well it’s boring i know but does anyone have any suggestions for taking off wallpaper. i bought the stuff from the store and used it all like the directions said but i either end up taking off half of the paper or half of the sheetrock.it’s no fun at all.i’m doing a bunch of exterior trim and siding on this house and the H.O. says ” i need this wallpaper off and this bathroom textured, do you think you can do that?” and i have this bad habit of saying “sure, no problem!”.
sorry i posted this in the wrong section
Edited 3/8/2005 12:33 am ET by rtc
Replies
Best I ever had was using that sharp wheeled klingon looking tool that makes the little holes in da paper and then the steamplate thingamajig.
No, I wouldn't want it as a career but ya gotta try stuff ya know.
be ripping one
Hi,
I just took some wall paper off. I bought the remover at Home Depot. Can't remember the name. It was came ZIP something. I bought the spray bottle, I think it was blue. Went through about 4 bottles for about 50 square feet. It worked thought. You spray it on and let the chemical do it's thing for about 15 minutes and then scrape with a 6 inch putty knife. I had to do some spots a few times. Hope you don't have much area to do. O, then I sanded the walls.
i used the rolling hole puncher then used the DIF spray gel, let it sit, nothing. hten i got the concentrate and appllied it with a nap and a roller, a little betterbut it seems like it's gonna a few days at this rate and then i may have to skim coat the walls before i texture i didn't forsee this much trouble in my bid. i'm new to this bidding stuff. so far so good until now.
RTC
if the roller and the spray didn't work ...
time for a steamer and a putty knife.
Jeff Buck Construction
Artistry in Carpentry
Pgh, PA
Use DIF, Warm Water as per directions. I use a pump sprayer to saturate the wallpaper. Works great -- did a whole house with many different underlying surfaces (raw plaster, painted plaster, raw drywall and drywall with sizing).
Soak things with a sponge real good, try that. Or buy or rent a steamer, works good I have used them to remove the backing of lino off concrete floors.
Saw a system somewhere, I'll try to find the name, but you first score the paper with the round klingon looking thing (nice description), then put up these saturated cloths like wallpaper. It keeps the moisture on the wall, and lets you remove the better part of the entire strip of paper at once. Saw it on Ask This Old House, if anyone can remember the name
Young, poor, and eager to learn
Paper Tiger?
Sounds as if the wall wasn't primed before the paper was applied- ouch!
If the paper is that solidly adhered, you might consider a 1/4" "rock over" or skim with Durobond or the "D mix" as folks can get touchy when $600 bill for removing paper in a bathroom.
YMMV
The awful thing is that beauty is mysterious as well as terrible. God and the devil are fighting there, and the battlefield is the heart of man.
- Fyodor Dostoyevski
RT,
If the only bid mistake you have made is some wallpaper, youve done well.
Wallpaper is finicky like rock finishing and paint... it takes that type of personality.
The 3 wheeled Klingon Tiger will speed that time up, and the steamer would probably be fastest. Thats with paper paper. If its vinyl paper its a bit of a pain.
I would expect some patching afterwards, even if it came off well.
-zen
Oh, my bid mistake was an exterior paint job, but its only happened once.
We paid a couple grand for wall paper removal. Took a professional 3 days to do the dining room! Of course this includes ceilings.The best I can suggest is VERY hot water from a sprayer (after using the paper tiger) and a long handled putty knife (to keep the shreds out from under your finger nails). After the paper is off, add some white vinegar to hot water and sponge off the remaining residue. You don't want to paint (or texture) over the residue - it'll flake off.I'll post a picture tomorrow showing the design we uncovered!
Most wallpaper used in bathrooms has a vinyl face to protect the paper from exposure to moisture. Nothing penetrates that. It's kinda designed to prevent what you are trying to do. The traditional remedy is to use the Paper Tiger - available at HD - which when run across the surface of the wallpaper, makes little holes which in turn permit moisture and stripping chemical to permeate through.
I recommend that you first, maybe even instead, try to peel the vinyl face off, leaving the paper backing behind. Getting that started might require some effort, but once you get a peice of it you can manipulate it to pull off large sheets/ sections. A razor blade scratched acrooss the surface is a useful tool for this. Then, go at it with DIF (also available at HD) using a tile sponge. Wash the wall with DIF in as hot water as you can stand - rubber gloves help with the heat. Then take some .1ml or less plastic sheeting and appliy it to the walls to keep the moisture in and against the wall. It will stick to the wall by itself. Then go have a cup of coffee - about 15min. Repeat. Note: I put some newspaper on the floor against the wall to soak up excess water. Be sure to apply the paper a sheet or 2 at a time instead of by section. If the paper isn't loose, it won't soak up as much water quickly. the water will just flow over it.
