How to remove wallpaper from the walls quickly?

Everyone who likes to change the design of rooms in the house from time to time on their own knows that before starting repairs in the room, it is imperative to completely remove the old trim from the walls. Most often, the old wallpaper coating has to be scraped off, and it is not always possible to remove it completely. But in order for the new decorative finish to lie flat and hold for a long time, it is very important to prepare the wall with high quality. We will tell you how to remove wallpaper from the walls quickly and completely so that you do not linger at this stage of repair work for too long.

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Preparatory work

In order to quickly remove wallpaper from the walls at home, it is very important to carefully prepare the surface:

• Before starting work, be sure to free the room from furniture. If you do not have such an opportunity, then cover it with a film or rags.
• In order to save time and facilitate the cleaning process, first cover the floors with sheets of cardboard.
• If you plan to remove the old wallpaper in a wet way, be sure to turn off the electricity first.

Important! If you do not have the opportunity to turn off the electricity, you must carefully close all the switches and sockets with tape and fix it with tape.

• Put a damp cloth on the doorstep. This is necessary so that dust and debris do not spread to other rooms.
• Gather all the necessary tools so that nothing distracts you during work.

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What you may need

Regardless of the type and texture of wallpaper, you may need the following tools to remove them:

• Ladder;
• Sacks or garbage bags;
• Gloves;
• A bucket of warm water;
• Stationery knife;
• Sharp spatulas of different sizes and shapes;
• Sponges;
• Rags;
• Roller.

Important! If you need to remove vinyl wallpaper, then in this case you will still need a steam generator, a roller with needles and a special tool for removing such paintings.

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The main methods of removing old wallpaper

In order to remove old, firmly glued wallpaper from the walls, we bring to your attention several proven methods that will help you do this quickly and without much physical effort.

Traditional method

The easiest and most proven way is to use water. For this:

1. Soak the wallpaper with a hot solution of water and dishwashing detergent.
2. Apply it to the surface with a sponge and wait 10-30 minutes, then repeat the procedure again.
3. Once the wallpaper is swollen, you can safely proceed to remove them. To do this, using a spatula, pry off the edge of the canvas and remove it.
4. Shreds that still could not be removed, rub with sandpaper.

Important! It is best not to completely process the wall, but this should be done in parts. This is necessary so that while you are working on one side, the second does not have time to dry.

Clean with steam

High-quality glue that you could not dissolve with water can be steamed with an iron. To do this, you will need:

• A sheet or a thin terry towel;
• Capacity with water;
• An assistant who will hold the fabric.

The sequence of actions is as follows:

1. Moisten a rag in water and unscrew it well. Attach it to the surface of the wall.
2. Turn on the iron and set it to maximum temperature.
3. Iron a sheet several times with a hot iron.
4. Remove the rag, quickly remove the remaining wallpaper from the wall with a spatula.

Wallpaper can also be softened with a steam generator or steam cleaner. To do this, before starting work, you need to attach a dry sheet. This is necessary in order not to provoke a breakdown of this equipment.

Important! Pay attention to the fact that steam penetrates the surface of the wall, including putty. Therefore, before gluing new paintings, leave the walls alone and let them dry for about 3-4 days. Otherwise, mold may appear.

Special compounds

In order to quickly remove the wallpaper and not spend too much time on this procedure, you can use a special tool for instant removal of paintings from the wall. It can be purchased at hardware stores. As for the form of release, the most common is powdered or jelly, which are diluted in water before starting work.

In order to remove the wallpaper:

• Lower the roller into the prepared solution and treat the walls with it.

Important! On water-repellent webs, it is necessary to pre-make several incisions before starting the treatment.

• Leave the walls for 2-3 hours so that the paper layer softens and the glue dissolves.

The wallpaper will start to lag on its own, and you will need to simply take it off, without making any special physical effort.

Important! Despite the fact that manufacturers claim the safety of such compounds, the work is best done with gloves on. If the solution gets on the open surface of the skin, it must be washed with plenty of clean water.

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How to take off old paper wallpapers?

Before starting work, you should pay attention to the fact that paper wallpaper can be of several types, respectively - the methods for their removal are also different:

• Single layer canvases. This is the simplest coating that can be removed without much difficulty with ordinary warm water. It is enough to moisten it and leave it to swell for 5-7 minutes. After that, you can safely shoot.
• Two-layer paper wallpaper, or duplex. They get wet a little longer than single-layer. Therefore, after you have moistened the surface, you should wait about 10-20 minutes - it depends on the quality of the material.

