Anyone know good way to get rid of 'slaters'?

[Gary_M]

Firstly - I don't mean the harmless people who stop the water dripping through your roof !!

I mean, these things.....

I have noticed that nearly every stone I upturn in the garden has loads of slaters under them. I recently knocked down an old shed, as it was very rotten, and it looked like most of the 'damage' to it had been done by slaters munching away at the wood.

Now and again I have seen a few about the house, and my main concern is that they might find some untreated wood somewhere 'out of sight' in the house and decide to have a feast on it

Does anyone know if a good treatment to get rid of these. I was hoping to find something that could banish them from the garden and more importantly form some sort of 'barrier' that would deter them from coming into the house.

Thanks in advance.

 

[splinter]

They won't do any harm,they only seem to eat wood in a serious state of decay,so the damage is done a long time before they arrive

 

[Gary_M]

They won't do any harm,they only seem to eat wood in a serious state of decay,so the damage is done a long time before they arrive

Ah, that's not so bad then. I just moved into this house at the end of last year, and it had been empty for about 7 years prior to this. Thankfully, the house is in great nick (with no rot or damp), and only the shed seems to have suffered. When I was demolishing it and found hundreds of these little things around it, I just assumed that it was them that had been munching away at it.

I'll just leave them alone

Thanks

 

[JohnD]

have a look at one and try to find its teeth!

They can only suck rotted wood.

If you find them inside the house it is a sign of damp, not just for the food but because they have to lay their eggs in moisture as they are related to lobsters and other sea-creatures like trilobites.

Not quite as tasty, though, I find.

 

[Gary_M]

have a look at one and try to find its teeth!

It's ok - I put some jam down, so their teeth will be rotten by now

..........they are related to lobsters and other sea-creatures like trilobites

Thankfully I haven't found any lobsters yet, just the slaters - so house can't be too damp