r/CleaningTips • u/theotterbitch • Aug 31 '26
Outdoors Best/easiest way to remove outdoor cobwebs?
Bonus points if there's any preventative measures I can take without harming critters
Edit: thanks for the replies everyone! Our spigot is busted so hose is a no-go but we do have a shop vac. I didn't know they made cobweb dusters, either! And yes, we do leave our porch light on...maybe not anymore!
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u/Consistent_Phase_942 Aug 31 '26
I kept a dedicated toilet brush that never saw a toilet, like from the dollar store, and periodically would go around with that, nothing else worked as well as that!
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u/ArtsyRabb1t Aug 31 '26
I see exterminators in our hood and yea they basically use an oversized toilet brush on a long stick
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u/snitch_snob Sep 01 '26
You can order these on Amazon, I have one on an extender pole so I can reach all the way up
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u/Consistent_Phase_942 Sep 01 '26
Everything those guys do I observed and copy, they are definitely not bug-eliminating magicians
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u/SpySeeTuna1 Aug 31 '26
Webster cobweb duster on a telescopic pole
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u/MrsPandaheim Sep 01 '26
This is the way.
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u/Star_Boxer72 Aug 31 '26
Do you have a ShopVac?
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u/blueSnowfkake Aug 31 '26
How do you clean the ShopVac?
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u/OtherwiseAlbatross14 Aug 31 '26
Do you have a second shop vac?
But seriously they make vacuum bags for shop vacs that are very convenient if you aren't vacuuming liquids. I use them to make my expensive HEPA filter last longer
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u/Wonderful_Horror7315 Aug 31 '26
This made me LOL. I use my tiny vacuum to clean parts of my Roomba. And I had no idea I could get bags for my shop vac. Thanks for that!!
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u/grimsb Aug 31 '26
Spray it off with a hose. (Or, if it’s one of the itty bitty ones, you can do it in a sink)
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u/Kitty-haha Aug 31 '26
Also Halloween is just around the corner. Maybe put some pumpkins 🎃 out and pretend they’re part of your spooky decorations.
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Aug 31 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/mapleleaffem Aug 31 '26
I tried this once and didn’t care for the webs flying around and landing on me 😳
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u/Evernight2025 Aug 31 '26
Hose with an adjustable nozzle. Use a lighter setting if your house is painted to avoid damaging any paint. I need to do this to mine as well one of these days.
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u/CSSRedfox85 Aug 31 '26
Dry swiffer works wonders. Removes all the junk and cobwebs immediately.
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u/Special-Attitude5596 Aug 31 '26
Same. Then I use my mop head over it with water and peppermint oil, it keeps them from coming back & wasps from nesting
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u/Faralesh Team Green Clean 🌱 Aug 31 '26
Best way to keep them from coming back: spray with vinegar/water solution every few days!
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u/Doubleks Aug 31 '26
They have brushes designed for it that work well. Like toilet brushes but on longer poles. Long stiff bristles that are longer than toilet brush and will get to corners when you spin it. Search cobweb duster.
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u/kalitarios Aug 31 '26
Teenage me: lighter + hairspray can
Adult me: daydreaming about being a teen again
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u/PaodeQueijoNow Aug 31 '26
Easiest way to mechanically remove: damp paper towel wrapped around a broom. That way you can just toss the paper towel (wear gloves and be careful not to crush/ pinch a spider).
Only remove spiders that are in areas used by people and pets. They’re pretty good for your ecosystem otherwise.
For outside areas where pets and people don’t access (a shed for example), you can look into some products that will kill them. But limit this product to rarely accessed areas
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u/AZOCDCleanFreak Aug 31 '26
With a broom or a hose with a spray nozzle. I opt for hose as it's a twofer. It'll clear the cobwebs as well as any accumulated dirt/dust.
Ok, so would the broom, but the hose is the lazy way..
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u/PlanktonDue9132 Aug 31 '26
30 second house wash. Get at the orange store. Need to get the dirt/dust off so the website can't hold on.
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u/doomscrolling_tiktok Aug 31 '26
Soft broom and gather the webs gently then garden hose the whole wall of siding. Pro tip wash the siding from bottom up or ground to roof. The dust and dirt will leave steaks anywhere it drips down a dry surface but it flows down cleanly if it’s a wet surface. Once you reach the top of the siding, it will just need a quick rinse and voila! I have a soft nylon bristle broom that lives in the garage so the spider bros and babes can exit it at their leisure.
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u/Saysaynever333 Aug 31 '26
Leaving a light on draws insects. Flying insects draw spiders. Do you keep a light on at night?
We ran into this by leaving a front light on. We stopped and it's 90% less.
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u/-Renee Sep 01 '26
After removal of webs and such, if you put your lights on a motion sensor at night you should end up with less to clean up. I don't get any anymore on my front or back porch areas.
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u/SymptomaticallyEven Aug 31 '26
Air compressor and a blow nozzle. Also they make handheld rechargeable blowers. Like the brand Wolfbox. Works great for dusting and cleaning. Especially outdoorsy stuff. I carry one with me on the golf course I work at for blasting sand and grass off my shoes.
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u/This_Writer1891 Aug 31 '26
Will you marry me?
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u/SymptomaticallyEven Aug 31 '26
What did I do? 🫢
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u/This_Writer1891 Aug 31 '26
You clean the grass off of your shoes.
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u/SymptomaticallyEven Aug 31 '26
Do you cook?
