How Do I Remove Wallpaper Paste?

If you’re removing wallpaper paste from a house built before 1978, the paste or even the drywall underneath could contain lead or asbestos. Make sure you hire a pro to test for these compounds before moving forward. You may need pro asbestos removal and lead removal services before you can continue renovating the room.

Lay a tarp around the floors and tape off any outlets, window and door frames, and baseboards to keep these areas from getting wet as you work to remove the wallpaper paste. After sealing these areas, shut off the power to the room before you start spraying down the walls to minimize the risk of shock if you accidentally get any outlets wet.

The key to removing old wallpaper glue is to get it wet again, and there are many different cleaning solutions to do this. Here are some cleaning solution options for this project:

• 1 gallon of warm water and soap

• 1 gallon of warm water, soap, and a tablespoon of baking soda

• 1 gallon of warm water, soap, a tablespoon of baking soda, and a cup of white vinegar

• Commercial wallpaper glue remover

• Commercial all-purpose cleaner

With the cleaning solution mixed and inside a spray bottle, you’re ready to get to work. Spray small sections, no more than 5-by-5 feet, until the glue is wet. Keep the spray bottle close by because you may need to re-wet a section if the glue dries while you’re scraping and cleaning it away.

Once the glue interacts with water, it will begin to soften. Use a putty knife and firm (but not overly hard) pressure to scrape up the glue. This should help pull up larger strips of glue at a time.

Fill a bucket with warm, soapy water. With the bigger sections of glue gone, you can follow up in the same section with a soapy, wet scrubbing sponge. Make sure to use the sponge’s abrasive side to loosen the wet glue.

This is the time-consuming part: You’ll need to repeat this process in small sections until the entire room is free of old wallpaper glue. Although you could wallpaper over the textured walls or even paint over the old glue, it won’t look as nice as if you take the time to remove all of the old paste.

To make this process more bearable, consider recruiting some friends with the promise of free pizza or turn on your favorite music in the background while you work.

Before you move on to priming and painting the walls or measuring for new wallpaper, make sure you let the walls fully dry after you’ve exposed them to water. Consider setting up a dehumidifier to help dry out the space.