Wallpaper Woes

[Rose Pink]

I decided to remove some wallpaper we put up about 18 years ago. I followed the usual procedure of scoring it with a paper tiger and then spraying it with water and/or steaming it to loosen the adhesive.

I have never had such difficulty removing wallpaper as this stuff.

It literally had melded to the sheetrock and when I peeled back the wallpaper, large (and I mean large) areas of sheetrock paper came off with it. Large areas of the walls are now no more than rough, brown paper. The gypsum part of the sheetrock is not exposed.

I'm not sure how to proceed to repair the damage. Do I just mud over the paper to seal it in? I want the walls to be smooth, not textured. Is mud going to stick to the paper or will it pop off? What to do?

 

[timeos2]

You can't undo it now but the mistake was not priming/sealing the wallboard before the wallpaper was hung. That would have prevented the "melding" of the paper to the drywall you are fighting now. If you're good enough you can smooth compound over the shredded surface but it isn't easy to get it really flat & smooth. Do prime the surface once you have treated it so you won't have more issues in the future.

If it's really badly damaged you can install a new surface using super thin drywall over the top of the damaged surface. Good luck.

 

[wackymother]

How about using lining paper or that kind of wallpaper that is thicker and textured? Sanitas? There are other brands, too. It's designed to be used in places where the walls aren't in great condition.

I don't hang wallpaper myself, but I have a friend who is a paper hanger and she's done some work for me. When she's got to remove paper, she always says that the amount of work depends on if the underlying wall was prepared properly before the old wallpaper was applied. If she's applying the new paper right on never-papered walls, she uses a special primer made for that purpose.

We have one room where she was covering rough walls (not damaged sheetrock, though) with lining paper, then papering over that. Lining paper comes in different thicknesses depending on what has to be covered.

Edited to add: I'm assuming you were planning on putting new wallpaper up. If you were planning to paint, I think it's going to be very, very difficult to get a really smooth finish. Even if you use paintable lining paper, it's not going to cover everything perfectly, and you'll still be able to see the seams.

 

[Passepartout]

Rose, I know you are pretty handy, but I think you may be beyond DIY on this project. Perhaps a drywall finishing guy can 'float' mud over the damaged area, then you can prime (size) and either paint or paper over the newly finished area to achieve the finish you want. After all, that's the final surface you get after new sheetrock is finished. The paper is just to smooth and hold the gypsum together.

I had similar results some years ago when cleaning up/out my mom's house to sell. There were acres of grasscloth. We finally hit upon scoring, then really soaking the wallcoverings then leaving for an hour or two so the adhesive could soften. I had simply been too impatient trying to get the old stuff down.

Good luck. Glad it's you and not me.

You remind me that lurking in the not-too-distant future will be readying my FIL's house in Wisconsin after he departs. He built it in the 50's then did minimal updates/upgrades/maintenance ever since.

Jim

 

[geekette]

I appreciate this thread as it serves as a warning to me. It's time to take down wallpaper that 'came with the house'. It's impossible for me to really know what's under there, but previous owners did some wacky things, and it's an old home, plenty of time for double or triple wacky.

Maybe I should just paint it and save myself the headache ...

 

[Rose Pink]

You can't undo it now but the mistake was not priming/sealing the wallboard before the wallpaper was hung. That would have prevented the "melding" of the paper to the drywall you are fighting now. If you're good enough you can smooth compound over the shredded surface but it isn't easy to get it really flat & smooth. Do prime the surface once you have treated it so you won't have more issues in the future.

If it's really badly damaged you can install a new surface using super thin drywall over the top of the damaged surface. Good luck.

We did prime/seal the sheetrock. I wish I could remember what brand of primer we used so I would never make the mistake of buying it again. But I can't remember what I did yesterday, let alone 18 years ago. I do know we weren't dumb enough to paper over raw drywall. We've papered many rooms and removed many papers. I know I want a surface that I can get paper off from.

 

[Ann-Marie]

I'm sorry for your headache. I am in the process of removing wallpaper also. I did size/prime the walls, and OMG, it comes off like a charm! However, someone just told me that I have to make sure all the glue is off before painting. How can I tell? The wall is nice and smooth and feels just like a freshly painted wall.

 

[Rose Pink]

Edited to add: I'm assuming you were planning on putting new wallpaper up.

Yes, that's the plan.

Rose, I know you are pretty handy, but I think you may be beyond DIY on this project.

Good luck. Glad it's you and not me.

You remind me that lurking in the not-too-distant future will be readying my FIL's house in Wisconsin after he departs. He built it in the 50's then did minimal updates/upgrades/maintenance ever since.

Jim

Yes, this is way beyond my skills to repair.
As to your FIL's house, at least I didn't have to go out of state to deal with it. I do not envy you at all!

I appreciate this thread as it serves as a warning to me. It's time to take down wallpaper that 'came with the house'. It's impossible for me to really know what's under there, but previous owners did some wacky things, and it's an old home, plenty of time for double or triple wacky.