Important! Such wallpaper canvases, when removed, may begin to delaminate. This is not scary if your walls are even and do not need to be repaired; otherwise, the procedure will need to be repeated in order to remove the second layer.

• Washable. Due to the fact that the surface is moisture resistant, it does not allow water to pass through, so it is necessary to destroy the top layer in order to remove the canvas. This can be done using a special roller with needles, or as it is also called a “wallpaper tiger”. If you don’t have one, you can use a metal brush or other sharp object.

Important! Washable paper wallpapers should be moistened several times, with an interval of 15-20 minutes. So they swell well and can be easily removed.

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How to remove vinyl wallpaper?

Basically, vinyl wallpaper consists of a paper base and a polymer layer. Due to this combination, they are durable, protected from moisture and do not create difficulties during gluing. In addition, the range of such paintings is simply unlimited. They can be washable, foamed, with silk thread, have resistance to various solvents and alcohol. Accordingly, removing vinyl canvases is not so simple.

Therefore, in this case, you can not do without a special wallpaper roll with needles. And in order for the process of removing old wallpaper from concrete walls and other surfaces to go faster, you must adhere to the following sequence of actions:

1. Walk the roller over the entire surface of the walls.
2. Using a roller or other rags, moisten one sheet, and after 5 minutes, another. Keeping this period of time, process the entire surface of the wall in this way.
3. Using a sharp spatula, pry off the top of the strip that you moistened at the very beginning, then gently pull down with smooth movements.
4. If small pieces remain, moisten them again and proceed to the next sheet. Do the same with the rest of the wallpaper strips.
5. After you removed the 3 canvas, return to the first and use a spatula to clean the wall from scraps.
6. Then continue the work at the same interval.

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How to remove non-woven wallpaper?

Such canvases consist of fairly strong synthetic fibers that have a waterproof layer. Therefore, in order to remove this decorative coating from the wall:

1. It is necessary to make incisions using a clerical knife or walk with a special roller with needles.
2. After this, the canvas can be moistened with water and left for 15-20 minutes.

After the specified time, the glue will swell, and the wallpaper will begin to lag behind the surface of the wall.

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How to remove liquid wallpaper?

Liquid wallpaper is a decorative coating designed for walls and ceilings. They are made from flakes of cotton or cellulose and water-soluble glue. Therefore, you can remove such a coating by simply wetting it with water. For this:

1. Wet the wallpaper several times with a spray or sponge.
2. Once they swell, remove them easily with a metal spatula or scraper.

Important! Liquid wallpaper is a fairly durable and versatile coating that can be reused, even after removal from the wall.

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Remove wallpaper from drywall

Drywall is very often used for interior decoration. It helps to hide and smooth out all the defects and bumps in the walls. Unfortunately, removing wallpaper from the surface of drywall is quite difficult. This is due to the fact that on top of this material is covered with a paper layer, respectively - wetting the canvas with water, you can damage the drywall itself. In order to remove old paper wallpaper, it is best to use special chemicals with which you can dissolve the glue.

Important! The use of chemicals to remove wallpaper from walls of drywall should be if the surface was glued before gluing.

Another option is to use regular glue. For this:

1. Apply it on the surface of the wall and allow to dry.
2. After the material swells, remove the old canvas with a spatula.

Important! Sometimes a primer is used instead of glue. The advantage of this method is that you not only remove the old wallpaper, but also additionally protect the surface.

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Useful Tips

We offer you some tips to help you quickly and easily remove the old wallpaper, even in the most unusual situations:

• In old buildings, only the top layer of wallpaper should be removed. This is due to the fact that the walls in such rooms are thin and uneven. Therefore, if you do not want a small repair to turn into a major one, it is better not to touch the second layer.
• Thin paper wallpaper, which could not be removed with water and special chemicals, should be cleaned using a drill. For this, a nozzle in the form of a brush with iron bristles is put on the tool. Remaining bumps can be removed with acrylic putty.
• Always remove the remnants of the old glue from the wall surface, as the quality of the new coating depends on this.

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Stock footage

As you can see, you can remove the old wallpaper from the walls using different methods. But in order that this process does not take a lot of time, it is very important to consider the above tips and recommendations.Putting them into practice, you can avoid many mistakes, significantly reduce repair time and save the family budget.