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This How to Remove Wallpaper page will give you the basics on how to start stripping that pesky paper off your walls without completely ruining them. You'll also want to properly remove the glue, paste or adhesive. Whether you're stripping borders or whole walls, take the time to do the job right by following these simple steps.
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Removing Wallpaper Tips
- Don't just get a scraper and go to town! Improper scraping can damage your walls.
- Be gentle with drywall, but plaster walls can take a beating.
- Steamers work better on plaster and can damage drywall facing.
- Wallpaper removal gels and solutions are a lot cheaper and work just fine, provided that you don't have sixteen layers of paper to remove!
- Cover up the room so you don't get glue on everything. Make sure to wear protective clothing, too.
- Score the paper first to get maximum penetration, then steam or spray.
- Remove the paper with a plastic scraper, working carefully so you don't damage the wall.
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Removing Wallpaper Tips
- Don't just get a scraper and go to town! Improper scraping can damage your walls.
- Be gentle with drywall, but plaster walls can take a beating.
- Steamers work better on plaster and can damage drywall facing.
- Wallpaper removal gels and solutions are a lot cheaper and work just fine, provided that you don't have sixteen layers of paper to remove!
- Cover up the room so you don't get glue on everything. Make sure to wear protective clothing, too.
- Score the paper first to get maximum penetration, then steam or spray.
- Remove the paper with a plastic scraper, working carefully so you don't damage the wall.
Introduction
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Stripping wallpaper is simple with the right tools and a little elbow grease. It's important to take the time to do the job right, because it's more complicated than it looks. If you don't follow the proper procedure, you risk damage to your walls or an u
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Does your new home win the ugly wallpaper award hands down? TheLedger.com: Ugly Wallpaper and Other Odd Decor Has your little girl suddenly decided that the [[Disney Princess]] wallpaper that she begged and pleaded for ince
Step 1: Get to Know Your Walls
- Before you get started, it's time to get up close and personal with your walls. Yeah, it's not something that normal people do, but knowing more about their condition and composition will help you decide the best way to proceed and help you avoid a lot of headaches later.
- Figure out if your walls are plasterDIYNetwork.com: Advantages of plaster walls or drywall.Onlinetips.com: Gypsum Wallboard Drywall Guide Drywall can be damaged if you scrape too hard, so dry stripping isn't a good idea. Even if you have strippable wallpaper, you can still gouge a giant hole in your wall. This would be bad. Plaster walls are much less delicate.Lowes.com: Removing Old Wallpaper: A little prep work
- If you have plaster walls, try dry-stripping. Some wallpapers can be dry-stripped; others can't. Start out simple: get out your handy dandy plastic scraper, find a corner, and see how well the paper comes off. Strippable papers will come off in long, thin strips, so if this approach works, you're home free. Continue what you're doing until the paper is off and congratulate yourself on getting off easy. If the paper flakes but doesn't peel, then dry stripping isn't going to get the job done for you. CreativeHomeowner.com: Wallpaper Removal
- The way the paper was installed is also going to affect your approach. For example, maybe the installer didn't prime the walls first, installed multiple layers of paper one on top of each other or decided to use rubber cement to put up the paper. In all of these cases, you're going to need to use more elbow grease to get the paper off, and work more slowly and carefully to avoid damaging your poor, mistreated walls.HGTV.com: How to Remove Wallpaper: Patience is a virtue
Step 2: To Steam or Not to Steam
- Most do-it-yourselfers have a pretty strong stance on the steam versus treat question.Lowes.com: Removing Wallpaper in Tricky Situations Steaming involves the use of a wallpaper steamer, which you can buy or rent. Treating involves the use of a wallpaper removal solution and warm water. Before you proceed, you're going to have to choose a side.
- The first thing to consider is plain old money. If you have a steamer, this option will be cheaper. If you'll need to rentRentalHQ.com: Take the Hassle Out of Removing Wallpaper one, you're going to have to shell out some cash. For a lot of people, this is going to be the deciding factor.
- If you've got drywall, you may want to skip the steamer. Steamers get a lot more water on the walls and can damage the top layer of the drywall. However, it's still possible to steam if you're careful with the steamer and don't scrape too hard.CornerHardware.com: How to Remove Wallpaper
- If you have multiple layers or improperly applied paper, the steamer might be the only hope you've got of getting that ugly paper off your walls.Dummies.com: Getting to Know Wallpaper Removal Tips
Step 3: Tools, Glorious Tools
- Now that you've got a game plan, it's time to suit up. Chances are, you don't have all of the necessary tools on hand to do the job right, and it's the tools that make all the difference. Here's a list of what you'll need:DIYNetwork.com: Removing Wallpaper
- Either a steamer or wallpaper removal gel, depending on your decision in Step 2. You'll also need a funnel and cup to fill the steamer or a bucket and spray bottle to apply the gel.
- A Paper Tiger or similar wallpaper scoring/removal tool.WrightWallpaper.com: How to Remove Wallpaper
- A scraper.
- Enough drop cloths to protect your floors and any furniture that you can't remove from the room.
- Sealable plastic baggies to store wall covers and other hardware.
- Goggles and gloves to protect your skin and eyes.
For When the Paper's Gone
- There will be a time when your walls are paper-free. When that time comes, you'll want to wash them, so you'll need:
- Hot soapy water or TSP solution.The Real Milk Paint Co.: TSP Solution
- A bucket.
- Sponges and/or cloths for cleaning.
Step 4: Bye Bye Paper
- Now it's time to get the job done. Based on what you've learned about your walls and wallpaper, you might have to adjust your technique, but the steps are basically the same.
- Prepare the room. Take everything off the walls. Remove the electrical outlet covers and store all the pieces in the plastic bags. Move furniture away from the walls, or if you've got something particularly expensive, consider moving it out of the room. Cover the floors and furniture with plastic drop cloths.ThisOldHouse.com: New Way to Strip it Away
- Remove the top layer of the paper. Generally, if you loosen a corner with your scraper, you should be able to peel it off in strips. Once you're done, you'll see a layer of plain backing material, usually tan in color, still glued to the wall.WallpaperInstaller.com: Wallpaper Stripping
- Now, it's time to loosen that glue. First, get out your Paper Tiger or a similar scoring tool and rub it over the wall in the patterns directed on the packaging. These tools make tiny holes in your paper to allow the steam or gel to penetrate into the glue.CornerHardware.com: How to Remove Wallpaper
- Next, you'll need to get out your steamer or gel. Steam or spray sections of the wall, working from top to bottom. Work in sections; if the section dries before you get to it, you'll have to steam or spray it again. Allow the steam or spray to sit for about five minutes (or the amount of time indicated on the spray bottle) to let it do its magic.BHG.com: How to Remove Wallpaper
- Use your scraper to remove the paper. If it's not coming off cleanly, or if you see a brownish glue residue on the walls, you may need to repeat the steam/gel and scraping a couple of times to get all of the larger pieces off.About.com: How to Remove Old Wallpaper
- After all of the paper is stripped, wash the walls with soapy water or a TSP solution to get the last of the gummy glue, paste or adhesive off the walls.The Real Milk Paint Co.: TSP Solution It might be tempting to skip this step, because hey, you're going to paint or paper over it anyway. But the wash allows your paint or paper to cover evenly and stick well. And really, do you want to have to do this all over again?ThisOldHouse.com: New Way to Strip it Away
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