We have been having problems with slugs coming in the house. These things are HUGE! They look like fat baby snakes at least 4" long!! They are climbing the walls and curtains! We are trying to sell the house and this looks terrible seeing all this slime everywhere. I read the post about using beer around plants, would this also work if I put beer under the porch to keep them from coming in the house? I have no clue how they are getting in, but they're getting in and I can't stand it!
If anyone has any other ideas, please let me know!
Thanks,
Rhonda

Sorry to hear about your predicament, I suggest putting a ring of salt around your house.

:loopy:

We used to have this problem at the terraced house we used to live in. They get through the airbricks on the outside of the house - don't block these up though as it could cause damage to your house if you did - they are there to allow the air through to the foundations or something like that. We never really found a solution to it - I suppose you could try putting some meshing over the bricks.

Originally posted by mikey
Sorry to hear about your predicament, I suggest putting a ring of salt around your house.

:loopy:


yeah salt should do the trick no problem, don't use beer.

I don't care how big the slugs are thats just a waste of beer dammit!

Originally posted by ianmitchell
yeah salt should do the trick no problem, don't use beer.

I don't care how big the slugs are thats just a waste of beer dammit!


Well the only problem that I have with using salt, is that I have no way of getting under the porches. The front porch is an enclosed porch with carpet and the underneath is all closed off. The back porch is not closed in, but the underneath is closed off as well. Or do you think it would work if I poured the salt around the outside edge of the botton of the porch on the ground? And how often would I have to do this? These two porches seem to be their meeting place and they always get in the kitchen (where the back porch is) and in the livingroom. (where the front porch is) Since we have our house up for sale I have to be careful what I put out to get rid of them.
Oh, and I'll TRY to refrain from using the beer! :wink:

Try using a red and blue striped tie. Honest, it works! I've got one hanging in my wardrobe and I've never found a slug in there, ever.

Hope this helps.

Now, who needs advice on keeping Bengal tigers out of their underwear drawer?

;)

Originally posted by markham
Try using a red and blue striped tie. Honest, it works! I've got one hanging in my wardrobe and I've never found a slug in there, ever.

Hope this helps.

Now, who needs advice on keeping Bengal tigers out of their underwear drawer?

;)

:lol: Now you're sounding like my brother! :lol:

A very wise man your brother, I feel.

Originally posted by hormonequeen
Or do you think it would work if I poured the salt around the outside edge of the botton of the porch on the ground? And how often would I have to do this?
Oh, and I'll TRY to refrain from using the beer! :wink:

Yeah try putting the salt on the outside edge of the bottom of the porch on the ground. Keep doing this until the slugs go!

Good, thanks for not using beer ;)- if you already have some beer stocked up for killing slugs then send it over to me- I'm sure I'll find a safe place for it.

Originally posted by ianmitchell
Yeah try putting the salt on the outside edge of the bottom of the porch on the ground. Keep doing this until the slugs go!

Good, thanks for not using beer ;)- if you already have some beer stocked up for killing slugs then send it over to me- I'm sure I'll find a safe place for it.

OH GROSS!!!!! I was walking into my kitchen lastnight and the lights were out and I stepped on the slimmy thing!! YUCK!! He quickly got flushed! Maybe he was the only one invading my privacy. I sure hope so. I am going to have to take my curtains down in my living room and wash them now, they have slime all over them! This is totally disgusting. :gag:

I cannot get over how much you *sound* like my brother! I was just talking to him on the phone lastnight and he was cracking me up. He's such a jokster like you! And he would be the one to say that about the beer too. I don't drink, so they ain't none in this house for ya, sorry! :D

Alright, now you guys are getting me confused!! There's 2 of ya on here that sounds like my brother now!! :lol:

Forget the airbricks and all that, if slugs are getting in your house, they must have found a hole somewhere.

We had this problem years ago. Eventually, I traced the trails back to a tiny crack in the corner of the skirting board.

Being a dab hand at DIY, I plugged it up with Blue-Tac and I've never had any problems since.

So locate their entance point and seal it.

Fantastic advice, and I don't expect any money for it.

Good luck.

Originally posted by Sam Miguel
Forget the airbricks and all that, if slugs are getting in your house, they must have found a hole somewhere.

We had this problem years ago. Eventually, I traced the trails back to a tiny crack in the corner of the skirting board.

Being a dab hand at DIY, I plugged it up with Blue-Tac and I've never had any problems since.

So locate their entance point and seal it.

Fantastic advice, and I don't expect any money for it.

