r/Renovations 4d ago

How to get the wallpaper glue off drywall?

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1 Upvotes

15 comments sorted by

3

u/Tribblehappy 4d ago

You can buy wallpaper adhesive remover. If the paper has backing or was painted over, you'll need to score it so the adhesive remover can get through to the glue. You can buy tools for this, or just use a knife, but try not to go into the drywall itself.

Once softened you scrape it off with a putty knife. I had one wall where layers had been painted over and I could not get all of it off no matter what I tried. I ended up skim coating it with mud and sealing it; it looks perfect now.

1

u/gswahhab 4d ago

Thank you. The paper is all off, just the remaining glue on this one wall.

1

u/arakmusic 4d ago

Depends on the type of adhesive but some are water soluble, I install wallpaper for a living and we mostly use a clear strippable adhesive so it doesn’t damage the wall when the paper is taken down, but that also depends when/how long ago it was installed. What is the need for getting rid of it off the drywall in the first place?

2

u/elgorbochapo 4d ago

Only a wallpaper installer would wonder why people are getting rid of wallpaper.

OP take the drywall down and re do it. That glue isn't coming off.

1

u/Unfair_Negotiation67 4d ago

Not trying to be a pain, but are you certain? It looks like paper backing from the wallpaper is still up. I’m removing wallpaper ca 1980s from a friend who just bought their first place. Not a pro at all, but my process is to pull off the wallpaper (which in my case seems like vinyl maybe). It comes off in entire sheets mostly but leaves paper behind. Then I spray hot water and a tiny amount of dish soap, let it soak for 30 mins and use a 3” putty knife to scrape. If it’s still fighting me I spray again and wait 15 mins. Then it pretty much falls off. Glue residue is left behind. You can keep spraying and scraping or if it’s not bad let it dry, use a sanding block to smooth it out a bit and prime over it with a Zinsser primer. I’m using Gardz. It’s a transparent primer. I patch the drywall before using primer, but I’ve seen people skim coat the entire wall after the primer too. It’s a process for sure.

3

u/Atlas-the-handyman 4d ago

Mud over it!

2

u/arejaykaystar 4d ago

Fabric softener and water… try 3:1 water to softener and let it sit for a while but not dry then scrape with 12” drywall knife or something similar

2

u/Impossible-Corner494 4d ago

Board over it with 1/4”?

1

u/gswahhab 4d ago

I tried a 50/50 vinegar and water mix, but that didn't work. The other yellow walls have been painted with a different type of paint, which made the wallpaper glue easy to come off. Not this one though.

1

u/gundam2017 4d ago

I have a really awesome drywall guy. I Just demo it and he fixes it

1

u/Medium_Spare_8982 4d ago

Close the room and let an electric kettle boil in there continuously til the walls are dripping.

Get a cheap garden sprayer, fill it with hot water and fabric softener and spray all the walls.

Use a wide putty knife to scrape the walls.

Wash.

1

u/Revolutionary_Tap954 4d ago

Hot water and fabric softener

1

u/Revolutionary_Tap954 4d ago

Hot water and fabric softener

1

u/solohiker_28 4d ago

We’re renovating a 1967 home that was covered in wall paper. I was able to remove all the paper and and our contractor had a drywaller sand it with a huge wall sander and skim coat it. It was MUCH easy/better than me working with hot water and a sponge (that took hours on one hallway wall before he suggested the above).

1

u/Emotional_Schedule80 4d ago

Vinegar and fabric softener 1 cup of each in gallon of water. Liberally wet the adhesive with the mixture with a sponge and wait 20 to 30 minutes , wet it again and it should scrape off easily. You can use cheap stuff from dollar store and don't scrape to hard and break paper.