Maybe I should just paint it and save myself the headache ...

We moved into a house and removed some wall paper only to find a painted orange and yellow zigzag stripe painted around the wall. I'm sure someone thought that was quite stylish at the time. When I look back at some of the things I thought were beautiful, I now cringe "what was I thinking?!"

If you are going to paint over paper you need to be sure to prep the walls carefully so the paint will stick and so that you don't have seams. That was one of the problems with my FIL's house. He had painted over wallpaper. There were huge overlapping seams showing through the paint. Once upon a time, overlapping seams was standard with wallpaper. It hasn't been for a long time, though. Because my FIL was frugal, he always thinned his paint. The walls had paint drips as well as areas where he had not prepped the wall correctly. Because this had been done decades ago, the paint was most likely lead and could not be sanded. We finally hired someone to completely coat the walls with mud and it looked very nice. However, it was textured and I need a smooth wall.

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I sincerely thank each of you for taking the time to reply to my query. I will consider the options you have raised. I think I need to call a contractor and get an estimate for re-mudding the walls before I make any decisions regarding mudding vs lining paper. I just don't know if you can even mud over the brown paper. It is very thin and porous and has multiple layers (ply). The water from the mud would most likely soak into the paper. Would that help the mud adhere or would it just make it worse? I was thinking what Timeos2 (John Chase) also mentioned: just installing thin board over the top. Of course, that would mean removing the baseboards, window moulding and ceililng mouldings.

 

[Rose Pink]

I'm sorry for your headache. I am in the process of removing wallpaper also. I did size/prime the walls, and OMG, it comes off like a charm! However, someone just told me that I have to make sure all the glue is off before painting. How can I tell? The wall is nice and smooth and feels just like a freshly painted wall.

Just wash them really well. You can usually tell if there is more glue.

 

[geekette]

...I was thinking what Timeos2 (John Chase) also mentioned: just installing thin board over the top. Of course, that would mean removing the baseboards, window moulding and ceililng mouldings.

For me, this sounds like a better option with a near-guarantee on results. Less mess, less cost (I think???).

I just added thin board in my bedroom closet over old cedar. It also has a window. Removing moulding, light switch covers, etc., was a somewhat delicate process, but it wasn't problematic.

 

[pjrose]

New sheetrock or thin sheetrock over what's already there may end up less expensive labor-wise than re-mudding.

Or you could go 70s and put up paneling

 

[Elan]

Without seeing the damage it's hard to say definitively, but I'd probably tear out the old sheetrock back to the center of the stud nearest each side wall and as close to the floor/ceiling as practical. There will be seams where the new meets the old near the room corners, but those likely won't be too visible.

Edited to add: Of course, I'd try some sort of coating (mud, or thick primer or paint?) over the damage first.

 

[stmartinfan]

I'm sorry for your headache. I am in the process of removing wallpaper also. I did size/prime the walls, and OMG, it comes off like a charm! However, someone just told me that I have to make sure all the glue is off before painting. How can I tell? The wall is nice and smooth and feels just like a freshly painted wall.

I spent a couple of years stripping wallpaper from most of my house. When I talked with the experts at the specialty paint and wallpaper store, they recommended putting on a coat of oil based primer before painting. I've read this other places, too, as really the best way to seal any leftover glue to prevent it from causing problems with paint. But it needs to oil based. It worked great and my walls turned out well. I had scrubbed but these were big rooms and you could still see some variations in wall color from leftover glue before I did the primer. It took a little more time but seemed worth it.

All of my rooms were prepped with the correct stuff before papering. But I found some papers came off well while others were a problem. I had one wall that needed patching because of damage to the Sheetrock. So I think the type of paper makes a big difference in ease of stripping too.

 

[wackymother]

Have you looked at something like Sanitas? It really is made for covering damaged walls. The last time I did papering, the choices weren't that great, but I think they've improved recently.

 

[Rose Pink]

Have you looked at something like Sanitas? It really is made for covering damaged walls. The last time I did papering, the choices weren't that great, but I think they've improved recently.

Meeting with the interior designer in a few days to see if this is an option. I've tried an internet search to see if this can be applied to the sheetrock paper or if that paper needs to be sealed first. My damage is extensive. Think of more than half the wall having toilet paper as it's surface. What is going to adhere to that? It can peel off in very thin layers. It gets wavy/ridged/soggy when wet.

Only the two outside walls are the problem as they were the only ones sheetrocked. The two interior walls were orginal to the house and are paint over plaster. Even so, in one small area, the paper pulled a chunk of plaster out of the wall and in another small area, the paint came off with the paper. Those are easy fixes.

