Allentown, Lehigh County
Wallpaper removal in Allentown, PA.
Four in ten Allentown homes were built before 1940, and rowhouses and twins outnumber detached houses. Behind old paper in those rooms, expect plaster rather than drywall.
Wallpaper removal for Allentown homes
William Allen's grid filled in with attached houses, and the city still has more rowhouses and twins than detached homes. About 19,500 of its homes were standing by 1939, so a papered room in the city has a good chance of plaster behind it. That helps in one way, since plaster has no paper face for paste to tear. It also means the paper may have been covering cracks and patches for a very long time.
Only about one Allentown home in nine was built since 1990, so the city's papered walls lean old. The drywall rooms that do exist, in postwar houses and out in the townships, are where torn face paper turns up.
Allentown
Rowhouse plaster from Old Allentown to West Park
Old Allentown's brick rows went up from the 1850s to the 1910s, the Old Fairgrounds filled in between 1888 and 1910, and West Park was mostly built from 1895 to 1930. Rooms in all three are plaster on lath. In a long, narrow rowhouse room, light from the front and back windows runs along the side walls rather than straight at them, and that low light picks out every gouge and paste ridge, so the wall is washed clean and skimmed rather than spot-patched.
More than four in ten city homes date from 1940 to 1979, and next door, more than half of Salisbury Township's were built between 1950 and 1979. Walls from those decades could be either: gypsum-lath plaster or early drywall. In South Whitehall Township, where about a quarter of the homes are from 1990 on, paper on drywall is the likelier case, and any torn face gets a shellac-based sealer before compound.
Worth knowing
Paper hid the cracks
In plaster rooms, paper was often hung over cracks. Expect them to reappear once it is off, and plan on tape and compound before the skim.
Wash, then let it dry
Paste left on plaster bubbles up under compound, so the wall is washed until it is clean and allowed to dry before any repair starts.
Cover the woodwork
Water and steam run down onto baseboards and casings. In rooms that still have their original trim, it is covered first and the soak is kept to what the paper needs.
The work
How the work goes
The same care on every job, in every town. The full guide to wallpaper removal.
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.
Questions
Wallpaper removal, Allentown.
Why does the wall look worse after the paper comes off in our Old Allentown rowhouse?
Because the paper was doing a job. In houses that old it was often hung over cracked or patched plaster, and earlier partial removals leave the surface uneven. What you see is the real wall; repair and a skim coat make it ready for paint.
Should old paper be steamed or soaked?
It depends on the paper. Plain layers usually give way to warm water and patience, while painted or heavily layered paper needs steam. On plaster either works, as long as the blade stays low and the wall isn't gouged.
What if the paper won't let go of the plaster?
It is softened again and given more time, or steamed, rather than forced. Pulling dry paper off plaster can lift weak spots of the finish coat with it, and that turns a removal into a repair.
More in Allentown
Other services here.
- Level 5 drywall finishA skim coat over the entire surface, for walls that hold up under raking light and dark paint.
- Skim coatingRough, patched or uneven walls resurfaced smooth, often after wallpaper comes down.
- Plaster repairCracked, loose and failing plaster in older homes, repaired and made sound.
- Interior paintingWalls, ceilings, trim, doors and millwork, prepared properly and finished clean.
- Exterior paintingSiding, trim, porches, stucco and brick, prepared to stand up to Pennsylvania weather.
- Drywall installation & repairNew drywall hung, taped and finished; cracks, holes and water damage repaired invisibly.
- Drywall texture matching & removalTexture matched so repairs disappear, applied where you want it, or taken off for a smooth wall.
- Popcorn ceiling removalOld acoustic texture taken down and the ceiling finished smooth.
- Wood stainingDecks, porch floors, doors and trim, inside and out, stained by hand.
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.