3 Ways to Remove Wallpaper (+1 Bonus Method)

[@HomeRenoVisionDIY]

Thanks for watching, if you found this video helpful please subscribe. Learn How to Repair Your Drywall 👉🏼kzbin.info/www/bejne/eIbGhWiCfdJ0bdk and to Paint Your Room 👉🏼kzbin.info/www/bejne/fn20dJdpl7aphq8

[@chriscolameco6850]

I deal with a lot of 100+ year old plaster walls and generally use a paint roller to apply the mud before skimming it off. Any advantage to troweling it on I'm missing?

[@lmginnovations-deck-builders]

I appreciate how you break down complex projects into manageable steps. Your clear instructions and practical advice make even the most daunting tasks seem achievable. Thank you for being such a great guide and mentor.

[@jclite1111]

I could smell this video. When I was a kid, my family moved into a house with wallpaper in all the bedrooms. I spent months in my room peeling the top layer, spraying the under layer with water, and peeling it off, little by little. It was so satisfying when I finished.

[@leonardoalfonso7080]

Thank you for taking the time off from your busy schedule to teach us how to get rid of wallpaper.

[@peter.g6618]

Hi Jeff. Some really great advice there. Things I just wouldn't of known. 👍. Thank you for sharing Jeff. Best renovation channel ever. Great content. Take care. 👌

[@thegreatestever4887]

What I like about your videos is you're explanation of different techniques or given examples of how to avoid difficult situations. Even though I live in another country, (New Zealand) where products, trade code and regulations vastly differ I can still apply some of your methods to how I could DIY. Thanks Jeff

[@K.L.M.Online]

Many thanks! I think you’ve just saved me a lot of time and money.

[@HomeRenoVisionDIY]

Glad I could help!

[@lauraslotemaker4490]

I watched your tile videos for my own DIY tile backsplash project (which is going beautifully I might add). I subscribed and just watched THIS and decided I might as well have a go at some beloved but ugly bathroom wallpaper I've ignored for the past 10 years. Oh my. It came up SO EASILY. Tear the first layer, sponge the second and wait to peel it up. WHAT?!? I wrongly assumed I needed some product for this task, but NO, I just needed to watch your video and stop overcomplicating things in my brain! Thank you so much!

[@InJusticeAustralia]

brilliant how to vid & I love the added humour

[@davehughes7941]

I use the steam stripper regularly. Start from the top and work down placing stripper on next section of wall as you're stripping the wet parts. It's really fast when you get the hang of it. Cheers

[@Sue-ec6un]

Very good video...I have done this...learned as I went, but this skim coating is definitely the way to go. Only problem I had was with an 18 ft high hallway wall...so I just textured the entire wall, worked great!

[@philipmoody1248]

Sponge hot water on small areas only! For most of the wall use a roller, new sleeve and an handle extension with your water in your pan. The idea is to push the water into the base layer of the paper with the pressure of your roller. This is the method that worked well for me very well because it was so fast. The wallpaper was very thick with fuzzy felt designs and goldish inlays.

[@HomeRenoVisionDIY]

Great idea!!

[@mfinn6589]

I agree with you. I moved into a 1987 house in 2009 with wallpaper layers in all the rooms. I finely did what you did and it worked great at getting the water behind the paper. I let it sit, came back rolled water again, let it sit, rolled water again and then started peeling. Definitely put towels along the baseboard. I scored the wall with the roller gadget and then applied water with the roller. Way easier.

[@jawkeye]

That sounds like a great idea. I don't have a lot experience, and I guess I got lucky with the wallpaper I needed to remove, but I felt like using a water sprayer was a faster way to apply more water to the wall, at least vs using a wet rag. I'm guessing it might be worth trying instead of a sponge, but a roller sounds like it would be even better.

