The Prows House is seriously ALWAYS a work in progress. We wouldn't trade where we live for the world - we have the best neighbors and friends - but sometimes it would be nice to trade up to a house that was fixed up just the way we would like it. Although is that ever truly accomplished by anyone?
Anyway.... I'm always driving Jeremy crazy with one project or another. Our main bathroom is in pretty poor shape right now. When we bought the house, the bathroom had wallpaper on the walls. In case you ever wonder, wallpaper and moisture are not a great combination. We're big fans of hot showers in this family, and we must be much steamier than the previous owners, because it didn't take long after we moved in for that wallpaper to start rippling, and peeling at the seems. I decided the wallpaper needed to go.
Now I'm no expert at removing wallpaper, but I had researched a few tricks online and got to work. I soon ran into quite the dilemma. Once the top layer, the "vinyl-like" part of the wallpaper was peeled off, the paper/glued down part was a nightmare to try to remove. It should have come off so easily after the soaking I gave it. I quickly realized the problem. The wallpaper was applied directly to the drywall! There was no smooth layer of paint, or even primer to make the soaked pieces of paper and glue easier to remove.
I tried to research solutions to my problem online. But mostly I found posts that said it couldn't really be done, or questionable companies trying to sell expensive wallpaper removal kits. I wasn't about to take a chance on shelling out my money for a product that may not work.
I was so embarrassed whenever company came over and wanted to use the bathroom. Partially stripped walls with splotches of adhesive everywhere looks way worse than rippled, peeling at the edges wallpaper. It was bad. I finally couldn't take it anymore and decided that I needed to experiment, to try something. After all, it couldn't get any worse, right?
I had read that fabric softener works well to remove wallpaper. But I knew I had to be careful scraping off the wallpaper, if I didn't want to make gouges in the drywall. I headed to the dollar store, picked up a spray bottle, and a cheap jug of fabric softener.
I was still not sure what I would use as a scraper. The paint scraper at the dollar store was quite sharp, and was sure to do some serious damage to the drywall. Then I ran across this 2-pack of sanding blocks. It was worth a try, right?
It worked like a charm! I filled my spray bottle with fabric softener, sprayed a generous amount onto a section of the wall, and let it sit for just a minute. I didn't want it to be too saturated, as I wanted to make sure the drywall didn't get ruined. I then peeled what I could, and used the sanding block to sort of "file" away the excess paper and adhesive. I immediately wiped the excess moisture from the wall with a dry rag.
I'm so glad I didn't waste my money on one of the expensive products online, that may or may not have worked! I spent under $5: 1 spray bottle, one jug of fabric softener, and 2 sanding block packs. I can tell that I will have to purchase more of the sanding blocks before the project is finished - but I will still be into it less than $10.
I'll keep you posted on how the bathroom makeover works out! Do you have any great DIY tricks or tips you'd like to share? I love all the help I can get in the ongoing adventure that is my "homemaking".
Another handy tool for scraping off the nasty paper is a plastic spatula (pancake turner). It won't gouge the walls but is firm enough to get the job done. Better yet? You can put your little kids on the lower sections and not worry about them hurting anything. It was the best "babysitter" while I scraped down an entire kitchen :)
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