Good luck.

Awwwwww thanks for not charging me. I think I know where they are coming in at. I traced their trail to the front door and noticed there is a gap between the threshold and the livingroom floor. Soooooooo with that being said, what in the heck do I use to plug that up. It's the whole length of the threshold. It is about half an inch on one end and then narrows down to about a quarter of an inch on the other end. This is an old house, almost 70 years old.
I would have my husband do this, but he is in Indiana waiting on me to move up there too. Long story, you don't want to know all the details! :lol: So now I am having to be the handyman/woman around here and don't have a clue what I'm doing.

Thanks everyone for all your help and ideas!

For now you could put a trail of salt down. It won't stop them coming in but will put a stop to them climbing your curtains etc.

Or for added spice, try a trail of salt and vinegar, with a side portion of fries. Too late, McDonalds already thought of that one!

ROFLMBO You guys are cracking me up!
Thanks for all the laughs, AND of course all of the wonderful *advice.* Now it's time to go back and clean up the rest of the slug slime. I just moved a desk away from the wall to clean and found their meeting place under the desk! GROSS! Slime city!

We have the same problem...slugs in the house - worse, in the kitchen eeewwww.
They are also coming through our door.
Apparently copper is extrememly repellent to slugs, and you can get sticky-backed copper strips from craft stores and garden centres. Try sticking a strip all around your door sills and any other entry point. It works on plant pots. I'm going to give it a try this weekend.

Good luck.

Cosy

I've just typed "slugs in the house" into Google, and this happened to be the third link that came up, which is convenient for me and it might get me posting on this site again...


Yup, we've got this problem too. We've just moved into our new rented accommodation in the Crookes district (yes, we're students) and they're all over the place. On the dining room and lounge floor, and on the stairs. The floor and rugs are filthy with slime trails.

We're not certain where they come from, there's a trapdoor to the cellar in a corner of the dining room which we think they originate but we can't be certain.

One method I remember my parents using back home in the garden was to place grapefruit halves in strategic positions. Orange halves (or any other citrus) would also do I guess, but we don't have any to hand at the moment.

If we were to lay down solids (we'll try salt) or liquids (we'll try beer as well) how is it best to position them?


Oh, and did the copper trick work?

Queenie, We had the same problemwith a mouse in our last house. Just couldn't find where it was hiding. I tried the mousetrap but it didn't work - the cheese would be gone and the trap closed!!
Anyway, I had this great idea! I set the trap up one night but removed the cheese and placed a blade there . . . . That night it worked! the mouse had come along and sawn it's head off nodding side to side wondering where the cheese was!

We got some frogs!

Have you seen the way those babies eat cat food?

Some time ago I put a bowl of 'crunchies' out for Jarvis, who was in one of his 'I want to eat al-fresco' moods.

That evening, about midnight, I went outside and the bowl was full of slugs - a massive writhing heap of them - eating the cat crunchies! It was ghastly!

I heard that broken, dry egg shells will repel them. They may also be living somewhere in the house where it's damp...we foudn that they were able to squeeze in through a small gap in the woodwork some years ago.

Joe

I conducted an experiment the other night as I have never seen the phenominon of beer and slugs.

I took a can of the hubby's beer from the fridge and poured a liitle on the path behind a slug.

You should have seen it move!!! I have never seen a slug move so fast, they love it!

So why not put a jar or two or beer near your doorstep.

Don't ask what the husband said about his only can of beer
:hihi:

my ex was a bit dim, but he told me that slugs were homing!! i didnt believe him and i let the slugs roam my kitchen at night and let themselves out in the morning, i hate the things!! one day i decided to try his theory, i picked a slug up (in kitchen roll) and slung it over my neighbours fence,,,, i havent seen the slim ball again!! (or;) the slug!!);)

beer will only attract them make a funnel with paper and pour it down every hole cracks and clevises ate the slimly little gits

Was swamped with them at one point. The critters even made it up the inside of the cupboard and were discovered crawling over cutlery in the drawer :gag:. Any shoes left in the living room had slime trails on them by the morning, and no area was exempt from their attention.
I agree with previous posts that the best plan is to block their entrance route. Beer and salt will kill them, but do you really want the job of disposing of their bodies? In the garden, avoid slug pellets for the interests of other wildlife, but try the copper tape method. I bought a roll, and although it's not 100% effective, it goes a long way in protecting your precious plants. I've tried eggshell too, and coffee grounds, with less success than copper.

