At first glance, it seems that the gluing process is quite simple. But that's not the case at all. After all, if you approach it irresponsibly, then the whole look of the interior and the comfort of the room may suffer as a result. In addition, you need to know about the rules for preparing the surface of the walls before wallpapering. After all, the quality of their further operation depends on this.

Since they can be made from different materials, they have different features. In our article, we will try to analyze in more detail the issue of preparing walls for wallpaper with a selection of relevant photos.

Features of preparing walls in new buildings

The main task of the preparatory stage is to level its surface, which must be well dried. Then you will definitely be sure that everything is done efficiently and reliably.

Gypsum putty is best suited for preparing the walls of a recently completed new home that has been successfully commissioned.

Typical surface preparation includes the following steps:

• Application of the first layer of plaster mixture with a thickness of 3 to 9 mm. At the same time, the structure of the plaster coating should be like that of thick sour cream. Its main mission is to fill and smooth out irregularities and roughness.
• Application of a primer about 6 mm thick on the walls under the wallpaper.
• Applying another layer of plaster mixture approximately 2-4 mm thick to create a thin film coating, so that moisture cannot penetrate into the concrete slab.
• Grinding with sandpaper to create a smooth and even surface.

Removing old wallpaper

You should not start sticking new wallpaper in the apartment without removing the old one. Firstly, it is unsanitary, secondly, illiterate, and, thirdly, all your work can be wasted overnight, as the coating will become unusable.

Removing wallpaper manually

It's no secret that in areas where batteries or other heating systems are located, wallpapers often lag behind the base on their own. Therefore, they can be easily removed by hand, without the use of tools. To do this, just pick up the edge of the wallpaper and slowly pull up.

If the glue used is not of high quality, then you can easily remove the wallpaper from the wall. But in order not to spoil the nail plate, you can use a spatula.

Removing wallpaper with water

With high-quality gluing of wallpaper, it will be a little more difficult to remove them from the wall. Therefore, it is worth using ordinary warm water, which you need to moisten a small area using a specific tool.

Ordinary table vinegar or dishwashing detergent diluted in water will help to enhance the soaking efficiency. Do not forget that vinegar has a specific flavor.

The area moistened with the resulting solution must be left to soak for several minutes. Then grab the edge of the wallpaper and pull it from the floor to the ceiling. The remaining small wallpaper pieces, very carefully clean off with a kitchen sponge or a narrow spatula.

Before working with water, be sure to turn off the electricity or securely cover the sockets with insulating material to prevent shorting the electrical wiring.

To make the process of wetting the wallpaper faster and evenly impregnated, it is worth making cuts with a knife or prick with a needle roller over the entire surface. And only after that, wet it well.

Steam wallpaper removal

As they say, the need for inventions is cunning. So in this case, in order to easily remove old wallpaper from the wall, you need to use hot steam. A steam generator or an iron with a steamer will help you with this.

In the case of using an iron, it is necessary to iron the old wallpaper through a cloth dampened with water or use the steam function. This method is good for large wall parameters.

Removing wallpaper using special tools

For quick and easy removal of the old wall covering, you can use ready-made tools designed specifically for this. They are sold in almost all building supermarkets. It is necessary to use them in special protective equipment for hands in the form of gloves, and apply the composition directly with a roller or sponge.

The advantages of these products are that they penetrate and impregnate obsolete wallpaper sheets much faster.

Removing old paint from walls

Walls covered with old paint are much more difficult to prepare. Especially if it's oily. In this case, it will be necessary to clean them up and remove the paint, and this will take a lot of time. Just sanding the wallboard with sandpaper and making small notches will not be enough, the wallpaper will not stick and can peel off at any time.

To remove paint, use the following methods:

Removal with a building hair dryer. The paint will be removed very quickly, but it can violate the integrity of the wall. After that, it will need to be plastered. The process itself is quite simple - the old layer of paint is heated under jets of hot air and removed with a spatula.

When working, do not forget about personal protective equipment, such as a respirator, as well as airing the room and its ventilation, as the paint releases toxins.

Removing paint with a grinder on concrete surfaces or a grinder. When working with these tools, the room will be filled with dust, therefore, the windows must be kept open, and the doors, on the contrary, closed.

You can remove old layers of paint using special solutions. Being very toxic, they corrode the paint to the state of a liquid substance and remove it with a spatula. To protect your hands, eyes and respiratory tract, you should use protective equipment: gloves, goggles and a respirator.