[@cdb989]

First house I bought in 98 was a story and a half, built in 1954 ( loved that house ) Every room had at least 6-7 layers of wallpaper ( no joke ) Rented a wallpaper steamer for the weekend when I got the keys to the house, and went to town, it was a lot of work but well worth it

[@sharonByrd-e1v]

I have been working on my place where more than 3 walls are wallpapered! YUCK! The place was built in 1973. I used a great product called CHOMP great smelling and removes the wallpaper really good! But the backing glue etc. another story! The wall paper was removed but quite a bit has left the glue backing, I will definitely do the skimming process, and skip the orange peel process in the bathrooms! I bought a Wagner steamer will try using it this weekend. I am so glad I watched this video now I can just skim it to make it look like it never happened! OMG! so relieved!! I had to demo the kitchen and the walls were wallpapered! And all walls are orange peel. Since a new kitchen is going in, I do not have worry about making them orange peel. Boy oh boy, wish I paid attention in my wood working classes!! Thank you Home Renovations!

[@Jesusismyjam]

Thank you Jeff! We just bought our first home and it has ALOT of wallpaper, I was a bit discouraged but after seeing your video, I’m confident my husband and I can get the job done! 😊

[@bluesteelworx]

I always used hot tap water in a $3 spray bottle. Never had a problem peeling vinyl paper the way you peeled the paper.

[@cgarciam8]

I removed the wallpaper from my 900 sqft condo using the steam tool you showed. First I removed the top layer, then I used the steamer, but I was not waiting 10 seconds on each square, I was moving it around in a similar way you moved the sponge. Best $50 I could have spent.

[@tompacker3384]

I just spent the weekend removing a border from the top of my bathroom from the 60's. It was a nightmare, even using plenty of warm water. Will definitely try some of these other techniques if I decide to do other rooms in the house.

[@Mishyou33]

I've been watching you forever! Your videos are so helpful and today you mention my hometown of Cambridge, Ontario!! 🤯

[@cosmoarmstrong8701]

When I used a steamer I did not hold it in one place then scrape. I would slowly move the steam tray around a 4x4 area then scrape.

[@AlmightyBigD001]

When we bought our house, the entire dining room and a wall in the spare bedroom had wallpaper. I used that scoring tool you showed and then sprayed it down with a mixture of water and laundry fabric softener. It made a terrible mess, but it came off pretty easily after letting it soak in for a bit.

[@themalacast]

High-effort video. Thanks Jeff

[@Toxic_Skittles]

Interesting video. So glad I don’t have wallpaper in my current residence. Good information for the future though. Thanks.

[@andreycham4797]

I have that blue blade too . When I paint, I use it to cut around trim with a small paint roller

[@phillyfathead]

Excellent, thank you!

[@darthsynchronic]

Diluted fabric softener solution and light scoring is the best!

[@darlenej8755]

Thanks the walls in my home were not primed before the wallpaper was applied so I was going to have a mess the priming and skim coat is a great option for me.

[@HomeRenoVisionDIY]

Glad I could help

[@BenuelBlank-l1s]

I have used that exact steamer to remove some really difficult wallpaper to remove and it works excellent. The key is you have to let the steamer heat up for 10 to 15 minutes before it’s ready to use, I saw in the video there was no steam coming out of the steamer and of course it didn’t work like that because it’s not actually steaming. But if you use the steamer the way that instructions tell you it works excellent! I didn’t even have to use that little roller thing that he showed in the video.

[@luilui03able]

excellent video ,bravo!!

[@gordonnewton4832]

Love to see you try to remove woodchip paper that's been under coated and glossed.

[@MSeroga]

I see you’ve leveled up to Level 5 drywall tools Jeff! 🎉😊

[@YThatesTRUTH]

I used wall paper removal spray... think it was called jif of something. Worked great. Sprayed waited and peeled

[@palabradepoder915]

Great vid as always!

[@HomeRenoVisionDIY]

Appreciate that. Just taking advantage of my new forever home to film options for remodeling before we totally demo this entire house and start over. Cheers!

[@mandys6525]

Thank you so much! I have a kitchen to do with original old wallpaper applied late '70s/early '80s. 😏

[@coffeenut3808]

This was very helpful. Thank you so much.

[@ellde4761]

I sure open it that easy!

[@juliahauss5496]

Hey there! Thanks so much for showing us. How would you go about an old house that has lots of layers of wallpaper? Would you rip of the top layer, then moisten the walls to remove the 'back of the wallpaper' then rip off the front of the wallpaper underneath and so on? Thanks!

