I have had my worms for several years and have always had an interesting and fascinating ecosystem consisting of all sorts of bin critters. I am not the squeamish type, so as long as they were not a hazard I was not overly worried about them.

However, sow bugs have TAKEN OVER!!!! I have a 2'x3' wooden bin in my basement. I have always had sow bugs and never had a problem with them leaving the bin. However, within the last month my husband, who has been extremely patient with me and my hobby, has begun complaining about finding the bugs on the floor and walls around the bin. Last weekend, we spent the weekend painting the basement and we discovered them EVERYWHERE!!! I am a lazy wormherder and I don't spend alot of time fooling with the worms. I typically just toss food on top of the top bedding and then cover that with more bedding. I check every now and then the make sure the worms are there and OK but I don't move stuff around too much. So, tonight I thought I better check on them. Under the bedding was a carpet of sow bugs. I literally could hardly see any compost for the covering of bugs. Needless to say, if I don't take care of the situation, DH's patience will soon run out.

First question: Is there any harm, besides the yuck factor, of having the bugs roaming free in the basement?

Second question: Any suggestions for getting rid of them?

Third question: Any suggestions for population control?

Fourth question: I know that typically worms and sow bugs peacefully co-exist, but could the sow bugs overwhelm the worms and be detrimental in these numbers?

Thanks,

Michele