Paper Hanging Best Practice

If you fancy papering your walls, you need to choose the right type of wallpaper, check that you have all the tools and equipment necessary, prepare the wall surface and then hang the paper length by length.

If your walls are painted at present, the only preparation you need is to wash the surfaces down with a solution of sugar soap or household detergent, rinse them with clean water and leave them to dry.If your walls are already papered, you must strip off the old paper first before hanging the new.Even the paper backing left after peeling off old vinyl wallpapers must come off. Then wash the wall surface with clean water.If your walls are undecorated plaster or plasterboard, you need to seal the surface with a coat of size - diluted wallpaper paste - first. This ensures that you will be able to slide pasted lengths into place as you hang them.

Preparing the Surface

1. Turn off power to switches and outlets.  Remove switch plates and outlet coverings.Cover openings with masking tape.

2. Put down drop cloths.  If there is previous  wallpaper, remove carefully. See  “Removing Wallpaper” for further  instructions.

Tips for Success:

The success of hanging your wallpaper, as well as the ease of taking it down are totally depend on how well you prepare your walls!

SMOOTH. Make sure you fill all cracks and holes using a filler. Sand until you have a smooth surface with a medium grit sandpaper.

CLEAN. Wash and rinse walls to remove grease and dirt. The surface must be clean and free of mildew, grease and stains. If surface is glossy, sand smooth.

PRIME. For best results, prime all wall surfaces with a high quality primer-sealer before installing wallpaper. Priming properly is key to easy removal later.

Removing Old Wallpaper

1. Removing old wallpaper is not difficult if you know how!

2. Start by turning off the power to switches and outlets.

For Vinyl wallpaper:

1. Remove the top layer of vinyl. This will peel off easily, which will reveal a paper backing.

2. Using a spray bottle filled with hot water and a teaspoon of dish detergent, spray the paper

    backing with hot water.  

3. Keep re-spraying to saturate well.

4. You will need to place towels at the bottom of your wall to protect any flooring from water.

5. Allow the water to soak into the paper and moisten the paste.

6. Use a scraper to lift the paper off the wall.

7. Wash the walls well.

For Strippable wallpaper:

1. Score the old wallpaper with a wallpaper scoring tool. Follow the instructions provided.

2. Using a spray bottle filled with hot water and a teaspoon of dish detergent, spray the paper backing with hot water.

3. Keep re-spraying to saturate well.

4. You will need to place towels at the bottom of your wall to protect any flooring from water.

5. Allow the water to soak into the paper and moisten the paste.

6. Use a scraper to lift the paper off the wall.

7. Wash the walls well.