Painting over wallpaper?

Question

Can you paint over wallpaper? The house that we are looking at buying has ugly wallpaper in every room. I'm not a lazy person, but the kitchen, 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and recroom all have ugly wallpaper. It would take forever to remove the wallpaper, so if there is any easy way to paint over it without having to remove it, then I am all for that. We all ready have to put all new floors in, all new windows and doors plus a new heating system, that is going to be a lot of work in it self, so being able to paint over the wallpaper would be really beneficial. Has anyone done this and did it turn out for you?

Answer 1

I have painted over wallpaper many times. It works fine, but sometimes you can see the wallpaper seams, but most people don't notice unless you point them out. I agree that a coat of standard "Kilz" oilbase primer or equivalent OILBASE PRIMER is best to put on first. If you really want it to look first class then a very light skim coat of wallboard joint compound is best also, and lightly sand smooth. No appeciable thickness is necessary, just skim over to fill up the cracks and seams, using a wide wallboard trowel, at least 6" wide or wider. It will look great!!

Answer 2

Honestly I just hate wallpaper. The house we bought had it everywhere to and I took a very bit of it down. IT took time, but it's so much better than painting over. Hot water mixed with vinegar will do the trick, promise. I just put towels on the floor where I was working ans sprayed sections one at a time. Then I used a scrapper and it came off two layers at a time. First the paper and then the under part. The people before us painted of wallpaper then put more wallpaper and I'm still repairing the damage.

Answer 3

I've painted over wallpaper many a time; and never had any problems. The only drawback, is that sometimes, it shows up the imperfections the wallpaper was hiding, or the join lines of the paper itself. Use an emulsion paint, either matt, silk or eggshell finish, but best to use a matt finish paint as an undercoat first, then a top coat of silk or eggshell, this will give you a more even coverage; and help cover up the wallpaper pattern underneath much easier.

Answer 4

you can paint over anything, however keep in mind that paint will only change the color not the texture of your wall, which means you will be able to see the lines of the wallpaper edges, and you might also find that the wet paint will cause the paper to bubble underneath. it's worth the extra effort to complete a job the right way, especially if this is a home you will live in or want to increase the value of. also its much easier to remove plain wallpaper than it is to later remove wallpaper that has been painted over! good luck.

Answer 5

Yes you can... but you need to prepare it by scrubbing it down with TSP (trysodium phosphate) to cut the grease and grime. If it's filthy the green scrubbies made of plastic will cut your scrubbing time.

Then you need to prime the wallpaper. Yes, this is required. It'll save you paint in the end - wallpaper sucks up paint like crazy. Primer seals the wallpaper so you'll use less paint, it'll be smoother, and the colours won't bleed through.

Then put down sheets to protect the floor, tape off the ceiling and floorboards so they don't get splotched. Use good brushes and rollers.

If you're going to take a while doing this, wrap a wet paper towel around the brush / roller, and put it in a plastic bag when you're taking a break.

Answer 6

The answers given that you can paint over wallpaper is correct. If you have the shiny wallpaper you might have a problem with that. You could always paint one wall, let it dry and see if you like the results. If not, then take the wallpaper down.

Answer 7

Yes, you can paint over wallpaper! Make sure that the paper is adhered well to the wall. If not, using wallpaper paste, adhere the torn or loose areas. Use a stain blocking primer over the entire area. When completely dry simply paint the walls in your desired color. Simple, and you would never know that paper lies underneath!

Answer 8

It can be done but the paper has to be in perfect condition. Otherwise after you paint it you will see every imperfection like seams scrapes etc. It would be alot simpler to either rent a large steamer from somewhere or maybe paper over it. You could get the paintable paper and repaper and then paint. Sounds like alot of work. We bought an old Victorian home and it had paper even on the ceilings, we steamed it of and painted the walls but we orange peeled the walls so that the imperfections didn't show. Good luck!!!

Answer 9

I know it's a lot of work, but there is no way to insure good results painting over wall paper. Most times even wall papering over old wallpaper causes to old wall paper to bubble up and you'll never get it out. They rent wall paper removing equipment at rental stores. I suggest removing it and doing it right. You'll be living there a while, so do it right.

Answer 10

Yes you can paint over wallpaper. Home Depot and Lowes both sell paintable wallpaper. I used it in my kitchen and painted it. Been over 4 years and it still looks great. Make sure it is all firmly glued to the wall before you start or you will have a mess. Good luck.