wallpaper Sealer

Is there such a thing as a primer you can put right on over old wallpaper instead of stripping it off?

I am taking paper off in one of the rooms, but it is a slow process, even with a steamer. I plan to paint the room then. Just thought something like this would be a great help.

Thanks.

I asked my sister about this as she is an expert wall paperer; she's not a professional, but she does gorgeous work. She says, don't even think about trying to seal it on. Just keep working at getting it all off.

They have a very old house, which they're constantly working on.....just finished a kitchen remodel. One of the things that really made her crazy was the five or six layers of wallpaper in the living room that she had to get off. It literally took her weeks to get all the paper off, but she says it's well worth the time. And the wall will look so much better in the long run.

Just my (sister's) two cents!

I agree, do not cover the paper. Keep on peeling it. Soak the paper with hot water for a few minutes should help.

I remember the nightmares of trying to help my sister peel wallpaper from the house she bought.. there was literally 6 layers of paper with paint jobs in between. my BIL gave up and tore the entire wall down and replaced it with new sheet rock!

I agree, do not try to cover the paper. I've stripped a lot of wallpaper in my many years and I personally have never liked using the steam strippers. I simply peel off the outer layer of the paper and then soak the remaining layer with water. It then just peels off with an egg flipper.

Then wash the wall well to remove any glue remaining on the wall.

Isn't there a tool or something that you can use to "scratch" of "score" the wallpaper? I cannot remember the name of it, but you run this tool over the wallpaper and it puts holes or scores the paper. That allows steam (or a solution) to better penetrate and the paper is supposed to come off easier.

There's something else, too, called DIF? It's supposed to make removing wallpaper easier.

I've gotta agree with the others---do not try to seal the paper and paint over it. You really won't be happy with the end result.
Are you using a scoring tool before you steam, Lauren? I've discovered that really helps get the moisture behind the old paper. I used a steamer in 1 room and I really didn't like it. The next time I stripped wallpaper, I used a garden sprayer with plain old water and a little dish soap.
I've also discovered that patience is the key to successfully removing old paper. You need to let the steam/water do it's job before you start scraping the paper off the walls.
It's a nasty job, I know, but you'll be glad you removed the old paper before you paint.
Have fun!

There is a little hand held tool for scratching the surface of the paper so the remover soaks in better. I bought one along with the DIF from a paint store. I don't think there is any easy way to remove old wallpaper, just time and elbow grease.
Having said that, you can buy a good quality primer sealer and prime, then paint over it. It wouldn't look good though IMO and you're just putting off the problem till later.

Hey thanks for the info.

I have to now re-paint the dining room. We inherited my mom's dining room set. She got the chairs re-covered recently, in red and gold fabric. The dining room is green. With a green flower border. So we have to take that off, I'm thinking a border isn't going to be as bad as removing a whole wall of wallpaper.

Cheryl

I feel for you. I'm in the middle of doing the same thing in my bathroom. The only thing I have found that works is to tear off the top layer of the wallpaper down to the paper part and spray with a mix of fabric softener and water but the fabric softner but that does leave a residue on the the floor so I wouldn't use it unless it's a room you can shut off so the cats don't walk through it.