Removing a Border

K.
My husband and I do odd jobs for the Seniors. A few years ago we came up on some old wall paper and I tried everything BUT I tried a product that I use for cleaning everything and it worked!! It's non-toxic too!! It's called Basic H. Just email me I will get you in touch with how to order.
____@____.com Thank You

I have used the fabric softener & water mix. *as hot as you stand works the best* It does work very well & removes all the adhesive with the paper.

Have fun re-decorating...

Perfect solution...
Peal the top layer of border off - get a corner piece and just keep working from there. The best solution for removing the glue is to soak fabric softner sheets in a bucket of warm water. Take the softener sheets and wipe all over the border. Take a wallpaper scraper and it will come right off. I just did an entire kitchen and the glue part was the easiest with the fabric softner dryer sheets. Good luck.

We removed a border from my daughter's room when we were setting it up for her. We used a mixture of fabric softner and water. I think it was half and half, the cheap stuff worked the best. Just score the border and spray on, by the time we got to the other side of the room the border was just falling off.

what kind of backing was it was it glue on or normal wall paper glue? You can use water soak an area and than peel it. You could also maybe use a blow dryer or go to home depot I am sure they have a heat iron to heat the papare and than pull it off. I can tell you if you heat it the glue may have a sent. You can go to sherwin williams and get there chemical to remove. If you open her bedroom window and have fan blowing out the fumes it shouldn't be that bad for her. Plus sherwin williams seems to not be as stinky as all the other brands. Because if you think of it if you soak it off you will have to still re move the glue. Plus your gonna paint so you will need to prime before painting and I think that smells really bad. Its up to you. I wouldn't have her sleep in her room till the room is done. Just because of the fumes.

Check out DIY.com . They have tips on how to do anything on your own. It may be under walpaper removal. Usually steaming the border w/an iron or steamer can loosen the glue enough for you to pull it off. You may still need to sand and retouch as there will probably be a bit a glue left behind. Also, if it's particularly stuck on there a solution of water and laundry detergent paired with a wallpaper scourer should do the trick.

Good luck!

My SIL just removed the border in her daughters room. And she used hot water and liquid fabric softner. She said it worked better than the chemical stuff she got from the store.
Plus she said the next day the room smelled really nice!

Hi K.!

This tip was passed to me from another mom, and I used it to remove a whole hallway full of hideous wallpaper.

Get a "Paper Tiger". You can find them wherever wallpaper is sold. It is a little device with what looks like studded can opener wheels on the bottom. Run this over the border every which way and it will puncture the border. Just don't push too hard. Then find an empty spray bottle. Put in a couple tablespoons of regular fabric softener, Downy works great and fill the rest with warm to hot water. Spray down the border well, allow to sit for 10-15 minutes and then peel away!

The holes you made with the paper tiger will allow the fabric softener mixture to be absorbed into the border. The paper will get softened, and be much easier to remove. Make sure to use a nice big wallpaper scraper and just work the edges and reapply as needed.

I hope this works as well for you as it did for me!
L. =)

I've removed several boarders in my day and each one is different. It all depends on how easily the glue comes off. Some come down easy in big pieces and others in tiny strips. But either way the wall was in good condition in the end.

I'd suggest getting a bucket of water and sponge. Let sections soak, starting near where she's been picking at it, and they should just peel off when the glue absorbs the water. Then wash the walls to get the remaining glue off.

HI K.,
You can use vinegar and water for a soak, but even better is Basic H from Shaklee. Basic H just makes the water wetter, no chemicals- this will help to soak through the paper. Basic H is also a super concentrated natural cleaner, which can be used for all your cleaning from windows to floors and it is very economical. One little bottle would make several thousand bottles of window cleaner, as you only use 2 drops in 16 ounces of water. If you would like more information, just let me know.
Good luck,
M.

I've used a steamer before that worked very well. Most likely you'll have to paint again though. It can be tough to get it off without ANY damage to the paint beneath.

Hi K., my name is K.. My family /friends have dubbed me the official wall paper removing queen of our family. I have learned and perfected my way through the years...basic simple supplies - which do not include chemicals. I hope that you 'sized' the area of wall prior to applying the boarder...it will make removale easier for you....if not....continue on with the same directions. You will need - bucket of warm water - rag, about the size and texture of a terry cloth dish towel - additional rags....for mopping up the water which runs down the wall onto the floor - 2" putty knife - trash bag for the peeled paper - long extension cord - and an iron. Please make sure that you do this with someone else in the room with you (NOT you little girl - for her safety ;-) Okay....first soak the rag with the water & wring it out...but not completely dry...still kind of at the 'drippy' stage - apply the rag directly to the boarder on the wall - next - apply the hot iron directly onto the rag and press -like you would while ironing a shirt- be careful not to burn yourself with the steam - remove both the iron & rag from the wall....the boarder should be starting to 'peel' from the wall by now - remove the paper that you can and if need be use the 2"putty knife to assist....if there is paper backing on the boarder you might have to apply this process again and so on. This shouldn't take you too long, as you are only removing a boarder. (this process works for whole rooms wallpapered too!) Once you have your wall free from paper...you are going to want to wash all of the walls down with -hot water & white vinegar- then you can 'prime or seal' the walls prior to adding a pretty new color. Best of luck to you! I love home projects! If you have any additional questions - feel free to contact me at ____@____.com - I'd be happy to assist you.

ps....by washing the walls with white vinegar you are removing all of the glue residue from the boarder...along with any dirty hand prints along the way.

I have had great success using vinegar. I buy a large sponge, dip it in vinegar and saturate the wallpaper. Once it is good and wet I use the scraper from Home Depot that you can get for a buck. The vinegar does smell a little but it goes away in a couple of hours and it's cheaper than fabric softener; good luck!

Usually mild soap and water does the trick. I have used a steam cleaner as well and the border rolled right off the wall. Have fun re-deorating!

I have also had great success with using white vinegar and water (it doesn't take much vinegar, either, maybe 1 part vinegar to 4 parts water). First I peel away as much of the border as I can. Then I spray the vinegar/water mixture onto the remaining wallpaper. After waiting a few minutes, scrape it off with a plastic putty knife (I think a metal one would leave marks on the walls). It comes off very easily, and won't damage the walls. Try this first before doing anything more complicated - it's easy, cheap and it has worked great for me on several projects!

If their is no wall paper, just painted wall, use and iron and a wet wash cloth!

I put vin. and water in a spray bottle-spray it and it comes right off! I`ve also used dawn dish soap (just a tad) and water-sprey it on and works! Both work GREAT!

Vinegar and water as hot as you can stand it. Worked for me too.

Use a solution of hot water and vinegar in a spray bottle. Soak it throughly and leave it for a few minutes. It should peel right off.

As long as there is no other wall paper, you can steam it. The glue should release from the wall and the paper should peel right off. If you don't have a steamer (who does unless they are a wardrobe artisan!) you can use your iron and set it on the steam setting... then puff away at the border!
If there is any glue residue you can use dish soap and water or as suggeted below the fabric softener!

I use a spray bottle with hot water, some vinegar, and a drop of liquid soap. Saturate the paper, wait ten minutes, and peel. Good luck.

When our girls were done with the nursery and we turned it into an office we had a border to remove too. I used warm water with a bit of fabric softener in it and put it in a spray bottle. Spray the border soaking wet and use a plastic scraper. I used the scrapers that came with my Pampered Chef stones. Worked great!!!

Good Luck!!

Windex, and a scraper, it takes some time, but should work for you, best of luck.