[@andyhedges5705]

Can you let me know the link to the full wall preparation video that you were pointing to, nothing came up.

[@curtelverd4008]

Would you recommend skim coating wood paneling? Or just replace it with dry wall?

[@thesandman775]

"It's like a lottery, sometimes you win, sometimes you lose" I did an entire house, built in the 80s, probably papered in the 90s, and lost in every single room of the house. I could find seams, but the adhesive seemed eternally bonded to the external face. Had to butcher the walls and skim coat to do any sort of decent looking replacement on it. One tip for those having a tough time... You don't need a wall steamer, just buy a hand held garment steamer. Works well in my experience.

[@thesandman775]

Also, Zinnser Gardz has been absolutely critical in my experience. Allows for not removing all the stubborn areas and seals the adhesive or paper so it doesn't bubble

[@joeolejar]

I lost due to the wallpaper was installed on raw drywall. i.e. NO sealer on the drywall. Ended up pulling the drywall off and starting over. The whole house was like this. After destroying the bathroom, I started leaving the paper in place and sealed it with a shellac based primer. Follow with primer and paint away.

[@HomeRenoVisionDIY]

in these cases it is totally reasonable to prime and skin coat rather than start over. Cheers!

[@jlocke78759]

I ran into the same thing when trying to remove wallpaper from a small section in the kitchen. The drywall was not primed or prepped before putting up the wallpaper. Consequently, I gouged lots of holes through the drywall paper in the process of removing the wallpaper. I painted on GARDZ, a Zinnser product, and it sealed the drywall so I felt good about primering and painting with minimal mud involved. The ceiling, after scraping the popcorn, however, needed a good skim coat.

[@billm.8220]

Ran into the same problem YEARS ago. We’re talking approx. 18 years ago. Primed, sanded & painted it. Turned out pretty decent. When I sold it, the new owner ripped out EVERY wall back to the studs & totally reconfigured the whole house !!

[@The_Dougie]

Jeff, why can't you skip the skin coat and just paint over the oil primer?

[@tsb278]

​@The_Dougie if you just paint over the primer you will see where all the wall paper was cut away. The primer and paint won't fill those voids to make the surface smooth. Skim coat also smooths out the texture of the wallpaper.

[@Starry_Night_Sky7455]

Wait that's vintage! Waaaaait! 😅

[@peterpnutz6691]

My wallpaper was fibrous and tested positive for lead. i went ahead and called in a contractor to remove, seal, and skim. I have no clue how to remove that kind of old adhesive without spreading the bad stuff into the air.

[@billklement2492]

Jeff, Great video! My townlouse was built in the early 80s. The paint was sprayed on the hottest day of the year with the cheapest paint imaginable! There is no waterproof coating. So basically I took part of the drywall paper off with the wall paper. Wet or dry. I accepted I was going to do a skim coat early on. I have primer on it now and will get to the skim coat eventually. Other issues need to be addressed and other projects. Fortunately it's a small area that was wallpapered. There is wallpaper above my new kitchen cabinets that I'm going to prime and skim over. That wall is pretty rough, so It needs a skim anyway. I appreciate that advice. Another contractor told me I had to remove it! He did terrible work, so I didn't consider any of his advice! Quick question... Do I need to prime over latex paint before I skim coat? Different wall. Thanks for the great videos!

[@HomeRenoVisionDIY]

if the latex paint is clean and not a really dark color then no need to prime at all. Cheers!

[@nyla3235]

Would you use that primer in a bathroom where moisture is prevalent but you don't have good ventilation?

[@伏見猿比古-k8c]

I want to remove some wall paper from a section of the house, but the ceiling above it is popcorn(it's a 60's home, so likely contains aspestos) and with how close the ceiling is with the wall paper....well I want your opion on what I should do.

[@telumears]

I have painted over wall paper...ugh! Any additional suggestions? Thank you!

[@dransom90]

I had to peel off wallpaper in my "new" home a couple of years ago. The steamer was the only thing that got it off of the walls. Good thing it was winter outside.

