Don't want wallpaper!

[bengee]

I don't want to use wallpaper in my house. Instead i want to be able to have smooth plaster that i can paint.

Has anyone got any tips or websites that i can read to achieve this?

I'm thinking that i'll have to sand the whole lot as well as fill in gaps? Is this right? Are there any quick ways to sand a whole room?

Any info very appreicated.

Ben

 

[MullanNiall]

Hi there,

We were exactly the same when we moved into our place 3 years ago. Given the chance again I'd leave the wallpaper depending on the state of the walls underneath.

We found once the wallpaper was removed that the walls were very badly chipped / ripped underneath and we didn't help it due to inexperience with wall scrapers. In short it was a nightmare and after all the sanding and filling the walls still don't look good when the light catches them infact we ended up repapering one as it was so bad.

If you can live with the wallpaper I would just paint it, there is no quick way to get around this problem neatly that we found, and it is an awful lot of time and effort in a house. Sorry for not being more optimistic but it may save you some time.

Cheers
Niall

 

[bengee]

Hi Niall

We've already ripped about 90% off the wallpaper off the walls!

Your reply was kind of what i was thinking anyway. The walls/plaster underneath the old wallpaper is a bit rough in places, tiny holes here and there, and feels a bit rough all over - which is why i wanted to sand and treat it all.

I suppose if i want it doing properly i'd be best getting at pro in, but can't afford that.

 

[DAZB]

What you can do is line the walls with 1200 guage Lining Paper , making sure you don't overlap any of the seams , and after it is all dry get a large tub of Fine Surface Filler and fill any gaps along joints etc and using a very fine sandpaper lighly rub the filler back until it looks like a seamless joint. The wall can then be painted as usual and will look great. It's how the pro's do it.

 

[navgeeza]

Do what Dazb suggested i did this although with 1000 guage paper.. and it works real well.. but i made some slight mistakes of overlapping in a couple of places and that shows! as a rule of thumb a small gap is better than an overlap (the filler works great!).

 

[bengee]

So does this 1x00 guage lining paper look like the walls have been plastered? Does it have the same look and feel of smooth/skim plaster?

 

[benm]

I had the same problem as you (and an aversion to wallpaper), covering it up with 1200 lining paper did the trick. Also fairly quick to do - took an afternoon to do a bedroom, so much faster and cleaner than messing about with filler and sanding. We filled any big holes etc. first though.

 

[navgeeza]

Its probably not exactly like a plastered wall but has a nice smooth finish and ideal for painting over.. I put about 2 coats of undercoat just out of preference and it looks great..

One thing to also consider if you go along this route is which way to paste the paper on the wall.. i did it vertically according to what i have read, but i have seen some people do it horizontally (usually done if your going to put wallpaper up after the lining paper). As this involves less joins and cutting, but requires more than one person to do.

 

[masona]

using a very fine sandpaper lighly rub the filler back until it looks like a seamless joint.

Doesn't the sandpaper leave a tear or scratch mark on the lining paper or probably doesn't noticed with paintcover.

And I take it the wall got to be fairly flat and can you get away with it on a small dotted holes (or pitted,is that the right word?)

 

[il78]

Keep the wallpaper up, the Mrs says "embossed wallpaper is the new smooth" and she watches a lot of House Style...........( Just keeps me in DIY )

 

[DAZB]

I am not sure what grit the sandpaper you should use is without checking it out but you should obviously use the finest grit paper you can buy. Rub lightly for the best results.

 

[DAZB]

I am not sure what grit the sandpaper you should use is without checking it out but you should obviously use the finest grit paper you can buy. Rub lightly for the best results.

A quick check has shown you can get 60,80,100,120,150,180,220,240,280,320,360,400,500,600,800,1000,1200 grits among others.

 

[ChrisR]

I spent some years decorating and really like plastered unpapered walls. But you can't repair plaster and not have the different texture show through unless you use silly amounts of paint. But lining paper and fine filler as described above is a fair compromise. With everything dry you can use 220 grit sandpaper. If you DO get overlaps, surprisingly you can sand those down too.
Good enough usually (even for me, I'm a fussy sod), and a lot quicker than fine filler, is the ultralight stuff - Red Devil and others, which you wont need to sand

Otherwise get the walls all re plaster-skimmed. BUt seriously, it is very very hard to get a plasterer to leave a super good finish, it takes too long and "nobody else wants it absolutely f************* perfect"!

 

[skellem]

I have used lining paper with good results, make sure you fill all holes before had and also make sure you sand the wall properly first. A tiny spot of filler will show through the paper and look horrible! Also, when gluing, make sure you don't get any grit on the brush or this will show through as well.

The other route I have followed is to apply plasterboard over the whole wall. You can use 9mm board and dot and dab it on, fill the joints (or get someone to do it for you for better results, it can be tricky!) and then paint. I have found that this is by far the better way of doing it and you get a wall that looks like new. I had to do this in some of my rooms because the plastering and blockwork was so bad I couldn't even line it!

Good luck!

 

[bengee]

Thanks for the info folks.

Plasterboard sounds like a good idea to me. Does the plasterboard then have to be skim plastered, or can it be painted on straight away?