I'm trying to remove the wallpaper from the landing and stairs of an old house, built in about 1920.
The walls in question have never ever been stripped, they have merely been papered, painted, re-papered, re-painted and so on.
The problem is that some of the painted paper is very old, and is quite akin to an oil based gloss paint, which of course, forms a lovely barrier to steam. The paste holding this stuff on is something else!
I am tearing my hair out with the slow progress of this job.
I can get the top layers of paper off, then score the walls with a stanley knife, hold the steamer on and apply the scraper. The last (gloss painted) layer of paper refuses to budge and I get about 1/2" off at a time. More steam, which then softens the lime plaster through the score line and then the scraper gouges the plaster!!
Are there any other tried and true methods, other than steaming, of loosening the paper? If it has to be this way I am going to have to use a bag of plaster to re-fill the gouges, but at the end of the day I want this muck off the walls.
Any advice greatly appreciated.
The walls in question have never ever been stripped, they have merely been papered, painted, re-papered, re-painted and so on.
The problem is that some of the painted paper is very old, and is quite akin to an oil based gloss paint, which of course, forms a lovely barrier to steam. The paste holding this stuff on is something else!
I am tearing my hair out with the slow progress of this job.
I can get the top layers of paper off, then score the walls with a stanley knife, hold the steamer on and apply the scraper. The last (gloss painted) layer of paper refuses to budge and I get about 1/2" off at a time. More steam, which then softens the lime plaster through the score line and then the scraper gouges the plaster!!
Are there any other tried and true methods, other than steaming, of loosening the paper? If it has to be this way I am going to have to use a bag of plaster to re-fill the gouges, but at the end of the day I want this muck off the walls.
Any advice greatly appreciated.