Redback Spider Treatment Sydney
The redback is one of the most recognisable and most common venomous spiders around Sydney homes. It loves the dry, sheltered spots in your shed and backyard. Here is how to spot it, what to do about a bite, and how we treat for it.
Redback Identification and Habitat
The redback is one of the few spiders almost everyone can name on sight. The female is the one that matters, with a round, pea-sized black body around a centimetre across and the unmistakable red or orange stripe running down her back. Some also show a reddish hourglass mark underneath.
Males are tiny, light brown, and rarely seen or able to bite. Redbacks prefer warm, dry, sheltered spots and build a messy, tangled web with sticky lines running down to the ground. They are most active through the warmer months, which is when bites are most common around the home.
Key Features
- Round black body about the size of a pea
- Bright red or orange stripe on the back
- Sometimes a reddish hourglass shape underneath
- Messy, tangled web with sticky catch lines
- Likes dry, sheltered, undisturbed spots
Common Hiding Spots
Redbacks like the dry, quiet corners of the backyard that we only reach now and then. These are the places to be careful around.
Redback Bite First Aid
A redback bite is painful but rarely life-threatening. Treat the pain and seek medical advice.Do not apply a pressure bandage. Redback venom acts slowly, and a tight bandage only increases the pain. This is different to a funnel-web bite.
Apply an ice pack or cold compress to the bite to ease the pain, and keep the person calm and still.
Seek medical advice. Watch for spreading or severe pain, sweating or nausea, and see a doctor. Antivenom is available if needed.
Call 000 if symptoms are severe, or if the person is a young child, is elderly, or becomes unwell at any point.
This is general first aid information only and is not a substitute for professional medical training or advice. Always follow the directions of 000 and current guidance from St John Ambulance or your doctor.
Our Redback Treatment Process
Redbacks shelter in specific dry, protected spots, which makes a targeted treatment very effective.
Inspect & Locate
We check the sheds, furniture, walls and yard to find where the redbacks are sheltering.
Remove Webs
We clear the webs and egg sacs we find, which also reveals the spiders and their hiding spots.
Targeted Treatment
A residual treatment is applied to harbourage areas, cracks and the sheltered spots they favour.
Lasting Protection
The treatment keeps working for months, knocking down redbacks as they move across it.
Post-Treatment Prevention
A treatment cuts the numbers right down. These habits keep them from settling back in.
For more on the venomous spiders in our region, read our guide to dangerous Sydney spiders, or head back to our main spider control page.