Hi Naonah, and Welcome to TFP,
So you got yourself a slug problem in your pool. I'm so sorry. There's nothing any worse then having unexpected, and uninvited slimy guests swimming in your pool, so let's see if we can figure out a way to get them to stay away.
1st thing do you ever see them getting in, or do you only see them after the fact?
Having been a not so nice kid, I know full well what a box of salt will do to a slug in just a matter of seconds, so I suspect that is what the slimy long things are in there is the salt dissolving the slugs. YUCK.
I have several things you can try to see if you can get them to stay out of the pool. These are actually remedies to keep them out of your garden but they should work for a pool as well.
1)Try placing open beer cans with the beer still in them out away from your pool and the slugs will be drawn to that.(They will drown in the beer so you'll have to replace them as needed).
2) Place Moistened Citrus peelings Oranges, lemons, grapefruits, lime peelings away from the pool area and the slugs will be drawn to those (You will have to collect the peelings with the slugs on them and drop them into a bucket of Salt water to kill them).
3) Buy a Bag of Diatomaceous Earth (I would recommend the Food Grade on this) which is completely safe for human, and pets but will kill slugs, spiders, and other types of insects because it causes them to dry out. Make a larger perimeter circle around your pool area using the DE, and you can also make a circle around the actual pool itself if needed.
CAUTION: (Avoid walking barefoot in the DE as it does contain fragments of mica and may be sharp to your feet. Attempt to avoid tracking the DE into the pool). ALSO DE will not only kill the bad bugs, but will also kill the beneficial insects too.
4) Pour dried used coffee grounds in an area around your pool as slugs hate Caffeine, and this should send them the other direction.
5) Put a line of salt around the pool area to dissolve them before they make it to the pool. (Caution: Salt can be damaging to soil and plants)
6) Place several tablespoons of cornmeal in a glass mason jar and lay it on it's side in the area the slugs are at. The cornmeal when eaten by the slugs will swell up in them.
7) Avoid watering at night if you have plants around the pool. It is best to water them of the morning instead so they will be dry at night when the slugs usually come out.
8) If you have an out of the way area place a large piece of cardboard, piece of wood etc. that slugs like to hide under and go collect the slugs from under them, then place the slugs in salt water, or relocate them to an area far away from your house.
9) Plant plants that slugs don't like either in the ground or in a planter around the area you don't want them. Here is a list
"
Grow plants that deter slugs. Certain plants keep slugs away because of their taste, texture, or toxins. Plant these in a barrier around the entirety of your garden, or keep one near each other plant. These are not 100% immune, but they will deter many slugs for no effort besides the initial planting. Try the following species:
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- Herbs: ginger, garlic, chives, mint, and chicory.
- Vegetables: bitter greens are generally less appealing to slugs than sweet greens. Try planting kale, spring cabbage, or sprouting broccoli.
- Hosta varieties with blue leaves are more resistant.
- Flowers for full shade: Astilbe, Dicentra, Digitalis (foxglove), Lobelia, Viola (some pansies and violets). Also Ranunculus (buttercups) and Vinca, but these spread rapidly.
- Flowers for partial shade: Phlox, Campanula, Hemerocallis. Also Mentha, but this spreads rapidly".
WARNING ensure these plants are pet friendly too if you have pets.
10) Feed the birds. Get some bird feeders and put them out to attract the birds to your house as they love to eat slugs.
11)They do sell slug pellets, but these need to be kept out of reach of pets, so if you have dogs, or cats, I wouldn't recommend their use.
12) Cover you pool during peek times that the slugs are getting in if you know when that may be.
Well that's all the suggestions I have. I hope one of these will rid your beautiful pool of those yucky slugs. Have a wonderful night
.
Most of the above information was paraphrased, or quoted from the following 2 links.
http://frugalliving.about.com/od/diseaseandpestcontrol/tp/Get-Rid-Of-Slugs.htm
http://www.wikihow.com/Get-Rid-of-Garden-Slugs
