Are spider webs harmful to a house?

Linnea
by Linnea
Last year a big (harmless) spider built a gorgeous spiderweb in a corner behind my house. No one but me will ever see it. Is it harmful to the house? Should I tear it down if the spider or another one tries to rebuild it this year?

  10 answers
  • Nancy Turner Nancy Turner on Jan 24, 2018

    Spider webs don't hurt anything, enjoy it until nature destroys it. Just make sure that the spider is a friendly one. When we lived in Florida, I found a gorgeous spider web on a bush, I wanted to leave it alone until a neighbor told us it was a banana spider and very deadly. It was killed very quickly and so were any others that we found. I don't think that the web itself will harm anything. Some spiders can really make beautiful webs!

  • While I think it is kinda cool and wouldn't bother me in the least, I would leave it - part of mother nature. That is my vote.


    Now in the house is another story, and in some cultures, considered bad luck.


    I am not aware of any reason why one spiderweb should be bad, they perform a service by capturing bad bugs.


    Curious to see what others think and have the say about this subject.

  • Chris Dinkins Chris Dinkins on Jan 24, 2018

    I would take it down so my home doesn't look friendly to others.

  • 27524803 27524803 on Jan 24, 2018

    If you enjoy looking at the spider (some are really gorgeous) and his web....and if he or she is not poisonous... as long as it stay outside... leave it..... it will not harm the house itself as the attachment points are fragile and there is really minimal contact.

  • Skshort Skshort on Jan 24, 2018

    IMHO, the spider web can't hurt anything. If I were there, I'd collect it to stop bleeding. Used that on my mom many times. I know, there are those who would shudder at the thought. Nature will take care of it.

  • Bijous Bijous on Jan 24, 2018

    Photograph it: in the early morning when the sun first hits it and turns it different colors; in the rain when the drops cling; in the wind as it sways but will not break, and in the moonlight when the light shimmers off the silk.

    • Linnea Linnea on Jan 25, 2018

      That is an excellent idea. Most folks seem to think it is ok to leave it, which is what I wanted to do. So, I hope to enjoy another one this year.

  • Vicki Vicki on Jan 24, 2018

    No it is not. I am a home inspector. Spiders are very beneficial at taking care of insects, ants, beetles or any other crawling things that might try and go into your cracks, gaps or holes that should be caulk anyway. I never kill them even in the house. I vote to leave alone.

  • Sharon Sharon on Jan 25, 2018

    One mama spider can lay upto 1000 eggs at a time.......ekkkk not my cup of tea to have an infested house.

  • Deb Deb on Jan 25, 2018

    For 25 years I have had huge spider webs woven around my deck lights which are about 9 feet up. I love to watch the spider make and repair them. Also at night, I turn on the lights which attract various bugs. I find it fascinating to watch the spider catch the bugs and spin silk around them. Survival of the fittest. I also leave the webs in the corners of interior rooms to catch bugs that make their way into the house.

  • Mogie Mogie on Jan 25, 2018

    We remove spider webs either with a broom or pressure washer. Sooner or later they always seem to make their way inside. I hate spiders.