After completing the paint removal process, you can proceed to the next step: leveling the walls with a putty mixture.

If some areas of paint remain, then a primer or vinyl wallpaper adhesive should be applied to ensure sufficient adhesion to the concrete slab and evenness of the applied layer. In the same way, walls are prepared for pasting with ordinary or vinyl wallpaper.

The process of filling uneven surfaces

After eliminating the previous finish from the wall, carefully look at whether it is even. As a rule, there are some defects on the surface of the wall under the wallpaper. Aligning the walls will not be difficult; it is enough to purchase special mixtures for leveling or putty on the construction market.

In case of severe defects and damage to the wall canvas, it is worth making their capital alignment using drywall sheets or plaster mixture using special marks.

Preparing walls for liquid wallpaper

Undoubtedly, liquid wallpaper is best laid on a flat surface. In addition, it is worth recalling that they have the ability to draw various dirty substances from concrete and form stains. To avoid this, it is necessary to treat the prepared surface with a special mixture or apply a primer in several layers.

Preparation of concrete, putty or brick walls

Before applying liquid wallpaper, it is necessary to prepare such walls, pre-treat the surface with a gypsum mixture, which will make the wall smoother, correcting all defects and filling the pores. Allow the plaster to dry, and then coat with a primer mixture and white water-based paint.

Photo of the process of preparing walls for wallpaper

Wallpaper is the most popular type of finishing materials. A huge variety of colors and patterns, a wide range of prices make the described material the most in demand in the construction market.
But you need to know how to properly prepare the walls for wallpapering, so that the most expensive wallpaper looks beautiful on the walls if it is properly executed for pasting.
Let's say right away that preparing the surface for wallpapering is not difficult, but it requires certain knowledge, skills and special tools. A beginner can easily cope with such a task if he carefully reads the proposed article.

Where to start repair

Any work begins with the preparation process. You need to purchase the material itself and related products, tools and fixtures.

About we have repeatedly told on the pages of our site.

Of the tools you will need:

• a mandrel for fixing an abrasive or a grinding block;
• abrasive material;
• sanding sponges for processing hard-to-reach places.

Grinding mesh can be used as an abrasive material, but it is cheaper to use sandpaper. The quality of work will not suffer from this.
The use of a grinding mesh makes work more comfortable, since the mesh is not clogged with debris and dust during operation. But the right choice of paper gives very good results. In addition, it is much cheaper than the grid.

The abrasive material is marked on the reverse side. The numbers 80…200 characterize the coarse-grained structure of the abrasive, and the numbers 250…2500 indicate the fine-grained structure of the emery material.

Sanding sponges are available with cut corners for easy processing of hard-to-reach places.

Of the devices you will need:

• ladder or sturdy table;
• spotlight or lighting device;
• spatulas;
• rule or level.

Always remember safety

Any work should bring joy and not have a harmful effect on human health. Preparing walls for wallpapering is a messy, dusty process.
You can not do without goggles, a respirator or a gauze bandage, a headgear.

Removing the old coating
If you are going to glue wallpaper in a new room, then the brick surface will need to be sanded and primed.
The drywall surface also requires priming.

A more laborious process awaits you if you are going to re-paste the wallpaper or stick it on a painted or wooden surface.

You will need to prepare the surface by cleaning it of old wallpaper, paint and nails. The wooden wall will have to be plastered or sheathed with drywall.

Everything in order
Any surface is freed from the old coating, dried and primed. If the surface is very uneven, it is plastered.
After drying for a day, the surface is primed again. The primer is applied after each layer of plaster or putty.

Rule 1
For a high-quality surface that can last for decades, be sure to use all consumables from the same manufacturer.

If you bought plaster from a certain manufacturer, then putty and primer should preferably be from this manufacturer.

More about removing old wallpapers

To remove old wallpaper, you can use different methods.
The simplest and most reliable way is to moisten the surface with a warm cleaning solution. The solution is applied to paper wallpaper with a sponge, roller, sprayers. After a pause of 15 minutes, you can carefully remove lagging and swollen wallpaper with a spatula.
This method is good for removing thin paper wallpapers.

Do not forget that multilayer wallpapers cannot be removed in this way. They are removed by using a steam generator or by stroking with a hot iron through a damp cloth.
Multi-layer wallpapers include non-woven, vinyl, washable wallpapers, since they have an upper protective layer that prevents water from entering the surface.

