Q&A for How to Remove Wallpaper

The best way to remove wallpaper is to spray it with soapy water and let it sit for a while. You have to let the glue dissolve in order to scrape it off.

Unscented fabric softener is dye and perfume free, plus if you have a MCS or EMF sensitivity it would be in your best interest to use the unscented fabric softener.

It depends on the wallpaper. Some wallpaper will come off in one layer, leaving a paper layer with adhesive but no wall damage, therefore no need to skim coat. In this case, simply soak with a store-bought solution that softens it enough to come off by hand without damaging the wall or texture. Then make sure all of the adhesive comes off, washed the wall well to remove all of the remover and painted with no issues. However, some wallpaper won't come off easily so it may need to be removed one square inch at a time and in this case, it may damage the wall and texture. When this occurs, you will have to skim coat the wall and texture it.

You have to have good paper that is firmly attached. You also have to sand all of the seams with fine grade sand paper by hand. Apply primer in a very very thin coat. You might have to use two very thin coats. Apply oil based or latex paint in a very thin coat. Too much paint will bubble the paper. The paper is likely to bubble anyway, but if you use a thin coat, the paper will re-adhere to the walls and leave a smooth surface. It would be best to completely remove the wallpaper if you are planning to paint though.

After all of the wallpaper is off, I use a solution of hot water and paste applied to the wall with a tire scrubbing brush. (It's long-handled and soft-bristled.) This process will gently soften the wallpaper paste. When the paste is good and gooey, I then rinse the walls with plain hot water and fluffy terry cloth towels. The paste sticks in the loops of terry cloth and lifts off the wall; you may have to do this more than once. Do not prime and paint before you have removed all of the paste or your finished product will be rough and lumpy (and it will be too late to fix it).

Reapply hot water and fabric softener with spray to the paper wait 15 minutes and than reapply the hot solution again until you see that the paper is well saturated. Wait another 15 minutes and then try rescraping. If it does not all come off, repeat the steps until it is completely removed.

You should remove the wallpaper first. Otherwise, you risk the stone coming loose if the wallpaper starts to detach from the walls.

You could damage the walls underneath if you just try to sand away the wallpaper. Try peeling away the wallpaper, scraping away the backing, and cleaning away the glue individually. It may take a little longer, but your walls will look nicer in the end.

You can make a super simple solution out of water and vinegar that will loosen up your wallpaper so you can remove it. Take a clean spray bottle and fill it with equal parts warm water and white vinegar. Seal the bottle and shake it well to combine the solution. Apply the mixture over your wallpaper and let it soak for about 15 minutes before you scrape off the paper.

If you don't have a steamer, no problem! You can easily remove wallpaper using plain old water. Fill a clean spray bottle with hot water and saturate the wallpaper with the water. Allow it to soak in for at least 15 minutes to loosen it up and make the adhesive easier to separate from the wall. Then, use a scraper to start removing the damp wallpaper.

Pry up a corner of the wallpaper to see how easily it separates from the wall. If it doesn't at all, use a scoring tool to scratch up the wallpaper. Then, fill a spray bottle with hot water and cover the wall with the water so it's fully saturated. Let the wallpaper soak for 15 minutes to loosen it up, then take a putty knife and use it to start scraping the wallpaper away from the wall. Hold the edge of the putty knife so it doesn't scratch the surface of the drywall and continue working until all of the wallpaper is removed.