[@terryl.9302]

Hot Water in a pump-up garden sprayer works best. Removed every nightmare paper job ever devised, including on straight bare drywall. Construction Sins Inc as seen by a fine finisher. Tiger is useless, imo. A bit of any vinegar in water helps lift residue for painting. Fill & light sanding, ready for paint. Avoid skimcoats at all costs bcz of major Sanding Mess involved. Leveling parts of walls bad enough. Love Zinsser everything.

[@amalias8888]

The paper tiger worked great for me. You didn't let the water sit long enough, I bet. It came right off...but I was not impatient.

[@jsonlee01]

I hired a “professional” painter to paint the whole house that included a half bath that had a wallpaper border. He didn’t bother to try to gently remove the wallpaper. He just started scraping and gouging the hell out of the drywall. So then he had to repair the drywall and put cover it with mud to smooth it out. Now you can see a different between the wall and the strip that is all smooth. Ridiculous.

[@jonwright1916]

I actually used that for a 150 sq ft room. Took way too long. Spray bottle and putty knife the fastest way

[@Bewefau]

Jeff, can you buy dry wall that has wall paper already applied to the dry wall ?

[@KristenVillane]

You mentioned a tool that is best to use on plaster walls. Could you link an example of it? Much appreciated

[@youtubasoarus]

I had a to do a whole house like this, but I used a sprayer and by saturating the back sheet it just comes off with very little pressure. Gotta keep it wet. If you have to scrape its not wet enough. When its ready it's very satisfying to just take off pretty much the entire sheet in one pass. If you scrape too much you end up gouging the wall and then you have drywall repair to do on top of this. Nobody wants that. Also, for the love of all that is holy DO NOT USE that damn perforator. You will wreck your wall and spend then next 4 lifetimes taking the remnants off of the wall. I tried that thing, and if you want to march through hell, go get one. Nightmare!

[@Purplemacaw]

This is insane! I am just about to re decorate a 1970’s house which is full of wall paper! Question.. how long do you need to leave the skim coat to dry until you paint?

[@HomeRenoVisionDIY]

overnight. Cheers!

[@hilltopper600]

can i paint over wood paneling with flat oil

[@stuartc2170]

I used that wallpaper steamer to remove the glue left over from the linoleum flooring in one of my bathrooms. It was on concrete and scraped off with no effort at all.

[@sunnybizz4857]

I used this method on some very difficult paper, and I ended up gouging with the scraper. Once the wall is clean, should I be skimming the wall with drywall putty and then prime?

[@EmreSafak]

Apply a sealant like Rx-35 Pro-999 or Kilz before skimming it.

[@lonna4591]

OMG. You may have just halved my project time and my project is huge. I bought a 110 year old house with raised wallpaper that has been painted over in the biggest room, the living room. I already removed the wall paper in the dining room and skim coated the walls due to cracks in the plaster. I know there are cracks under the wall paper in the living room and skim coating is in my future there. To be able skip the step of removing the wall paper!! I am thinking though, where I see the cracks/winkles I will still need to chisel them out and repair before the skim coat. Correct?

[@politics4816]

We were looking at buying a house that had wall paper in nearly every room that my wife wanted removed. After watching this video I passed on it. Life is too short. What a pain!

[@CynthiaBoyd-t1n]

What do you do if the wallpaper has several layers of paint on top? thanks!

[@Fjord_Driver]

You don't take the steamer off the wall. You move it while you scrape with your other hand. Once you use it for more than 10 minutes, you figure out what motion works. Distilled water is recommended. It's also good for steaming wrinkles out of clothing on hangars. You could probably use it to steam loosen those stick on anti-slip things in tubs too.

[@GangstasCat]

Good luck to find a wall with one layer of wallpapers

[@chrislnflorida5192]

😂😂, i have done Sooo many of those type of wall. Wall Paper, ive even used a Pump Sprayer. You doing a skim coat, U ever float out a panel wall like in your background, been there many a time? If the Paneling is solid, Skim Coat, light sand, Prime and paint. Work it like finishing Drywall.