About the most important

To obtain a high-quality surface for wallpapering, it is necessary to perform finishing grinding.
To prepare the walls for wallpapering, follow the basic steps:

1. Install the correct side lighting. The light source must remain in one place throughout the work.
2. Grind the walls from top to bottom in a circular motion of the tool.
3. Treat strips no wider than 1 meter. Having passed the strip to the very bottom, grind the next strip of the same width.
4. Control the surface through the light using a level or rule applied to the surface to be treated.

Never attempt to resurface pits or depressions. You will only spoil the surface. It is better to putty the identified defect. Followed by surface cleaning

When preparing walls for wallpaper, small scratches are allowed on the polished surface.

A few words about process mechanization

The use of mechanical devices is advisable for plastering, rough grinding.

At the finishing stage, it is best for a beginner to use hand tools. It is both more reliable and cheaper, although longer in time. For more advanced builders, we recommend using eccentric or orbital sanders.

Preparing the wall surface for wallpapering

You have completed the preliminary steps - removed the old coating. Where necessary, a layer of plaster was applied.
Let's talk right away. Plaster should only be used on a very uneven wall or on a brick or wooden base.
By the way, plaster is applied to a wooden base on a pre-nailed shingle.
Before applying the putty, a layer of primer is applied to the thoroughly dried plaster layer.

Rule 2
The primer is applied to a completely dry layer of plaster or putty.

About the rules for applying plaster or putty when leveling walls, we have repeatedly written in detail on the pages of our website.


Useful tips for beginners when preparing walls for wallpapering

1. When wallpapering in a damp room, treat the surface with an antiseptic.
2. With a significant curvature of the walls, apply a layer of plaster.
3. Apply putty on drywall or pre-plastered surfaces.
4. Sanding is necessary on the surface under a thin wallpaper or paint layer.
5. Grinding is carried out with circular movements of the skin grater, without pressing hard on the tool.
6. Start sanding with a coarse abrasive. If deep scratches remain, select a finer abrasive structure.
7. In hard-to-reach places, use special grinding sponges. But you can use the old-fashioned method by folding sandpaper in several layers, putting rags or a soft washcloth inside.
8. Surface quality control is carried out by applying a level plane or rule to the ground surface.
9. After sanding, be sure to thoroughly clean the surface of the resulting dust.
10. Apply a layer of primer to the dried surface. Porous surfaces will require several coats of primer.

As a primer for walls when pasting wallpaper, it is ideal to use wallpaper paste. The dilution ratio is written on the glue package.

Rule 3
How to properly prepare the walls for wallpapering. For coarse grinding, sandpaper No. 100 ... 220 is used, and fine grinding is carried out with abrasive material No. 250-280.

Marking on the sanding grid and sandpaper is applied on the reverse side of the material.

Conclusion:

• prepare the surface for wallpapering is available to any person who has read the proposed instructions;
• you can get a high-quality surface using related materials from one manufacturer;
• strictly observe the sequence of work on preparing the walls for wallpapering;
• do not rush and do not stop halfway.

Our article and video will help you understand

We strive to make your home comfortable and cozy. Wall decoration plays a significant role in the interior. Among the variety of finishing materials, most of us prefer a proven and practical option - wallpaper. Many people think that updating this coverage is an easy and affordable process. However, having started work, you will come across the fact that work is associated with crucial moments, takes a lot of effort, and requires patience. Our article on how to prepare walls for wallpapering.

Where to start preparing the walls for wallpapering?

How to remove old wallpaper?

The first step in preparing a surface for renovation is to remove the old finish. To remove it, sometimes you need to make every effort.

If it was ordinary paper wallpaper, they can be moistened with soapy water, they will become soft and easily removed. When the surface has been sealed with thick or washable cloths, before applying the solution, make cuts so that the liquid gets inside. Then, using a regular metal spatula, remove the wallpaper. Be prepared that there will be pockets where it will not be easy to remove the canvases. Then, through a rag soaked in the solution, “steel off” these places with a hot iron. On vinyl wallpaper, transverse cuts are first made, and then they are removed, starting from the top layer.

How to remove old paint?

