Think Before Painting Over Wallpaper

Painting & Decorating Tips

So you are choosing to DIY your painting & decorating project! We advise you to think before painting over wallpaper, unless it is absolutely necessary.

At Swoosh Decor we understand the immense sense of achievement when you finish a home improvement project yourself. But what if it goes wrong? Or you just don’t have the time to finish the job properly?

Hiring professional painters & decorators like Swoosh Decor can save you time, hassle, mess and even money. See more reasons why you should hire a professional painters & decorators.

We are happy to provide a free, no obligation quote for your painting & decorating project.

I still want to DIY it.

OK, respect to you! At Swoosh Decor we want to help you achieve the best results from your painting & decorating project. So here is another of our series of tips and advice to help you get the best from your project.

Think Before Painting Over Wallpaper

It is possible to paint over wallpaper but before you start slapping on the first coat, stop and think for a moment about what you are trying to achieve.

You may be a landlord who just wants to freshen up the walls between tenants in the quickest / cheapest way and in this situation then painting over the wallpaper may be a reasonable solution but we still recommend you to read on.

If your wallpaper is in good condition, smooth and clear of debris then painting over the wallpaper is a feasible solution. However if the paper is heavily textured, loose (peeling), ripped, damp or mouldy, over-painting the wallpaper could be opening up a can of worms and lead to problems in the future. You may then have to strip the wallpaper and re-decorate anyway, so why not save yourself time, stress and money and strip the wallpaper from the off.

If stripping the wallpaper seems like a daunting prospect and you would like us to provide you with a free, no obligation quote then give us a call or request a free quotation.

Other Considerations

Before deciding whether to paint over or strip your wallpaper, here are a few more considerations:-

Wallpaper paste is water based and emulsion paints are water based. Painting the wallpaper with water based paints could react with the old paste and cause the wallpaper to peel, which won’t look to good.
Once you have painted the wallpaper (especially if you use a Vinyl emulsion) could make it more difficult to strip the wallpaper in the future.
Sometimes (especially in older properties) wallpaper was put up to hide imperfections in the walls, such as ageing plaster. Stripping the wallpaper could expose these problems and leave you with more work to do than you first anticipated.

What Swoosh Think

At Swoosh Decor, we would generally recommend that the wallpaper is stripped to give you the best quality finish possible. Even if this means uncovering an underlying problem with the walls. In our opinion, it is better to resolve the issues now and deal with them in a controlled manner, than winging it and hoping for the best.

Imagine, painting over your childs’ bedroom wallpaper and then 6 months down the line the wallpaper comes off, pulling some compromised plaster with it. Not only is there a danger of your child getting hurt but you have to decorate again when least expected.

All that said, at Swoosh Decor we take each case on merit and take into account all considerations.

If you are unsure what to do and would like some advice or a free, no obligation quote then please get in touch.