If you’re tired of your home’s existing pattern (or if you’re remodeling a recently bought home), you’re most likely questioning simply how tough it is to get rid of wallpaper yourself. While it can be a time consuming procedure, there are a couple of tried-and-true techniques that make tearing down unpleasant wallpaper much easier– and will not harm your walls.

Needed Materials

Depending on your selected removal approach, these are some of the tools you’ll need on hand for this project.

Ground cloth
Scoring tool
Removing spray
Putty knife
Steamer
Meal soap
Laundry cleaning agent

Preparation

Removing wallpaper can get messy, so you will need to prepare the walls and surrounding area before getting started.

Clear the Walls

Start by eliminating design, consisting of painting, mirrors, and racks, from your walls. You need to also remove all outlet and switch plate covers. Store everything you removed the walls in a safe space to secure them from damage.

Cover Furniture

Get rid of any furnishings from the surrounding location and cover what’s left in the room with a tarpaulin. “Be sure to place old towels or plastic drop clothing along your baseboards to prevent messy scraps from getting on the floorings,” says Gary McCoy, shop supervisor at Lowe’s.

Score the Walls

If you’re removing washable or vinyl-coated wallpaper, you need to utilize a scoring tool before using liquid or heat to produce holes in the paper. “This will enable the water and steam to shut down the glue between the paper and the wall,” states McCoy. “If eliminating other kinds of wallpaper, scoring just requires to be done if the water or option used to strip the paper isn’t being absorbed.” You will understand the paper isn’t responding to the liquid or heat if it can’t be easily torn off..

How to Remove Wallpaper.

You can get rid of wallpaper using more than one approach. “There are 3 main processes that I’ve discovered most reliable: wallpaper removing spray, steaming, or a DIY spray mix of 50 percent warm water and 50 percent laundry detergent,” states Lisa Dreissig, senior interior designer at RHG Architecture + Design. No matter which method you utilize, it’s common for old wallpaper to come off in 2 separate layers: the top decorative layer and the wall liner below, states Dreissig.

Approach 1: Stripping Spray.

One simple method to get rid of wallpaper is by soaking it with removing spray– an item developed to remove paint, surfaces, and finishings– then using a putty knife to gently peel the paper.

After preparing your walls, saturate them with the liquid stripper.
Let the liquid stripper sit for the suggested time on the bottle’s label.
Remove wallpaper in areas using a putty knife.
If the leading layer of wallpaper comes off separately, score the wall liner underneath.
Spray with wall liner with liquid stripper again.
Let the liquid stripper sit for the suggested time on the bottle’s label.
Scrape the walls with a putty knife until smooth.
When all paper is gotten rid of, clean down walls with a mix of meal soap and water.
Let dry.

Technique 2: Steaming.

If you already have a steamer on hand, you can use it to remove your wallpaper. “With this removal procedure, I’ve discovered you have to steam as you go,” says Dreissig. “The wallpaper tends to dry quickly, making it harder to remove. The key is to have the adhesive wet so it is flexible for removal.”.

After preparing your walls, steam a small section with water where you wish to begin removing the wallpaper.
Remove the area of wallpaper you simply steamed utilizing a putty knife.
Repeat the steaming and removing process on each section of wallpaper up until it is gotten rid of.
If the top layer of wallpaper comes off independently, score the wall liner underneath.
Steam the wall liner in little sections again.
Scrape the wall with a putty knife to get rid of the liner and adhesive..
As soon as all paper is eliminated, clean down walls with a mix of dish soap and water.
Let dry.

Approach 3: DIY Solution With Laundry Detergent.

You can take a DIY technique by making a spray mixture that’s half water, half laundry cleaning agent. “It’s really comparable to wallpaper stripping spray, but it is more cost reliable since it’s mostly water,” states Dreissig.

In a spray bottle, mix a service that’s 50 percent water and 50 percent laundry detergent.
After preparing your walls, saturate the walls with the DIY service.
Remove wallpaper in sections using a putty knife.
If the leading layer of the wallpaper comes off separately, score the wall liner underneath.
Spray walls with the DIY solution once again.
Let the spray sit.
Scrape the walls with a putty knife until smooth.
Once all paper is gotten rid of, clean down walls with a mixture of dish soap and water.
Let dry.