Removing wallpaper before painting is a tough job, but it doesn't have to be terrible. Learn how to make it go quicker and easier—and how to make sure you end up with walls that are smooth and clean. Removing wallpaper before painting is a tough job, but it doesn't have to be terrible. going to sugarcoat it. Removing wallpaper is a messy, time-consuming and tedious job. wish I could tell you there’s a nifty new product that will make the And if you don’t know what you’re doing or you start to get frustrated, you can damage your walls or stop before the job is done. this article won’t make the job fun. But they will help you do it more efficiently, without damaging yourThey’ll also show you how to get a wall perfectly clean, ready for a fresh coat of paint or new Do yourself a favor and take a full weekend to do the job right. the messy and hard stuff (Photos 1–5) on day one and use the second

day to prep the walls for paint or Protect the floor and woodwork Everything is going to get wet and sticky, so carefully protect the floor, furniture and woodwork. Take everything off the walls, including vents, outlet covers and switch plates, and mask the openings with plastic and tape. Turn off the electricity to the room at the service panel and use high-quality work lamps on extension cords to light your work area. possible, remove the furniture completely. If not, move it to the center of the room and cover it with plastic. Glue and water are going to run down the walls, so you want to protect the floors and prevent the water from running behind molding, baseboards and chair rails. creating a plastic “gutter” to catch it. Top the plastic gutter with more plastic and then cover that with towels. them with dry towels as necessary. Pull off the face Do this step without using any water. The point is to remove

the top layer of paper and leave the backing on the wall. That way, the backing will easily soak up water, making the rest of the job faster and easier. Use a putty knife to get the edge of the paper started, if necessary, and pull the paper back slowly at a 45-degree angle, applying moderate pressure. You can sometimes pull down entire sheets of newer wallpapers with this technique. But the longer the paper has been up, the more likely it is to come off in smaller pieces (orIf you just can’t remove the facing at all, use a scoring tool before moving on to the next step (see “Tough Tools for Apply the hottest water you can tolerate (wear gloves!) to the wallpaper backing and the remaining facing to soften them and the adhesive underneath. The hard part is doing this without damaging the wall surface. take a lot of hot water without a problem. But drywall has a paper surface that can be damaged by prolonged contact

It’s OK to moisten drywall, but don’t keep it wet for longer than 15 minutes at a time. Grind Time Now T-ShirtWork in small sectionsGold Beaded Curtains Uk so the backing doesn’t dry out before you have a chance toAcrylic Tub Repair Nyc Apply the water using a sponge (or a floor mop for theLet the backing absorb the water until it starts to pull away from the wall. When the backing softens (use your fingernail or a scraper to check), you’re ready for the next Scrape off the backing Use an old, very flexible metal spatula or putty knife with rounded corners to scrape the backing and remaining facingDon't use the spatula too aggressively—the drywall might be soft in spots and scraping too hard can easily gouge it.

Using a flexible blade is key because it won't dig into the drywallPlastic spatulas or scrapers don't work—they're too thick to get Remove every speck of paste. This is the most important step, but the one that typically gets shortThere’s going to be a lot of paste on the wall once the backing is gone, and it’s going to take a lot of effort to get it all off. much of the glue with a putty knifeThen wash the walls thoroughly with a sponge and water.This is the moment when most people drop the ball. tired, the wall looks clean and you just want to be done. is to call it a (very long) night and “not see” the paste that’s stillPaste has a dark sheen to it and the wall will still feel sticky. light mist of water on the “clean”Hold your work light parallel to the wall and you’ll see the paste thatIf you don’t get it all off, when you paint the wall, the paint will eventually flake and crackle.

Wallpaper that’s applied over it will bubble or fail to stick properly. Use a gel stripper (see “Tough Tools for Tough Situations,” below) to get the last bits of stubborn paste and backing off the wall. a whole lot, so it’s not going to breakSince the gel clings to the wall, you can scrape off the gel and the paste at the same time with minimalAfter the paste is completely gone, rinse the wall with water until it’s smoothNow go to bed. Tough Tools for Tough Situations Some chemical strippers work as wetting agents that prevent the water from evaporating while you remove the paste. Others have enzymes (check the label) that actually break down the molecular structure of the paste, making it easier toYou can buy premixed liquid, powdered or gel chemical wallpaper removers at home centers and paint stores. Strippers can get priceyTo save money, use hot water to remove most of the paper and glue and then apply a small amount of the gel

at the end to remove the most stubborn paste and backing. A scoring tool punches hundreds of tiny holes in the wallpaper facing so the water can penetrate the backing. If you can pull off the facing, you probably don’t need toBut if you have a waterproof facing like a glossy paper or vinyl, a scoring tool can really help. Plaster walls are impervious to abuse, but scoring tools used aggressively can easily punch tiny holes in drywall. You can find scoring tools at home centers and wallpaper Steamers are the tool of last resort. They’re messy, difficult to work with and time-consuming to use. But in truly stubborn cases, they’ll get the job done … eventually. more dangerous than other methods because you can burn yourself, and you can also damage the paper drywall surface if you hold the steamer on the wall too long. else is working, rent a steamer. Repair, sand and prime the wall The next day after the wall has dried thoroughly (and you’ve