{"id":19878,"date":"2023-06-01T00:45:45","date_gmt":"2023-06-01T04:45:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.fromhousetohome.com\/?p=19878"},"modified":"2024-12-03T20:51:38","modified_gmt":"2024-12-04T01:51:38","slug":"keep-spiders-out","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fromhousetohome.com\/garden\/keep-spiders-out\/","title":{"rendered":"The Best Natural Way To Keep Spiders Out Of Patio Storage Boxes"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

If you are looking for an easy way to keep spiders out of storage boxes without using pesticides or other harmful chemicals, try this inexpensive, natural solution.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

I have a lot of outdoor seating areas, which means a lot of outdoor furniture with outdoor cushions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And those cushions need to be stored somewhere when they are not out on the furniture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I keep a lot of them in outdoor patio storage boxes. Which isn’t necessarily a bad thing.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Storage<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

You can get them in all kinds of shapes and sizes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And since they are located close to the furniture, the boxes are convenient for taking the cushions out and putting them away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Problem With Outdoor Storage Boxes<\/h2>\n\n\n
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\"Tree<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

The problem is that those storage boxes are outdoors and they aren’t really critter proof.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So I am always finding unwanted surprises (like spiders) in them.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Snake<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Besides the spiders, there are often other critters, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Occasionally, I have seen a snakeskin. (That really freaks me out! I don’t want to find out the hard way that the snake is still in there hiding among the cushions.)<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Outdoor<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

And sometimes the cushions have holes chewed in them by mice.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Mud<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Or mud wasps have built nests on them, which leaves a stain even after you knock the nest off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All of that means I end up having to wash the cushions almost every time I take them out of the box. Which is definitely more work than I want to do!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How To Keep Spiders Out Of Your Boxes<\/h2>\n\n\n
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\"Storage<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Last fall when I put the cushions away for the winter, I decided to find something that would prevent the spiders (and other critters) from getting into the boxes with my cushions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I like to keep my garden organic so I didn’t want to use pesticides or chemicals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And I wasn’t sure there was a solution that would actually work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But when I took the cushions out of storage (after being in there all winter), I can say with confidence that it did!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So what’s the secret you ask?<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"\"\/<\/a>
Natural flea and tick spray with peppermint oil*<\/a>!<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

I had originally bought it for my pets, but after reading that peppermint oil is supposed to deter spiders, I thought I would give it a try in my storage boxes, too.  And it worked!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Note: You can probably make a DIY version of this yourself by mixing peppermint oil<\/a>* with some water, but I haven’t tried it so I can’t personally vouch for it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How To Apply It<\/h2>\n\n\n
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\"Storage<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Spray the peppermint oil solution around the inside of the box, paying extra attention to the areas where the critters can get in. I didn’t attempt to coat everything since that would take a lot of spraying!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you have any big gaps, soak some cotton balls in the spray solution and stick them in the holes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I also sprayed the cushions lightly before putting them in the box. If you’re worried about marking the fabric, you might want to test a small patch before doing the whole cushion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then just pop them in the box and close the lid. And you’re done!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Optional Extra Protection<\/h2>\n\n\n
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\"Cushions<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

If you want some extra protection, try putting the cushions in a storage bag<\/a>*.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Cushion<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

I did this for some of my cushions and it does keep the dust off and make it easier to move the cushions around.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The cushion storage bags are available in different sizes so you can get one that matches the size of your cushions.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Cushion<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Then place the whole bag inside the box that has been sprayed with the peppermint oil solution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, I’m not sure that the bags were really necessary for spider control.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

None of the cushions or boxes (whether they were in bags or not) showed any evidence of critter activity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The End Result<\/h2>\n\n\n
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\"Cushions<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

This is the picture of the cushions when I put them away in the fall.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Cushions<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

And this is the picture just before I took them in the spring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After 6 months being left completely alone, they look exactly the same.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

No cobwebs, snake skins, mouse holes, or any other kind of critters to be seen!<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Outdoor<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

The cushions didn’t need to be washed before I put them out on the furniture. As you can see, the same can’t be said for the chairs \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My fear of unpacking cushions has been exterminated…bad pun intended \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And the best part is that this solution does not use harsh chemicals or pesticides that are bad for your pets, kids or the environment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After having such good luck with it in storage boxes, I tried spraying it around the entrance and edges of the shed. It worked just as well there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Have comments or questions on the best natural way to keep spiders out of patio storage boxes? Tell us in the section below.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Pin It So You Don't Forget It!<\/h4><\/wg-pin-it><\/p>\n\n\n
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\"Best<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If you are looking for an easy way to keep spiders out of storage boxes without using pesticides or other harmful chemicals, try this inexpensive, natural solution. I have a lot of outdoor seating areas, which means a lot of outdoor furniture with outdoor cushions. And those cushions need to be stored somewhere when they…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":43463,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"wprm-recipe-roundup-name":"","wprm-recipe-roundup-description":"","_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_kadence_starter_templates_imported_post":false,"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5218,46,34],"tags":[5145,4768,805],"class_list":["post-19878","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-outdoor-problems-solutions","category-decks-patios-outdoor-living","category-gardening-tips","tag-affiliate","tag-garden-pests","tag-patios-and-decks"],"acf":[],"taxonomy_info":{"category":[{"value":5218,"label":"Outdoor Problems & Solutions"},{"value":46,"label":"Decks, Patios & Outdoor Living"},{"value":34,"label":"Gardening Tips"}],"post_tag":[{"value":5145,"label":"affiliate"},{"value":4768,"label":"garden pests"},{"value":805,"label":"patios and decks"}]},"featured_image_src_large":["https:\/\/www.fromhousetohome.com\/garden\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2023\/06\/keep-critters-out-of-boxes-6-720x720.jpg",720,720,true],"author_info":{"display_name":"Wanda Simone","author_link":"https:\/\/www.fromhousetohome.com\/about-us\/"},"comment_info":11,"category_info":[{"term_id":5218,"name":"Outdoor Problems & Solutions","slug":"outdoor-problems-solutions","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":5223,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":42,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":5218,"category_count":42,"category_description":"","cat_name":"Outdoor Problems & Solutions","category_nicename":"outdoor-problems-solutions","category_parent":0},{"term_id":46,"name":"Decks, Patios & Outdoor Living","slug":"decks-patios-outdoor-living","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":46,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":24,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":46,"category_count":24,"category_description":"","cat_name":"Decks, Patios & Outdoor Living","category_nicename":"decks-patios-outdoor-living","category_parent":0},{"term_id":34,"name":"Gardening Tips","slug":"gardening-tips","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":34,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":36,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":34,"category_count":36,"category_description":"","cat_name":"Gardening Tips","category_nicename":"gardening-tips","category_parent":0}],"tag_info":[{"term_id":5145,"name":"affiliate","slug":"affiliate","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":5150,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":153,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":4768,"name":"garden pests","slug":"garden-pests","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":4773,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":3,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":805,"name":"patios and decks","slug":"patios-and-decks","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":810,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":4,"filter":"raw"}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fromhousetohome.com\/garden\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19878","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fromhousetohome.com\/garden\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fromhousetohome.com\/garden\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fromhousetohome.com\/garden\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fromhousetohome.com\/garden\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19878"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.fromhousetohome.com\/garden\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19878\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":49748,"href":"https:\/\/www.fromhousetohome.com\/garden\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19878\/revisions\/49748"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fromhousetohome.com\/garden\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/43463"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fromhousetohome.com\/garden\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19878"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fromhousetohome.com\/garden\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19878"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fromhousetohome.com\/garden\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19878"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}