How to Remove Wallpaper Glue: An Easy Step by Step Guide With Tips

Before you begin, let’s make sure that you have the right tools and equipment to safely remove the wallpaper and its glue. You can make an easy homemade solution with most things that you’ll already have at home. But if not, you can pick anything up from a DIY store. You will need:

1. Plastic sheets

2. Masking tape

3. Rubber gloves

4. Washing up liquid

5. Water

6. Bucket

7. Sponges

8. Bin bags

9. Baking soda

10. Distilled vinegar

11. Wallpaper stripper

12. Putty knife or paint scraper

13. Microfibre cloths

14. Stepladder

Once you’ve got hold of these items, it’s time to get to work.

If you haven’t already prepared your room for the wallpaper stripping process, it’s best to do this now as things could get messy! If you’re working in stages, clearing the room while you do the glue removal will allow you more space to move the ladder around and get to work.

Remove as much furniture as you can out of the room to help it avoid getting wet. If you can’t remove all the furniture entirely, move it away from the walls — preferably into the center of the room — and cover it with protective plastic sheets.

Use masking tape to cover electrical sockets and wall switches. This will stop the moisture of the cleaning solution from getting into the electrics and causing problems. If you can, it’s a good idea to turn the electricity off completely in any rooms that you’re working in.

Since the cleaning solution that you’re going to be working with is wet, you’ll want to protect your carpet or flooring from drips and stains. Cover the floors and skirting boards with plastic sheets and securely fix them in place with masking tape.

Preparing the correct solution will allow you to remove all of the glue and be left with a clean, smooth wall. Hot water by itself won’t do the trick, since your solution needs to soften the paste and make it easy to remove with your putty knife or paint scraper. Some solutions that you can make:

• Hot water and washing up liquid — Simple and effective, this solution works perfectly well on most wallpaper paste. Simply fill up a bucket of water and squirt a few drops of the washing-up liquid in, then use the sponge to put it on the wall.

• Hot water and vinegar — For tougher jobs where the glue is that little bit more stubborn, mix 4 litres of hot water with 4 litres of distilled vinegar.

• Hot water and baking soda — To help dissolve wallpaper paste, mix 4 litres of hot water with 2 tablespoons of baking soda.

• Wallpaper paste remover — For heavy jobs when you really need a helping hand, wallpaper paste remover can be best. This solution uses chemicals to quickly dissolve the paste, but it’s best to check the back of the container for precise instructions on how to mix it.

You’ll likely have to make up your desired solution a few times to make sure that it’s hot enough to remove the glue as you move on to another section of the wall. Helpful tip: Don’t forget to wear your rubber gloves to protect your hands from the hot water and prevent drips from running down your arms!

Dip the sponge into your wallpaper paste solution, and let’s start getting rid of that glue. The goal at this stage is to thoroughly moisten the glue, not to scrub it off (yet!) Work in smaller sections so you know that the glue is soft enough to remove, instead of working in large sections and missing your window. We’d recommend working in areas of around 5ft x 5ft at a time.

After you’ve left the solution to soak for about 2 to 3 minutes, dampen a microfibre cloth with the cleaning solution and wipe the wall down. By this point, the glue should have softened nicely, so you might be able to simply wipe it all away. For any stubborn pieces that won’t seem to shift, gently use your putty knife or paint scraper until all the glue has come off. Or, if this doesn’t work either, dip the damp microfibre cloth in some dry baking soda and gently rub the glue-covered area.

If any last bits really won’t budge, try using the wallpaper stripper. You want to make sure that all of the glue is removed from the wall, as any leftover residue will make your next wallpaper decorating project more difficult. Whether you’ll be applying new wallpaper or going for paint instead, you want the wall to be super smooth and clean.

Helpful tip: Work slowly with gentle pressure to prevent the putty knife or scraper from leaving any gouge marks in the walls.

Spot-check and clean any sections that were taped off. Remove the tape from the electrical sockets and light switches, and use a sponge to make sure you’ve got into every nook. Once that’s done, it’s time to clean the walls. Wipe the cleaning solution off the walls in a circular motion with a clean, damp rag — make sure you don’t pick up the dirty one by mistake! For this, a little warm water should do the trick.

Dry the wall with a clean towel when you’re done. Allow the wall to air dry overnight or, ideally, for at least 12 – 24 hours. Run your hand along the wall and, if it’s smooth, then the glue has gone. But if it feels sticky or tacky, repeat the cleaning again.

Cleaning leftover wallpaper adhesive requires some elbow grease and patience. Here are a few other removal techniques you can try if the above doesn’t work well for you.

The best way to remove wallpaper glue is always up for debate. Some people swear by fabric conditioner, even if that’s just because it smells much better than the distilled vinegar method! For this method, you’ll need:

• Liquid fabric softener

• Warm water

• Sponge

• Spray bottle

• Cloths

• Putty knife

Combine equal parts warm water with fabric softener in a spray bottle and shake well to mix. Working in small sections, spray the liquid over the walls and let it sit for a few minutes. Make sure you wipe away the residue of the glue as you use your putty knife or paint scraper to remove the glue well.

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For any areas that you can’t or shouldn’t put the mixture on, you can use a sander instead. Although we don’t recommend using this for the whole wall or room, it can be a quick and easy solution. Make sure you have the proper PPE (personal protective equipment) for sanding, as the spray from the dust can be harmful for your lungs.

There’s a wide range of tools that you can use to scrape away the wallpaper adhesive, including puffy knives, paint scrapers, and scoring tools. But take care, because improper use of these tools can end up causing more damage than good. To properly use a scraping tool to remove glue, hold the knife or scraper at an angle and press the sharp edge between the wall and the adhesive. You’ll want to apply just enough pressure so that the bottom edge of the tool curves slightly. Next, gently wiggle the blade and slide it beneath the glue whilst pushing the tool forward. Be careful to avoid jamming the edge into the wall, because that could cause a gouge that’ll be difficult to fix.

Generally, we don’t recommend painting over wallpaper glue. Most interior paint is water-based and so is the wallpaper glue, and the two generally don’t react well together. You’d likely be left with a clumpy or wavy texture that will be very visible once the paint dries.

Depending on the wallpaper and paintwork you have, you may be able to use sugar soap. Despite the name, sugar soap doesn’t actually contain any sugar. Rather, it is a mix of sodium carbonate and water. Typically, sugar soap is usually used to brighten the walls and give them a good wash before painting.

If all the glue has been removed and the surface looks and feels smooth to the touch, then you can apply a coat of latex primer.

Yes, you can use acetone to remove wallpaper. It’s best to fill up a water bottle with the acetone and spray generously on the area. Make sure to keep the windows in the room open while you do this.

To find out if you’ve removed all of the wallpaper glue, spray some water on the walls and let it soak in. When you run your hand over the damp wall, it should feel smooth.

To remove any of the glue residue from your painted walls, you’ll first need to strip the current paint and treat it using one of the methods in our ‘Prep and mix the cleaning solution’ section. Once you’ve done this, you can repaint the walls to give them a nice smooth finish.

Choose any of the cleaning solutions and methods above, as they will all work with most types of walls.

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