No. 09 · Paper, paste and plaster
Wallpaper removal, and the wall it leaves.
Getting the paper off is half the job. The other half is the wall underneath: washed of paste, its torn face or cracked plaster repaired, often skim-coated, and ready for paint or new paper.
About wallpaper removal
Nobody knows exactly what is under old wallpaper until it starts coming off. In a house built before the 1940s it is usually plaster, often cracked or patched beneath the paper. In a newer house it is more likely drywall, and if that drywall was never primed before it was papered, the paste may have bonded to its paper face.
That is why good removal is slow on purpose: the paper is soaked, given time and lifted gently, so it lets go and the wall stays whole.
It is also a job where explanation matters, because what the wall turns out to be changes the plan. In Randy’s words: “It’s not a grab and run situation here… we will educate you during the entire process.”
When it’s called for
When the paper should come off
Before you paint
Painting over wallpaper rarely lasts. Seams show through, water in the paint can soften the paste, and painted paper is far harder to remove later.
Seams lifting, paper bubbling
Lifting seams and bubbles mean the paste is failing. Taking the paper down is usually cleaner than chasing repairs across the wall.
Layers from past owners
Older houses often carry several layers, sometimes painted over. Each comes off, down to the wall, so you can see what the wall itself needs.
Before new paper
New wallcovering wants a clean, sound, primed wall, not an old layer underneath it.
What’s under the paper
Plaster. It was the wall surface in nearly all houses until the 1930s or ’40s. Plaster has no paper face to tear, but wallpaper was often hung to hide its cracks and patches, and some walls were covered with canvas first. Bare plaster usually needs crack repair, and sometimes a skim coat.
Drywall that was primed before it was papered. The paper usually comes away cleanly, leaving paste to wash off and a few nicks to fill.
Drywall that was never primed. Here the paste can grip the drywall’s paper face more strongly than that face grips the gypsum, so the face tears as the wallpaper comes off. Torn areas are sealed with an oil- or shellac-based primer, then skim-coated smooth.
The work
How the work goes
The walkthrough
Randy looks at the paper, the age of the house and the walls with you, and explains what removal is likely to uncover. The estimate comes in writing, and both are complimentary.
Water and wiring
Because the work is wet, power to the outlets and switches on papered walls is shut off and their covers come off before any soaking. Floors are covered against runoff.
Soak, wait, lift
Vinyl facings that will peel off dry are peeled first. The backing and older papers are soaked with warm water and remover, given time to soften, and lifted with a wide blade; steam handles stubborn or painted paper.
Wash off the paste
Every trace of adhesive is washed away. Paste left on a wall shows through paint and stops new paper from bonding.
Seal and repair
Torn drywall face is sealed first with an oil- or shellac-based primer, because water-based products make it bubble. Cracks and loose plaster are repaired, and walls are skim-coated where they need to be made even.
Prime for what comes next
The wall is primed for paint, or with a wallcovering primer if new paper is going up. That primer also makes the next removal easier.
From the job sites
“These guys are great Randy is amazing ! They made my old uneven walls look so nice I seriously would recommend them to everyone looking for any work done !”
“Randy and his guys painted the interior of our new home, and did a great job! We needed our entire main floor and some of our upstairs rooms repainted…”
Questions
Asked at the walkthrough.
What is the best way to remove 20-year-old wallpaper?
Find out what you have first. Peel a corner: some vinyl papers lift off dry and leave a backing to soak. Otherwise, soak the paper with warm water and a remover, give it time, and scrape gently with a wide blade, using steam for stubborn spots. Then wash every trace of paste off the wall.
Is professional wallpaper removal worth it?
For one layer of strippable paper on a primed wall, often not. It is worth it when there are several layers, painted-over paper, unprimed drywall or old plaster, or when the wall must end up smooth enough to paint. In those cases the repair is as much of the job as the removal.
Does removing wallpaper ruin the drywall?
It can, when the drywall was never primed before it was papered: the paste grips the drywall’s paper face and the face tears. The damage is repairable. Torn areas are sealed with an oil- or shellac-based primer, since water-based products make them bubble, and then skim-coated smooth.
Can I paint over wallpaper instead?
It can be done, but it rarely stays right. Seams and edges tend to show through, water in the paint can soften the paste and lift the paper, and once paper has been painted it is much harder to remove.
Will the walls need a skim coat afterward?
Often. Plaster under old paper usually has cracks and patches to deal with, and torn drywall needs sealing and smoothing. Uneven walls left by earlier, partial wallpaper removal are common in old houses, and a skim coat is how they are brought back to one even surface.
Can new wallpaper go up after the old comes down?
Yes. Randy hangs new wallcovering as well as removing old. The wall is repaired, washed and primed with a primer made for wallcovering, so the new paper goes onto a sound surface rather than over an old layer.
Where
Wallpaper removal, town by town.
Randy works from Easton across the Lehigh Valley and Bucks County. Choose your town for what wallpaper removal involves in its houses.
Lehigh Valley
Related
Often done together.
Consultation
Request a private consultation.
Private walkthrough & written estimate, complimentary. Tell us a little about the house and the rooms, and Randy will be in touch to arrange a time.
- Hours
- Monday – Friday8:30 AM – 5:30 PMSaturday10 AM – 3 PMSundayClosed
- Service area
- Easton, Bethlehem, Allentown and the greater Lehigh Valley; Bucks County, Pennsylvania.
Fully insured — proof on request. Residential and commercial.