the barrel it goes !

We've only had the occasional big ones where hubby takes a plastic container, catches it and releases it back into the garden. As mean as this sounds, I sometimes wish that I could flush them down the toilet instead.


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## Aussiejock (May 26, 2007)

Please don't get worked up about spiders. I haven't had my house sprayed since 1972 and have never "bombed" it. See the odd house spider inside and maybe a huntsman. In the yard/garage/shed the redbacks are more prevalent but spray them with mortein - prob gone. Spiders won't bother you if you don't bother them.
The number of spiders you see depends on where you live and whether your home is a modern one or an old weatherboard.


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## Dolly (Feb 17, 2008)

I am the WORST arachnophobe ever. I was beyond myself before we came over. I thought I'd see huntsmen in every nook and cranny, in every flower bed, in my bed, under the bed, over the bed, in the bath, behind the prints on the wall, in the curtains, in the cupboards....well I could go on but you get the gist.

To date, and we've been here 2 1/2 years we haven't had one huntsman in the house. We had a baby one on the front door (outside thankfully) of our rental. I've seen one whilst dropping my son off at a mates house - it must have been big because it was 10.30 at night so dark but I could see this huge blob over the entrance to the front door. I got to about 15 feet of it and though absolutely no flippin way, so got my husband to knock on the door. As an embarrassing aside, whilst half maniacally running back to the car in abject terror I passed another mum. I said to her if you're scared of spiders don't go any further as there's a gargantuan huntsman over the door. She replied, "nah, I'm good", knocked on the door and went in as if all was well!!! :lol: 

I've never seen a red back but my son did see one at school.

We do bomb the house every 3 or 4 months and when we've finished doing some reno work I'm getting a man in to spray the whole house (inside, outside, sheds, postbox etc). It does niff a bit and after a couple of hours you should air your house for at least half an hour but after than it's safe to go back in.

Honestly, you will be fine.

Dolly


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## angelface75 (Mar 25, 2010)

*Spider Info & thanks*



Aussiejock said:


> Please don't get worked up about spiders. I haven't had my house sprayed since 1972 and have never "bombed" it. See the odd house spider inside and maybe a huntsman. In the yard/garage/shed the redbacks are more prevalent but spray them with mortein - prob gone. Spiders won't bother you if you don't bother them.
> The number of spiders you see depends on where you live and whether your home is a modern one or an old weatherboard.


Thank you Aussiejock, really appreciate your swift response. And the advice / experience. Interesting you say about sightings depend on where you live and what house type. Can you enlarge on those two points as I have been wondering if coastal is better than inland? Also I am presuming a modern house is going to be a lot more spider safe than an old weatherboard period one - is this right?
Thanks again.


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## angelface75 (Mar 25, 2010)

Beastie said:


> We live in the outer East near Yarra Valley winery region so it's a little inland. My husband bug bombs every summer. You can buy the stuff from major supermarkets like Coles or Woolworths/Safeway or have somebody come out and do the job for you. We close all the windows when hubby is spraying the stuff. It lasts for about 3 months.
> 
> We don't really get a lot of spiders, not because we bug bomb but our garden is quite bare (and I like it this way !) so I suppose that helps. We do get the occasional huntsman and if hubby is not home, I simply take out the Dyson and well... into the barrel it goes !
> 
> We've only had the occasional big ones where hubby takes a plastic container, catches it and releases it back into the garden. As mean as this sounds, I sometimes wish that I could flush them down the toilet instead.


Hi Beastie,
Thanks so much for your swift reply. Information really useful and good to get things in perspective (not knowing what to expect). Shall certainly remember the tip with the vac although not sure I could go through with that, I'm the sort who lets bluebottles out of windows! 
Thanks again


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## angelface75 (Mar 25, 2010)

Dolly said:


> I am the WORST arachnophobe ever. I was beyond myself before we came over. I thought I'd see huntsmen in every nook and cranny, in every flower bed, in my bed, under the bed, over the bed, in the bath, behind the prints on the wall, in the curtains, in the cupboards....well I could go on but you get the gist.
> 
> To date, and we've been here 2 1/2 years we haven't had one huntsman in the house. We had a baby one on the front door (outside thankfully) of our rental. I've seen one whilst dropping my son off at a mates house - it must have been big because it was 10.30 at night so dark but I could see this huge blob over the entrance to the front door. I got to about 15 feet of it and though absolutely no flippin way, so got my husband to knock on the door. As an embarrassing aside, whilst half maniacally running back to the car in abject terror I passed another mum. I said to her if you're scared of spiders don't go any further as there's a gargantuan huntsman over the door. She replied, "nah, I'm good", knocked on the door and went in as if all was well!!! :lol:
> 
> ...