I usually apply 2-3 applications of the DIF solution before I attempt to remove the paper. Sometimes the paper begins to just fall off so I help it along. The point to using DIF is that IT does the work. You should NOT be scraping hard and thus making dents or gouges in the wall. The paper should basically slide off the walls.
After all the paper is removed, you MUST remove ALL the residual glue. Again, the hotter the water the easier it will be. I like to use a teflon scowering pad for this. The green ones are available at HD in the cleaning aisle in packs of 8-10 for $3. A great deal. The ones in the painting dept are smaller and cost more.
Then wipe it down with a clean sponge and clean water and you're ready for priming.
Hope this helps,
F
Edited 3/8/2005 10:50 am ET by Frankie
As crazy as square foot pricing...
How long does it take to do a strip?
-zen
Depends on who my audience is. HA!Depends on room size. Much of the time is in site protection (esp if there is a wood floor) and clean up. Typ.Bthrm -2+ hrs. Bdrm - 4+ hours.F
Your one saving grace is that the HO wants textured walls.
You are a lucky camper.
Good chance to try the D-Mix. 54559.1
be a d-mix
The main problem I have seen cause tearing of drywall paper is if you pull away from the wall. Try to get a corner or edge lifted and pull it parallel and as close to the wall as you can. If it is dry stripable and was sized or primed it should come off with no damage. I had a customer "help" me by going ahead and removing the paper in one of her bathrooms. I had fun skimcoating all the pockmarks.
From too much experience; rent a steamer, use the paper tiger, steam the patch for much longer than you think necessary, if the paper doesn't come off easily you haven't waited long enough.
Sometimes it comes off in 2 layers, the wallpaper will come off but the paper backing sticks; treat it as 2 layers, take off all the wallpaper, then paper tiger the backing, and repeat.
Frankie has a great explanation of his method, and it seems very thorough and effective - nice post.
But those who are recommending a steamer know the benefits--trust us. It will cost you next to nothing to rent one for a day, probably $20?, and it will make your life easier!
Justin Fink
FHB Editorial
J, Yes the steamer rents cheap, but also the tool itself is only about $50 so if you have 2 jobs, worthy investment.
-zen
thanks for all the posts guys. the method that i found to work the best since the walls were not primed and the paper had a vinyl face, was to score them and steam off the paper in two seperate layers,the vinyl and then the actual paper.it's taking quite a while since the walls weren't primed but i think i'll be able to catch up to my schedule and make a few bucks on the deal.another penny in the bank thanks to the fine folks at breaktime!
RTC
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what is that?
This View Image?
no ,the cartoon
RTC
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it's the flip side of this...
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Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming
WOW!!! What a Ride!
The Wagner POS is $50, but the one you rent actually works well and retails for about $450.
http://www.wallpaperstripper.com/features.htm
Is it really a pos?
Tell me more, I guess you need 18 jobs then.
-zen
just take a look at the difference; check it out at the rental shop the next time your're in HD, one is a pro tool and the other, well, is a Wagner
difference is in how quick it heats up, how much it holds, and how much it puts out.
those same factors work for evaluating a lot of things . . .
I like Frankie's post.
FWIW
Several years ago a pro stripped and re-papered our 40 yr old ranch. He scored the paper lightly with a knife (box cutter?). Then used a 2 or 3 gal bug sprayer and applied his own mixture of:
1-2 cups household ammonia/1-2 cups vinegar/half cup spic&span to 2 gallons warm water. (not real precise measurements)
Spray until paper is saturated. Biggest mistake is not waiting long enough. He sprayed 2 or 3 times.
When he put the scraper to it, it came off in 2'x4' chunks. Did a room in 2-3 hours.
I think if the wall was not sized/primed/sealed properly, which is quite common in the diy era, your next to screwed in getting a pro job.
Thank the creater for texture/caulk/trim/poor lighting.
Removing wallpaper is a reasonable thing to do if you have old lath and plaster under it.
Sheetrock, being itself just paper over crumbly soft gypsum, makes it so very difficult to take off just the wallpaper and not wreck the rock. You're often better off either to find a way of leaving it, or demoing back to the studs. Try the steamer, if it works, fine. If not, the previous suggestion of another layer of 1/4" rock might be the cost effective solution.
-- J.S.
A fairly wet towel, and a very hot iron from the thrift store. OL won't like using hers, and then she won't iron yer pants...
Towel on the wall hit it with iron, pull it off,and clean glue at same time...