Did my vaccum kill the spider?

October 16, 2004 8:26 PM

When you vacuum up a large spider, what are its odds of creeping back out of the vacuum bag? Does the ride through the hose kill it (she asked hopefully)?
posted by icetaco to Pets & Animals (21 answers total)

you could spray RAID or something up the hose while it's on, just to be sure. : >
posted by amberglow at 8:47 PM on October 16, 2004

It's unlikely. However, you should dispose of the vacuum cleaner bag promptly.
posted by SPrintF at 8:48 PM on October 16, 2004

*Cringes* Bah!

I vacuumed moths up with mine in Colorado, damn ass Miller Moths!

They did not come back out.

Hopefully, the dust and junk will kill it, but yeah, throw that bag out and get a new one!

*Gags*

(As a nervous joke after the moth episode, I told my husband we should vacuum up some bloken glass or marbles! *hee!*)
posted by erratic frog at 9:02 PM on October 16, 2004

I doubt it would kill a spider, maybe you could put the spider outside instead?
posted by rhyax at 9:13 PM on October 16, 2004

if the hose has those rib-ey crinkley things then that probably did it in, if it was an upright vaccuum I'd say he's still alive, but there;'s probably enough crap in there to prevent his little legs from getting him very far, if they haven't been ripped off.
posted by Space Coyote at 9:17 PM on October 16, 2004

Whenever I do this I put some spare change up the hose, in the hopes of killing the bastard. This is probably an incredibly stupid move, as it might harm the bag, but that's why they call it an irrational phobia.
posted by scarabic at 10:32 PM on October 16, 2004

I would always spray them with RAID first, and then suck them up.
posted by falconred at 11:16 PM on October 16, 2004

I'm going to have nightmares of spiders crawling out of my vacuum. This site says the dust will quickly suffocate the spider though! Gross.
posted by fionab at 11:32 PM on October 16, 2004

I have never once considered vacuuming up a spider.
posted by rhapsodie at 11:53 PM on October 16, 2004

You guys are mean. Poor spiders.
posted by Salmonberry at 1:13 AM on October 17, 2004

fionab's link is right on the money. The vacuum is a spider-killers's friend. Works like a charm. The trick is to have some crud in the bag first. To be extra sure, immediately point the nozzle into the dirtiest corner of your house. The onslaught of dust will ensure a quick death. Die spiders, die! *cackle*
posted by nakedcodemonkey at 1:19 AM on October 17, 2004

I have never once considered vacuuming up a spider.
i'm with rhapsodie. the little ones get swept onto a piece of paper and transferred out a window or doorway if i'm near one. the especially large and creepy ones (or unfortunate little ones that are found when i'm too far from a window to bother) get the bottom of a kleenex box...*splat*
no doubts about whether they survive being flattened.
posted by juv3nal at 1:40 AM on October 17, 2004

A friend of mine who used to live in Oklahoma would vacuum up tarantulas.


If a spider wants to live, stay OUT of my house!!!!!!!!!!!!
posted by konolia at 4:21 AM on October 17, 2004

Did you Vacum the spider to kill the fly?

(I don't know why you'd vacum a fly.)
posted by Mick at 6:40 AM on October 17, 2004 [1 favorite]

Did you Vacum the spider to kill the fly?

(I don't know why you'd vacum a fly.)

Well I did.
posted by lilboo at 7:51 AM on October 17, 2004

When I lived in CA and had to deal with occasional flea infestations, I'd vacuum up a couple of mothballs first before doing a general vacuuming. It seemed to work to keep the fleas from coming back out (or their eggs from hatching).
posted by TimeFactor at 8:32 AM on October 17, 2004

Whenever I do this I put some spare change up the hose, in the hopes of killing the bastard.

On the other hand, now the spider has busfare. And he's mad.

Personally, I never kill spiders because I figure they're working for me to keep the rest of the bugs at bay. If one is in an inconvenient spot, I just move him elsehwere.

I suspect a really big spider would survive the vacuum ride just fine, and one that was big enough might not even die from the dust.
posted by briank at 9:29 AM on October 17, 2004

Spiders are the one bug that I leave alone, or just put outside. Though, the ones around here are harmless.
posted by angry modem at 2:27 PM on October 17, 2004

I figure ancient spiders must have been badass mofos to give us humans an instinctual fear of them. Cavemen were afraid of what? Sabretooth tigers, ginormous bears, and gigantic spiders-from-hell, I figure.
posted by five fresh fish at 6:27 PM on October 17, 2004

i hate flies and I hate vacuuming.

spiders get the run of my gaff.
posted by Frasermoo at 8:51 AM on October 18, 2004

A friend in Hawaii had a centipede make it back out of the dustbuster - chewing through a piece of tape placed over the end with the express purpose of preventing egress! Aiieeee.

I've not seen any of the following reemerge from our vac: spider, wasp, fly, ant. Although the ants are sneaky and one might have come out when I wasn't looking.
posted by cairnish at 8:55 AM on October 18, 2004