Painting over old vinyl wallpaper

[Spacebucks]

Hi guys, Im new to this site so please forgive me if Ive posted in the wrong area. Im looking to paint a lounge to give it a fresh look. It has some old vinyl paper on it which in fairness is in ok condition but is firmly stuck to the wall. To remove it would cause damage to the wall (1920's house) and I just want to give it a couple of coats of emulsion to change the look. I understand from advice I was given that I would need to paint it first with a product like Zinssers BIN. Im reluctant to do this due to the extremely high VOC content and I also have people suffering with Asthma who live with me so this isnt really an opition. Can anyone suggest a primer i can use on vinyl wallpaper that wont choke everyone out? Thanks

 

[kbdiy]

A few years ago I need to do a quick revamp of a lounge and painted straight over vinyl paper with matt vinyl emulsion. Many years on it still looks good. I would just avoid trying to do it where there is likely to be a lot of wear and tear as it probably won't stand up to much abrasion.