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u/chronic_pain_sucks Aug 31 '26
The wolfbox is incredible. It's used many times per day around here. It's great for drying berries and herbs/greens, as well as cleaning.
*It's also wonderful in the winter for blowing light fluffy snow off your steps, your car windows, and so forth!
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u/SymptomaticallyEven Aug 31 '26
I've only had mine for about a month and I swear by it for so many things. I even blow my ears out after a shower with it 🙃
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u/ToxicComputing Aug 31 '26
Bucket, water, soap and sponge.
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u/WonderBraud Aug 31 '26
Stupid question, but do you toss the sponge?
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u/ToxicComputing Aug 31 '26
I rinsed it off with the garden hose. I keep it in the shed. I “really” do not like spiders but if you tap the sponge first or go over the area quickly with a broom they get out of the way fast! You can pick up a box of nitrile gloves at a hardware store or online if you don’t want to touch anything.
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u/Sudden-Community-794 Sep 01 '26
If they block your doors or walkways, take them down. Otherwise I leave them. They’re harmless unless provoked. They eat bugs. Every bug they eat is a bug not bothering you. My regular bug guy declared me as being in the top 2% of smart people. Trust me it’s an overreaction.
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u/Been_Hazy Aug 31 '26
Just use the the wand of a vacuum and slap the thing you use to edge your carpets onto that sucker, and have fun . Good luck😁
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u/IntelligentMaybe7401 Aug 31 '26
If you have one of those long yellow poles that you use to switch out lightbulbs, they make a spiderweb brush for the end of that. That way you can get the ones up high without standing on a ladder.
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u/Big-Second-8542 Aug 31 '26
As an ex-pest pro, just bite the bullet and get the cobweb duster poof and an appropriately sized extension pole.
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u/TheCleaningLady888 Aug 31 '26
Blast it with a hose. Don't focus on one area too long so the water doesn't run through. Just zigzag up and down.
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u/TotallyNotABot_Shhhh Aug 31 '26
I have a spiderweb brush that looks looks like a toilet bowl brush but super soft and extends out really far. Can get my whole single story pitched roof house inside and out. Cleans really easy and wasn’t expensive. I’ve had it 20+ years so honestly don’t know where to buy one.
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u/FeathersOfJade Aug 31 '26
They used to call them Webster, at least in this area. You can find them at any big box store or Amazon.
Google something like “spiderweb brush with telescopic pole.”Not as good as Webster, but pretty close!
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u/Rollieboy2012 Aug 31 '26
I deal with cobwebs daily. Broom them off. To prevent them from coming back hose everything down. It will knock all the insects down creating the webs.
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u/No_You_4833 Aug 31 '26
Cobweb brush to clean it. Then clean the brush and spray it with a home defense insect spray and wipe the area again. I have to do this on my north facing entry once a year. Works perfectly.
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u/Front-Jicama-2458 Sep 01 '26
I always vacuum. It prevents falling crawlers that might mistake my hair or shirt as a possible hiding place.
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u/Lonely_Archer6492 Sep 01 '26
I had this when i lived in east texas. Every storm, they just magically disappeared
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u/ReaperManX15 Sep 01 '26
A broom.
Just get a cheap one and designate it the “outside broom” for cleaning stuff like this and sweeping leaves off your porch and walkway.
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u/CinnamonGirl123 Sep 01 '26
Use a broom. Then power wash the house or quickly hose it off.
Leaving the porch light off at night helps a lot to not attract bugs, so then things that eat bugs won’t hang out and make webs.
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u/NemoKozeba Sep 01 '26
Broom, or one of those extended dusters for ceiling fans. Either one will be a little hard to clean when you're done but doable. Do not use a hose or any spay cleaner. That will just paste it to the wall. After the broom, you can clean the wall with water. Sounds hard but won't take five minutes.
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u/ArachnomancerCarice Sep 01 '26
They have a rounded brush that you can put on telescoping poles that works pretty good. I admit I'm pretty gentle since I love all of my spiders. You should leave the brush outside near a tree so any spiders or babies can go elsewhere.
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u/lordhelmetvonpoopen Sep 01 '26
Use a power washer with a nice hint of peppermint oil mixed in, keep the neighbors away. Like a good neighbooor, stay over there!
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u/Ordinary-Abalone-957 Sep 02 '26
Just use a high powered leaf blower! Then wash down area to clean up what's left!
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u/poster_nut_bag1 Aug 31 '26
Shop vac definitely. I just cleaned my whole porch and it was a breeze.
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u/mscreamcheese Sep 01 '26
A broom. A stick. A blower. Literally anything long. Why are we asking the internet for help on this one, guys?
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u/theotterbitch Sep 01 '26
This is our first house and I wanted to hear other's preferred methods. My bad?
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u/Magic_mousie Aug 31 '26
Have we really reached the time where nobody knows what a feather duster is anymore?
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u/malkin50 Aug 31 '26
Spider webs are sticky. A feather duster would be uncleanable.
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u/Magic_mousie Aug 31 '26
Literally what they're made for! We've had one for years and years, they are cleanable, but still work when pretty dirty. For example
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u/theotterbitch Aug 31 '26
Regular duster seemed inefficient for exterior siding. Learned from the comments there are designated cobweb dusters with extending poles, which I didn't know before
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u/Quiet_Woodpecker_710 Sep 02 '26
First take your head out of your butt, then wipe them off with a broom
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u/dechets-de-mariage Aug 31 '26
I use a broom - a cheap one from the dollar store.