One of the badly damaged walls is going to be mostly covered by a new built-in bookcase. The ceiling and baseboard mouldings were going to have to be removed anyway to build in the bookcase so I don't feel so bad about the damage. It's the other wall. Both walls have a window and we were going to leave the casings on them. If I have to replace the sheetrock or apply a thin board over the top, we will have to remove the window casings to do so as well as the baseboard and crown moulding. So, I am hoping the paper liner will work since it would be less work and hopefully, less man hour labor.

 

[1st Class]

--deleted--

 

[wackymother]

I have another suggestion.

We were looking for an apartment about 20 years ago, and I remember we saw several where the walls were covered in fabric. It was big with designers then. The effect was surprisingly nice, and of course it would cover up whatever was going on with the walls.

I think this was done by stretching the fabric over furring strips that were attached at the top and the bottom of the room. It might have been thin wood frames with cloth stretched over the framework. If you wanted to do this, you could probably find directions online.

 

[pjrose]

I have another suggestion.

We were looking for an apartment about 20 years ago, and I remember we saw several where the walls were covered in fabric. It was big with designers then. The effect was surprisingly nice, and of course it would cover up whatever was going on with the walls.

I think this was done by stretching the fabric over furring strips that were attached at the top and the bottom of the room. It might have been thin wood frames with cloth stretched over the framework. If you wanted to do this, you could probably find directions online.

Nice idea!

 

[Passepartout]

I have another suggestion.

We were looking for an apartment about 20 years ago, and I remember we saw several where the walls were covered in fabric. It was big with designers then.

Oh, Puh-Leeez! That would be soooo 1970's. Maybe with vintage Marimekko and some Eames furniture......

Somehow I don't think this is what Rose Pink had in mind... J

 

[pjrose]

Oh, Puh-Leeez! That would be soooo 1970's. Maybe with vintage Marimekko and some Eames furniture......

Somehow I don't think this is what Rose Pink had in mind... J

Oh Grrrrr. Now I remember that's what I did in my dorm room

But with the right fabric it could be quite nice! My FIL/MIL live in a VERY upscale upper-East-Side NYC building, and recently had water damage from up above - while waiting for the adjusters and contractors to do their thing, they (or someone) artfully draped parachute fabric over the ceiling, and it looked GREAT!

 

[Rose Pink]

Actually, I find the idea intriguing. Fabric wouldn't need to be glued down and I wouldnt have to worry about repairing the wall right away. There are some gorgeous fabrics but the cost may be more than tearing out and replacing the Sheetrock. My concern with fabric walls has always been one of how to keep them clean. I imagine they hold more dust than a painted wall or a smooth-textured wallpaper. Then there are the dirty hands. Not much of a problem now that the children are grown up but there are the grandchildren and DH to consider.

I am imaging raw silk in a coppery color or maybe a bluish damask (Downton Abbey). Wonder what that would cost?

 

[wackymother]

Actually, I find the idea intriguing. Fabric wouldn't need to be glued down and I wouldnt have to worry about repairing the wall right away. There are some gorgeous fabrics but the cost may be more than tearing out and replacing the Sheetrock. My concern with fabric walls has always been one of how to keep them clean. I imagine they hold more dust than a painted wall or a smooth-textured wallpaper. Then there are the dirty hands. Not much of a problem now that the children are grown up but there are the grandchildren and DH to consider.

I am imaging raw silk in a coppery color or maybe a bluish damask (Downton Abbey). Wonder what that would cost?

I dunno...it seems like you can get a deal even on very expensive fabrics these days, since so few people sew. And it seems like something a good DIYer could do.

With the fabric, yes, I know it's very 1970s. But, with your specific problem, it would solve the problem for the moment and buy you a few years at least. You can vacuum the fabric with a brush head to keep it clean.

 

[Rose Pink]

With the fabric, yes, I know it's very 1970s.

I see the designers on HGTV use it from time to time so it hasn't gone out of style. It just depends on which fabrics you use. Grasscloth wallpaper is a sort of fabric. That reminds me that I've seen the television designers apply a paper backing to fabric to make it into a wallpaper. Now, that would just put me back to square one. It would need to be glued to the wall and I still don't know if I can glue anything, including liner, to this paper wall.

I'm feeling a bit of a time crunch since I wanted this room done by the end of April. DH wants me to wait until after Easter when he is on vacation to address the walls. He wants to experiment with drywall compound (mud). I don't want to put this off any longer. I suppose I could do some experimenting my self in the area behind where the bookcases are going. Then we'd know if it would stick. Why didn't I think of that three days ago?

 

[Htoo0]

Haven't done it myself but my brother uses a sheetrock-like lining paper which goes on like wallpaper and then the seams are taped and mudded just like regular sheetrock. But it's cheaper and easier then removing/replacing the actual sheetrock.

 

[pjrose]

. .

I am imaging raw silk in a coppery color or maybe a bluish damask (Downton Abbey). Wonder what that would cost?

I vote for blue (I ALWAYS vote for blue!). Come visit - we have an upholstery/drapery fabric outlet near here!