Hi Dolly,

Thank you so much for coming back to me on our eight legged friends so quickly. I was giving myself nightmares last night looking at some photos of Huntsmans online! 
Your response has done much to quel my fears especially as it sounds like you were having the same fears before you moved to Melbourne. 
I think a modern house will be what we go for and we will no doubt 'bomb' the inside, although I hate the idea of killing anything, I think my sanity will require it!

Notice you are living in Mornington, might try and pick your brains for good suburbs in a bit internet research can feel a little like a needle in a haystack. I'll start a new thread I think. 

Thanks also for your things to do on arrival list - invaluable, I printed it off last night and will guard it with my life!
All the best


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## RachaelK (Oct 14, 2008)

We live in the eastern suburbs (about a 15 minute walk from the beach inland so not far) and I've only seen one spider in the 4 months we've been here. It popped out of the recycling wheelie bin outside when I was shoving the cardboard in. It was a big ol' gray huntsman. I'm petrified of spiders but I honestly think I may have managed to scare IT more and it ran away before I could even move. Lol. I work on construction sites as well and I've only ever seen one there as well (tiny and dead before I could see what it was due to a quick moving painter's workboot) and they're open to the environment and some of the renovations are old and involve under house spaces. I think you'll be fine... You'll relax the more you're here and DON'T see them.


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## angelface75 (Mar 25, 2010)

RachaelK said:


> We live in the eastern suburbs (about a 15 minute walk from the beach inland so not far) and I've only seen one spider in the 4 months we've been here. It popped out of the recycling wheelie bin outside when I was shoving the cardboard in. It was a big ol' gray huntsman. I'm petrified of spiders but I honestly think I may have managed to scare IT more and it ran away before I could even move. Lol. I work on construction sites as well and I've only ever seen one there as well (tiny and dead before I could see what it was due to a quick moving painter's workboot) and they're open to the environment and some of the renovations are old and involve under house spaces. I think you'll be fine... You'll relax the more you're here and DON'T see them.


Hi RachaelK, 
Thank you for you message, I feel alot better for reading it along with the others. I'm sure you are right I shall get feel alot better once I am there and am racking up time without a sighting! 
on a different note you mentioned you live in the eastem suburbs, we are trying hard to find people who can comment and advise directly on which surburbs might be good ones to aim for with a young family. We have been looking at bayside surburbs a little way from the hectic cbd, like Beaumaris and Mentone and some further inland. It's important to us that amenities including toddler groups and library, shops are a short walk away, we'd like to be close to the beach but wouldn't like it if it got real busy during the holiday periods. Be really grateful if you could advise.

Thanks so much again for allowing me to breathe again about our 8 legged friends!!
All the best 
Angelface


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## Dolly (Feb 17, 2008)

angelface75 said:


> might try and pick your brains for good suburbs


Pick away :lol:

Dolly


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## All good (Feb 27, 2010)

Aussiejock said:


> Please don't get worked up about spiders. I haven't had my house sprayed since 1972 and have never "bombed" it. See the odd house spider inside and maybe a huntsman. In the yard/garage/shed the redbacks are more prevalent but spray them with mortein - prob gone. Spiders won't bother you if you don't bother them.
> The number of spiders you see depends on where you live and whether your home is a modern one or an old weatherboard.


LOL, killing redbacks is illegal here buddy, they are a protected species. Plus you shouldn't be killing spiders in the yard, that's where they are supposed to live.

To the O.P, you are more likely than not to encounter a spider while in Aus. Shake any clothing that has been outside, if you feel the need you can spray your house, but the spray will be more harmful in most cases than the spider bite.

There are definately species to watch out for, two most common would be red backs and white tails, identify them and if you are bitten, go to your local hospital.

I have been bitten twice by Huntsman (about the size of a small womans hand) and it just itched, the shock of seeing the spider did more harm than the bite. Never assume a spider is safe, you can have allergies to certain venoms.

To add some wood to the fire, here is something to get you going. 3 times in my life, I have been driving around in my car, and a Huntsman has been crawling around the windows on the inside and once right above my head, now that was scary!


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## Dolly (Feb 17, 2008)

We did have one crawl on the outside of the windscreen whilst in a multistorey car park...and of course for that split second we couldn't tell if it was inside or out......I literally froze in terror.

Dolly

PS note to self......spray car :lol: :twitch:


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## Aussiejock (May 26, 2007)

All good said:


> LOL, killing redbacks is illegal here buddy, they are a protected species. Plus you shouldn't be killing spiders in the yard, that's where they are supposed to live.
> 
> Been here too long to fall for that one! lol Don't usually kill spiders but if they decide to live in my shed, garage or under the skimmer box lid of my pool then they do so at their own risk!