I had a massive slug problem at my last house. Giant white ones that used to get everywhere, and a garden teeming with the things.

Then, they just seemed to disappear.

The reason for this became clear when i went out one night to put the rabbit away. I bent down and grabbed the thing, except it wasnt a rabbit - instead a giant well fed hedgehog (ouch) .

May i recommend buying a hedgehog and letting it roam feely about your house, it should solve the slug problem :hihi:

Slugs...eurgghhh

I had this same problem and my heart goes out to you, you suddenly become aware how agile and athletic the slimy beasts are. The only thing that worked for me was dettox antiseptic spray....... I sprayed every possible entry point (it's really good at getting in small cracks), it kept them at bay for a while, but respraying was needed. It might work whilst you sell your house, good luck

Should'nt that title be - YUMM! Slug's in the house! HURRAY! :suspect:

:thumbsup: :thumbsup: Yes, I too suffer with a slug invasion in my lounge most nights! It's not very pleasant to find slime trails, but probably not as unpleasant as finding the actual slugs woud be. Thankfully, here, they've usually gone again by morning or at least are effectively hiding! I'm so pleased to have been able to read all the posts with ideas on what to do about the problem... I will get busy soon, trying these out! It's also slightly comforting to know that it's not just me that has the problem. I have a feeling that 'my' slugs are coming in through either the high-up wall vent, under the front door or even possibly through the front door keyhole (which I can't block up as it's in constant use!) - so it sounds like copper tape might work best for me...

Thanks everyone.

Not really related at all, but we had LOADS of spiders in our living room, and Kim & Aggie off that Channel 4 programme said to put lemon juice around the edge of the room, so we tried it and we've only seen one spider in about 3 months now compared with about 2 a night before!!!

my student house used to get a slug invasion on a daily basis so i totally feel for you. we just put slug pellets outside back door (main entry point) and would wake up to at least 10 deaduns a day!! some still got in but luckily not as many!

Still not sure how one got into our upstairs bathroom (2 floors up!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

Having these come in the house is horrible, like others say you need to find where there coming from and block it, i wouldnt put salt down as you end up with slime allover:gag: , id personally cut them in half, or can you drown slugs?. If its snails i just crush them.:)

I too hate slugs and am actually scared of them. (I know I know) but my husband nearly died from laughing about 35 years ago when he came in from a night shift.
I had found a slug in the tiny kitchen and put a basin over it and a house brick on top of that so it couldn't get away.
After he'd picked himself up it was "So now we have superslug".
I still hate slugs and he's never let me forget the capture.:hihi:

Hey hormonequeen, you're in Georgia? Try putting the Confederate flag out to stake your claim, and tell the KKK you have black slugs, they'll come and sort them out!

I would have thought the easiest thing would be slug pellets, unless you've got pets or children coz they are poisonous. Otherwise the crushed eggshells has always been a successful one for me.

Hi again!

More and more people seem to be talking about using slug pellets to kill off home-invading slugs. I've been doing a bit of research and the thing is that people in general don't seem to understand the ramifications of using pellets... slug pellets might kill slugs, but they also kill hedgehogs, who are, along with frogs/toads, the main predators of slugs! So, pellets are NOT a very ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY option and they are successfully killing off nature's way of controlling the slug population! When did you, or anyone you know, last have a hedgehog visit the garden? The last time I can remember was back in the late 1970's!!! Not a good state of affairs! Let's all try the other methods first, before resorting to pellets.

Does anyone know if the slug-invasion problem might get better when the weather outside warms up? Why do the 'blighters' insist on keep coming in in the first place? :)

Phew! We are not alone - others have house slugs. The damp weather brings them out in the kitchen with trails all over our cupboards. Slugs in the cat food and milk - I get up in the night and have to throw them out.

Thanks for all the tips - there could be any number of entry points - old flint house.

Now to try some of the suggestions - we'll go for the copper, perhaps - although I am not sure they are not attracted by the detritus when I haven't swept for a few days - or is it weeks?

sorry no laughs in this mail
juju

And we thought our spiders were a problem. They may be poisonous but at least they don't trail slime!
[Millipedes are a pest though.]

We got some frogs!

What in the house?

ERRRRRRRRRRRR, I hate them, we get them on our back garden, they dont eat the slugs though, theres hundreds on our garden, luckily not in the house.

We've got the same problem - big fat slugs in the kitchen!! I'm not keen on wasting my beer, so how is it supposed to help our problem (unless we drink large quantities of it so we don't notice the slugs)?:help: