DIY Wallpaper Removal Tips from West County Professionals

August 21, 2020 Blog, Commercial Services, Residential Services, Speciality Services

There’s absolutely no question that almost anyone is capable of removing wallpaper by themselves—that’s why we’re writing this to begin with. In West County, we’re basically the authority on wallpaper removal. We’ve been in the business for over 30 years! Keep reading to check out our guide on how to remove wallpaper in your home.

Don’t worry! If you finish reading our article and decide it’s too much work (we get it!), you can always call us at 636.485.5435 or fill out our online form to reach out to us via email. We’ll get back to you as soon as humanly possible to discuss your project.

Required Tools and Materials

  • Hot Water
  • Vinegar
  • Fabric Softener
  • Rigid Putty Knife
  • Wallpaper Scoring Tool
  • Screwdriver
  • Pressure Sprayer
  • Safety Glasses (technically optional, if you don’t like your eyes)
  • Plastic painter’s tarp
  • Painter’s tape
  • Garbage can with liner

Step 1: Protect Your Floors and the Surrounding Environment

The first step to successfully removing wallpaper in your home is to prep the area. That way you know you aren’t going to ruin your floors with old glue, dust, or anything else that might find its way onto your floor. Start by placing down your plastic tarp and affixing it to your trim using the painter’s tape we mentioned you’d need. You can use it to cover any outlets too.

Step 2: Start Lifting Up the Wallpaper

There are many different types of wallpaper, but generally speaking there will be an outer layer, and an inner adhesive layer. Find an edge on your wallpaper (this is easily accomplished by starting from a corner or the edge of a wall) and lift it up using the edge of your putty knife. Try to peel as much as you can without tearing as a challenge!

Step 3: Scoring Isn’t Just for Sports…

We can say with confidence that near 90% of the time, your wallpaper removal project will require using a hot water solution to loosen your wallpaper’s adhesive. This can be a real pain in rooms or areas that are supposed to be water resistant, but what will really help is perforating the wallpaper with a wallpaper scoring tool like this one on Amazon.

Step 4: Actually Mix the Hot Water Solution

You can use the fabric softener for this, and it definitely works, but for a less toxic approach, try using 1/3 household vinegar mixed with 2/3 hot water. This is the part where we recommend wearing eye protection, if you weren’t already. Load up the mixture into your spray bottle or pressure sprayer and get spraying! At this point, you’ll be grateful you spent that time laying plastic down on the floor.

Step 5: Soak and Scrape

CAUTION: BE CAREFUL SPRAYING NEAR OUTLETS. WATER AND ELECTRICITY DO NOT MIX. IF YOU ARE CONCERNED, TURN OFF POWER TO THE AREA YOU ARE WORKING IN BEFORE PROCEEDING.

Using your spray bottle or pressure sprayer, apply the solution you just mixed and spray the wall down. Obviously don’t use too much, just enough to loosen the adhesive. The temperature of the water is the biggest player here, so make sure you don’t take too long. Give the solution three to five minutes before trying to remove wallpaper. If you’re lucky, it’ll come off in sheets you can just toss in the garbage.

Step 6: The Clean Up Act

You’ll notice that even though the paper is gone, there’s some adhesive left behind on your wall. Don’t worry, just spray a little bit more solution (of course being careful around electricity) and scrape away the remaining adhesive.

Your done! Great job, you just removed your own wallpaper. Boy that was exhausting! Next time, call the experts from Gib and Son Painting at 636.485.5435 or fill out or online form to reach out via email. Whether you live in West County, St. Louis, St. Charles, Kirkwood, Creve Coeur, Frontenac, University City…well, you get it…Forget the rest, hire the best! Gib and Son is second to none. We look forward to helping you complete your next project!

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