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## angelface75 (Mar 25, 2010)

Dolly said:


> Pick away :lol:
> 
> Dolly


Hi Dolly, 
Thanks for your message. With reference to surburbs we hope to have been able to conduct enough research that we can get on the plane with a shortlist of 3 possible surburbs so in our first few weeks in Melbourne (we'll be in a hotel) we can hit the ground running with the real estate agents and line up some viewings.

We've seen forums on the web that seem to suggest family friendly surburbs as being along the bayside area, we have been trying to research Beaumaris, Mentone, Black Rock and Mordialloc.
We are aware the close to the beach the more expensive it is but are unsure of which suburbs on the other side of the Nepean Highway are particularly good for families? Cheltenham? Could you advise?

My husband will be commuting to office base 2/3 days per week via public transport (max journey 40 mins ideally) to Toorak. Rest of week based from home office.

I will be looking after out 2 yr old daughter full time and although I will have access to a car would prefer a location where toddler groups, library, potential friends, community and shops, park are all a short walk away. Am I expecting too much?!!

If it is useful information our budget is around $650 per week and we would like a modern 3 bedroom 2 bathroomed house with reasonable outside space, off road parking and central heating, air conditioning throughout with a good standard of kitchen. 

Aware we might be more realistic to head inland to Glen Waverley, Vermont areas to get more for our money. Are these areas good for outsiders moving in and for families? Are there better inner suburbs.
A little concern as a friend in Sydney said even those properties listed at $650 can go for more than that if they are sought after. Wondering if we need to up our budget just in case or if this is unusual. 

Realise you might not have the answers to all these questions so feel free to ignore the ones you don't know about!

Thanks again for your time and attention!

Helen


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## OzMutley (Nov 25, 2009)

Aussiejock said:


> Please don't get worked up about spiders. I haven't had my house sprayed since 1972 and have never "bombed" it. See the odd house spider inside and maybe a huntsman. In the yard/garage/shed the redbacks are more prevalent but spray them with mortein - prob gone. Spiders won't bother you if you don't bother them.
> The number of spiders you see depends on where you live and whether your home is a modern one or an old weatherboard.




Never a truer word spoken...... 
People - if you have a spider phobia,GET OVER IT.......... or go somewhere cold and wet where spiders dont like to live......

having spent 19 years in Oz, both NSW and WA, and now very reluctantly back in the UK, i can realy understand the Aussies classification of whinging poms......


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## Dolly (Feb 17, 2008)

Hi there,

Well Bayside is lovely, though as you said can be a bit on the expensive side the closer you get to the CBD.

When you've found an area to live, check out the council's website, there's usually lots of info on there re childcare etc.

Here's the link for Bayside council. Bayside City Council - Services You can get a New Resident's pack which can be picked up from their offices in Sandringham (pronounced here as sand-ring-ham) :lol:

Alas, there is no such thing here as double glazing or central heating. No houses that I've seen has either. There are a few companies that do it but not many, and it's expensive as it's a really new concept here so not a lot of people have it. You'll just have to do with a good fire/koonara and woolley jumpers!!! Or your place may have ducted heating, which would be fab.

For rent rate ideas look at realestate.com.au (but I'm sure you have already) to get an indicator on prices.

Driving from say Mentone to Toorak is about 35 minutes (but you'll have to take into account the journey will probably be done during rush hour so add a bit more onto that).

Any other questions etc just ask away, more than happy to help.

Dolly


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## PDXnative (Aug 5, 2008)

Yikes!! I hate spiders. I guess when we go to Oz we will live in an apartment in the City.


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## Dolly (Feb 17, 2008)

OzMutley said:


> if you have a spider phobia,GET OVER IT


That's a bit harsh isn't it. 

You don't just 'get over' phobias......and that is very naive (and ill-informed) of you to say that.

If you're back in the UK then you must be surrounded by 'whinging poms'. Good luck with that.

Dolly


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## april (Jul 22, 2007)

What is so scarey about spiders that it would stop someone from immigrating here??

* They aren't in the top ten list of killers for Australian people; just your normal car accidents, cancer and heart attacks. 

* Spiders don't come racing out in the night scurrying towards you like cockroaches do. 

* They don't go buzzing around your face looking for a juicy piece of skin to bite like mosquitoes do.

* They don't swarm over you and your food and then go tell all their buddies about it like ants do.

Yeah sure they can kill you but so can cars. And we've got heaps of those here too.


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## april (Jul 22, 2007)

PDXnative said:


> Yikes!! I hate spiders. I guess when we go to Oz we will live in an apartment in the City.


They still exist in apartments in the city too. They help keep the cockroach population down. 

When you wake up in the middle of the night and see a cockroach crawling over your kitchen bench you will be so thankful to that shy huntsman spider up in the corner waiting to pounce on it.


