Killing a spider is not a very difficult thing to do. A newspaper works well, so does a glass and sheet of paper if you instead decide to spare the arachnid and relocate it outside. But as one man found out this week, choosing fire to kill the critter is not advisable, especially if you value your home.

A man living in West Seattle noticed there was a spider in his laundry room and wanted to kill it. Apparently it was trying to escape into the wall, so he acted quickly by picking up a can of spray paint and a lighter. Yes ladies and gentlemen, he decided to create a makeshift flamethrower to kill a defenseless spider.

The plan completely backfired when the man sprayed the combustible can contents through the flame. The wall immediately caught fire and the flames started to spread throughout the room. In fact, he made it worse by throwing water on to the wall, which did nothing to halt its progression. The fire soon spread to the attic and quickly took hold of the house.

The Seattle Fire Department was called and they managed to put the fire out before it consumed the entire house. However, the man, who by the way rents the home, has been left with a $60,000 repair bill. As for the spider, we don’t know if its life was also taken in the fire, but I’d like to think it managed to escape outside and enjoyed the show.