Bugs and creepy crawlies - how to get rid?

[Steve]

How do I get rid of (or preferably stop them getting in in the first place) woodlice and centipedes?

A shuffle round of furniture means that we can put our 3-seater recliner sofa/settee in the conservatory and I don't want bugs getting in there and breeding/nesting/whatever.

Secondly, I have a phobia about these things so I'm not averse to killing them off rather than just preventing them getting in. Phobias are irrational and I can't explain it, but the way I see it is that I have to get them before they get me, so let's not get bogged down in the moral/ethical thing of killing stuff. This has been a 66-year phobia so I'm not going to change now.

[Andy Burns]

Woodlice tend to go anywhere that's a bit damp

Don't get many of them ...

[alan_m]

and where there is rotting vegetation as that is what they feed on. Get rid of the dead leaves and other detritus from around the perimeter of your property and you shouldn't get the problem. Also move any plant pots etc. away from doorways but having said that I have lot of potted plants up against my external walls and if I move the pots there will be hundreds of woodlice BUT they never come inside my house.

+1 Never seen one in my house. I've seen quite a few when gardening.

[Spike]

Try an ultrasonic pest repellent, as well as following the other advice?

[Steve]

Steve submitted this idea :

Thanks Andy, Alan and Spike, will do.

[Theo]

Can woodlice and centipedes hear or sense audio?

Theo

[Clive Arthur]

Of course!

In fact, woodlice (cheeselogs) are crustaceans.

[Peter Johnson]

Make sure also that there are no holes in the mortar joints in your external brickwork. I used to see centipedes in my house, and ants leter, that I tracked down to a failed mortar joint - they were getting into the cavity there and emerging through the livibg room gas fire. Sealed the joints and, after a few months, the problem was solved.

[Smolley]

.......and silverfish.

[Andy Burns]

Not seen those for ages ... probably back to student hovels.

[#Paul]

I found one of these in my house, once upon a time:

#Paul