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## hillrob (Jun 12, 2009)

*Bloody Spiders!!!*



scottishcelts said:


> It's not great to be honest with you, before we moved here everyone kept saying "oh you don't see the spiders blah blah blah" but i have seen a variety of them and they are freakin huge, i've seen huntsmen (not fully grown), wolf spiders and a baby tarantula. The spiders were my biggest fear about movin here as i hate them with a passion
> 
> You have to spray/bomb the house every month here in Brissie anyway. There are guys who come around once a year if you want at a price of $100 and they do the roof and whereever else you want but you still have to do it yourself in between and they still manage to find their way in.
> 
> Be on your guard all the time and get into the habit of shaking and checking everything.


Hi There,

I know this is old news from back in January, but when I stumbled on it, all my anxiety's came flooding back. I was bought up from a small baby in Oz, came back at 15. Now I am planning ot go back to Brisbane. When I was a child I was bitten by a couple of spiders, one poisonous, I still have the scar. This caused a MAJOR phobia and in the UK I am terrified of them (and I mean terrified).
I COULD NOT let a phobia ruin my future, but I went out to Oz last year with BBC 'wanted down under'; I had treatment before I went for the phobia, and the BBC took me to toronga park zoo sydney to spend time with a specialist.

Well no spiders seen in Sydney (apart from at the zoo), but when we went to Brisbane (we did stupidly stay in the heart of the rain forest), I swear I thought I would die!!! I wanted to leave Australia, but fought it. We saw hunstman every day as big as my husbands hands (thats big), they were in towels, cupboards everywhere. They made me sick to the pit of my stomach, my husband thought he was going to have to call an ambulance at one point. Out on some bush land we saw loads of red backs, how can paradise be so tainted???

Anyway I am going back, I will try different treatment, I will NOT live in the rain forest, and I wish I could live in an apartment but my hubby wont have it!! Whatever the cost for bombing I will be paying!!!

Steph


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## april (Jul 22, 2007)

Dolly said:


> That's a bit harsh isn't it.
> 
> You don't just 'get over' phobias......and that is very naive (and ill-informed) of you to say that.
> 
> ...


True if it were genuine phobia, but I reckon the majority of people claiming to have a phobia about spiders don't actually have one. It's just their "thing".


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## OzMutley (Nov 25, 2009)

Dolly said:


> That's a bit harsh isn't it.
> 
> You don't just 'get over' phobias......and that is very naive (and ill-informed) of you to say that.
> 
> ...


sorry - wasnt meant to be harsh ..... just trying to get the point over that we would be a lot worse off if it wasnt for spiders and the like in the world.

as for being naive and ill iformed, my mother suffers from agorophobia and has done for most of her life, but since my father died, she has "got over it" through shear will power to the extent that she can drive herself around and go shopping by herself without going into a big flap..... anything is possible given the right incentives and i would see living in australia a very big incentive...............


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## cbsquirrel (Apr 3, 2010)

Well, I have to admit as a self-described "whinging pom" I find the spider stories a bit scary! I saw one poster from Sydney -- anyone else have any experiences living in Sydney?

One thing I've really loved about living in Alaska for 10 years is the lack of large spiders!  But perhaps I should learn to overcome my phobia.


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## april (Jul 22, 2007)

cbsquirrel said:


> Well, I have to admit as a self-described "whinging pom" I find the spider stories a bit scary! I saw one poster from Sydney -- anyone else have any experiences living in Sydney?
> 
> One thing I've really loved about living in Alaska for 10 years is the lack of large spiders!  But perhaps I should learn to overcome my phobia.


Yeah I am in Sydney and yeah there are spiders here too. I don't care about them at all. I just hope the cane toads don't make it down this far south. <shudder>


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## cbsquirrel (Apr 3, 2010)

Thanks April. I take it you don't "bomb" your house, then? Do your friends or colleagues?

I think I could handle the toads, even if they are poisonous. But for your sake, I hope they don't make it to Sydney.


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## april (Jul 22, 2007)

cbsquirrel said:


> Thanks April. I take it you don't "bomb" your house, then? Do your friends or colleagues?
> 
> I think I could handle the toads, even if they are poisonous. But for your sake, I hope they don't make it to Sydney.


Nah, I have never used a bomb. I have taken a couple of huntsman spiders outside though when I had to. Usually spiders congregate under the eaves, so most people just spray and hose down that area every now and then.

You really don't need to worry. Majority of spiders stay out of human reach and you would have to go out of your way to have a close encounter. It can happen, but it isn't a regular event. You may read about stories of people having spiders crawling on them but most likely that is a once-in-a-lifetime event for them. 

Though I do offer one tip, and that is to not leave your shoes outside. Don't give spiders another thought.


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## cbsquirrel (Apr 3, 2010)

Thanks, April! That made me feel a lot better.


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## april (Jul 22, 2007)

cbsquirrel said:


> Thanks, April! That made me feel a lot better.


No worries.


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