Getting Wallpaper Gunk off My Walls.

Updated on January 18, 2011
M.P. asks from Orem, UT
12 answers

So we (my parents, my son, and I) moved into a new house. My room had a boarder wallpaper in it with ugly jet airplanes on it. I wanted it GONE! I was told to do the hot water and fabric softener trick, It worked well on most walls but on some it left some of the paper and glue still on, like when you take off a price tag and some of it stays on. Well I tried hotter water and softener. Nope it wont come off without ruining that wall. That's how hard it is to get off. The water and softener worked in my son's room so I'm at a loss as to what is going on in my room. Right now it just looks like someone super glued the paper down. Any ideas on how to get it off?? I do plan on painting the room white, and maybe a pretty and fun color later but that depends on how long I stay here. HELP get the ugly paper off!!

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J.R.

answers from Glens Falls on

There is wallpaper removal stuff called "DIF" that usually works pretty well. I had so much trouble with a border once, though, that I ended up having to hire someone to remove it.

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M.L.

answers from Colorado Springs on

Somebody could indeed have glued those places down!

This is the time to go to the hardware store - preferably with a scrap of the wallpaper you've been able to remove, with a little of the glue/paste/whatever on it - and ask for a little free professional advice.

B.C.

answers from Dallas on

Sounds like they put it right on the drywall. This is what happened to us. Some of it was on right and some of it wasn't. We just used some joint compound to texture the walls before we painted over it.

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T.W.

answers from Denver on

You can get remover at the hardware store or try butane.

Good luck!

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J.H.

answers from Lawton on

They have wallpaper spray that you just put on there and wipe off and it's no hard work... It's at a hardware store or a low's

K.C.

answers from Orlando on

At Home Depot or Lowes they have this awesome blue stuff ( I can't rememeber what it is called) but it is in a spray bottle and it is made to take off the gunk. Sorry I can't be more specific, but it worked AMAZING in my daughter bathroom when we moved in and had to get rid of this little flower print from the 70s that was in there. I remember it was bright blue, in a spray bottle, and pretty inexpensive.

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S.G.

answers from Dallas on

If you can't get your hands on a steamer, fill your iron with water, hold it really close to the sticky spot & pump the steam button. This will take a WHILE, but is really your last hope. They may have put the paper on some parts of fresh wall, and it adhered directly to the drywall -- if so you're outta luck! :(

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L.S.

answers from Spokane on

Try a solution of vinegar and water. Spray the paper to really soak it then try scrape it off with a metal scraper. Another option might be to try and sand it off, but if it's more than a few random spots that will take a l-o-n-g time. Good luck

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D.P.

answers from Pittsburgh on

Forget the DIF and get Piranha. Our house had the worst wallpaper in every room--applied directly to the walls--drywall mostly--what a nightmare. If you have plaster walls, use a putty knife to soak it with the hot water & softener then use the putty knife to get it off.......we are moving to the Piranha stuff now.

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M.C.

answers from Detroit on

I did this just yesterday to my son's room. I used the Piranha gel from Lowe's--it worked great. What also helped alot was to wash down the walls with a mix of vinegar and water. I used 2 cups vinegar and one gallon of hot water and washed it down with a white cotton towel (shows all the glue on it) to get any excess glue off. I would also use a plastic putty knife to scrape it off. I used a metal one and it nicked my walls.

M

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E.M.

answers from Louisville on

we had to take wall paper off of my gmas bathroom and that stuff is hard!!! the thing that we found that worked best was a clothes steamer. the kind with a big tank and long hose... we held it on there for a few mins and used a putty knife to get the paper and goo off. it does take a little time but it really worked!

S.R.

answers from Kansas City on

Dif, it's the best took down an entire bathroom of ugly wallpaper PLUS boarder in a few hours, literally like less than 2 hours. I used a paint scraper to get it off and everything came off including the stubborn spots (had to be sprayed heavily) and glue.

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