[@DonaldKnox25]

I followed the first method, but the back layer would not scrap away like yours did in the video. It didn’t matter how much warm water I used. I pushed through and got it all off, but the drywall underneath was damaged in the process. Can I mud over the damaged areas and then sand it smooth? Or do you have another recommendation?

[@EmreSafak]

Apply a sealant like Guardz or Rx-35 first.

[@jonray5899]

Mix some water into a bucket of plaster and cover the wall with the plaster. Lay it on 1/4 inch thick. Wait 30 mins. It will all scrape off easily into a trash bucket

[@luilui03able]

the first method work faster and almost no tools need it .

[@largelampard3721]

I hope I watch the soon so my shoulder doesn't hurt even when I'm sleeping. So can anyone answer me that after removing obvious loose part and bubbles, a good primer (sealer) on top of it would ensure it never come loose again ? It's a 1980 concrete house in Japan and I'm in a pool of wallpaper crying. There are multiple layers of backing paper and drywall damage here and there.

[@4wheel4real]

Now add 30 years of textured wallpaper under maybe 15 paint jops. Any suggestions on how to get it off?

[@mypasswordistommy]

I must've been lucky. I had no trouble pulling it all down in one swift pull, also what kind of wallpaper doesn't have a back sheet? It was just drywall behind it!

[@adamkubasik8706]

Hey I have a question sorry it doesn’t pertain to this video just wasn’t sure how to contact you ….my basement walls I want to “resurface” I scraped away any loose concrete and paint , but what do you recommend resurfacing it with that is breathable so it doesn’t cause bigger issues down the road, thanks I appreciate it

[@caroles5258]

In my case they put wallpaper over top of wood and I mean rough wood. I tried spritzing water on it and it's taking forever...

[@arliewest]

my top layer is not coming off in strips at all :( Any tips?

[@npbsstuff]

Cigarette for breakfast 😂😂😂😂

[@wendycasale2702]

Yea. If only the first layer actually came off that easy 😂

[@tznutz4824]

Just get a cheap 10$ heat gun like them window tinting guys and just point and heat that wallpaper on high like you pre shrinking and lift and pull....

[@ellde4761]

When do I hire someone to remove all the wallpaper in my home?

[@x1984x]

You weren't kidding about the house never being renovated since the 70s. Wood paneling, ugly green patterned wallpaper, and even uglier orange patterned carpet. It's like Twin Peaks from the 70s! 😂

[@juliac406]

I think the carpet is much worse than the wallpaper! And the colors /patterns clash

[@yaysoocool]

I got the wall too wet and ended up pulling pieces of wall board off. My wallpaper is probably 50 years old and it was much easier with the steamer and I did not ruin the wall.

[@jasonoliver7881]

You need to clean your camera or get a new lens, there is a small dot near the bottom middle of the screen and has been there for the past few videos.

[@Starry_Night_Sky7455]

Hey it gets dirty in there 😅. The dot is home renovation realism. 😅

[@kwacz]

oil primer and paint is no longer sold in my area due to environmental laws

[@yolanda5756]

I want to remove this original wallpaper all over my old fixer upper home but so afraid this wallpaper is directly on the sheetrock. The wallpaper is so smooth it looks like it was painted on. I've never seen wallpaper this seamless. So afraid of tearing up the walls & making it worse but I am *sick* of looking at this wallpaper😕

[@Participant616]

I hate wall paper. Just wanted to get that off my chest.

[@Starry_Night_Sky7455]

Same!

[@Revlemmon]

99% of the time you lose, .8999% you win 5 bucks, you can do the math for when you you win big. Don't forget the taxes on that big win in US at least. Yes I hate wallpaper with the passion of 1k Suns.

[@AE-hb6hr]

😂😂😂😂🤞🌸🇸🇪

[@nolongeramused8135]

Wallpaper should be banned as a crime against humanity. It really is all that ugly.

[@morscovium8881]

you should take silica and asbestos inhalation more seriously. why leave your loved ones behind earlier than necessary?

[@YellowBunchofBananas]

What in particular in this video are you concerned about??

[@sherryYYC]

Me: (holds paper tiger in hand I bought from Canadian Tire) Wish I'd watched this video before I bought it 🫤