Giant Spider Descends on Eldersburg House for Halloween

If you drive by the Waganer family home on a typical day, you'll see an attractive but rather ordinary colonial. Once October hits, it's a different story.

For the 10th straight year, the family will transform its house into an attraction by creating a giant spider web. But, knowing their audience, family members add something else--anticipation in the form of an appearance by a spectacular spider.

"We moved here in February of 1999 and my husband bought a kit for a rope spider web and some complicated balloon spider," said Tina Waganer. "The rope was totally lost at night, so the next year he noticed that the new Christmas lights were now rope lights and got the idea to use cable ties to create a spider web. Then my son came up with the idea that we put up the web around the first weekend in October so our hard work was enjoyed for longer than a day."

Then the tradition began, with the neighborhood, local newspapers and TV stations catching on and joining in on the annual tradition.

The massive web takes about three hours to put together and runs from the roof down to the front of the yard.

"We have to unwind all the strands, test them and then, up and down the ladder with cable ties to create the spider web," said Waganer. "It takes about 50 strands of rope lights."

Then comes the surprise. On Halloween day a huge spider appears in the web just in time for the kids to get off of the school bus and into their costumes to trick or treat.

The project takes about a week to construct, according to Waganer.

"I buy 800 regular latex balloons and we try to blow up 100 a day. I have this machine called Air Force 4 that allows us to blow up four balloons at a time," she said. "We twist two together and then twist them onto PVC piping. This helps keep the balloons a little more organized because there have been years that we are inundated by balloons!"

Then the next day is when the massacre begins. The Waganer boys and neighborhood friends get a chance to "kill" the spider, ending the Halloween tradition until the next year. 

"We take the spider down the next day, as the balloons start to pop in the sun and litter the neighborhood," said Waganer. "We take fondue forks outside and pop all the balloons. Sad, but true! So it's a big family project and something all of Stone Manor looks forward to year after year."

Find a time lapse video of the Waganer's web construction above and see for yourself at 5590 Compton Lane in Eldersburg.