To prepare the walls for pasting wallpaper that was previously painted, you should remove the old paint. The enamel is washed off with a soapy or soda solution. The surface with oil paint is washed with soapy water and sanded. A dense layer of mineral paint is removed with a spatula, a thin layer is washed off. Sometimes it is enough to moisten it with soapy water. If durable paints and varnishes have been applied, you will have to resort to a special wash, which is applied with a brush and left for a while so that the liquid is well absorbed, or remove the old paint with a grinder, drill, spatula.

How to prepare concrete walls?

When preparing concrete walls for finishing, all dirt and debris are removed from them. As a result of subsidence of the building, chips and cracks can occur. These defects must be repaired, preventing their increase. The cracks, small in depth, are filled with sealant, which, when hardened, fixes the wall. Deeper cracks are successively filled with plaster mortar, a reinforced mesh is placed on top of it and covered with mortar.

Leveling, putty, primer

Regardless of what you decide, wall alignment cannot be neglected. If the wall is not even, then after pasting with wallpaper all defects will be visible, therefore, before starting work, it is necessary to level the surface.

Inspect the walls, note all the defects: this will help you decide whether you need to completely putty the wall or a local study is enough.

There are several rules for filling walls under wallpaper. A thin layer of putty is applied to the surface, then carefully smeared with a wide spatula. In this case, you should not save on consumables.

Often, those who decide to stick wallpaper on their own think that it is not necessary to prime the walls. Experts will object: of course. And there are good reasons for this assertion. The primer forms a film on the surface, which prevents the absorption of moisture from the adhesive into the wall, which means that it will better fulfill its function - to firmly glue the wallpaper. The primer provides increased adhesion, so the wallpaper will not fall off after drying.

Drywall preparation

It is necessary to prepare the walls for wallpapering on drywall in accordance with the recommendations. Of course, I want to save my strength and time and money on buying plaster, especially since the drywall is perfectly even. It would seem that it is enough to putty the seams. Actually, not enough. The fact is that by sticking wallpaper on drywall, you will not be able to remove it without the drywall itself if you want to update the repair. You can stick new ones only on top of the old ones. Therefore, it is necessary to putty drywall for wallpapering.

Go over the drywall with a metal trowel to make sure the screws don't rise above the surface. If you hear a ringing, “drown” the screws deeper into the sheets. Check if the self-tapping screws are screwed in too deeply: if you notice that the cap has sunk more than half the thickness of the sheet, then such a self-tapping screw is unscrewed and screwed in at a distance of 5 cm new.

All cracks, defects are sealed with putty. Then the walls are completely processed, after which the drywall is covered with a primer.

Now you know how to prepare the walls for wallpapering. Performing repairs in the apartment, everyone pursues one goal - to make it qualitatively and for a long time. Find companies that will perform wallpapering in Minsk, will help

There are no trifles in the design of the room where it is planned to live for a long time. The covering of the floor, ceiling and walls is thought out, all the pros and cons of this or that material are considered. Coatings are popular, even with artificial stone. But the championship in the number of rooms decorated by them is still behind the wallpaper.

Previously, walls were upholstered with wallpaper: they were made of leather and other materials. Modern flooring is made from vinyl, densified paper, and other materials. Some of them are washable.
We already wrote in a separate article about that, but before doing the calculations, it is recommended to prepare the walls.

Wallpapering is a simple and inexpensive way to update the walls of a room. If the surface is plastered and fairly even, this is not difficult, but if it has been previously painted, has significant flaws or traces of other coatings, serious pre-treatment will be required before wallpapering the walls. Consider the nuances and stages of the preparatory work carried out in this case.

Pasting the walls - an affordable way to refresh the repair

Wall preparation features

In order for the wallpaper to adhere firmly to the walls, the surface must be even, without flaky areas and cracks. Traditionally, they are glued on top of plaster, pre-treated with putty and primer. Regarding the admissibility of wallpapering painted walls, opinions differ, and this is not surprising, since not every paint can become a suitable base.

Oil coloring compositions that are in poor condition (peeling, blistering) are cleaned off completely. Water-based paints are also not suitable as a base due to their sensitivity to moisture. The most acceptable option in this situation is water-dispersion compositions.

Oil paint prone to flaking

Therefore, before deciding on wallpapering over paintwork, you need to know exactly its type. If there is no such information, it is determined visually and experimentally - oil paints have a smooth shiny surface, and water-based paints are more matte, in addition, they are washed out when in contact with water.

Water-dispersion and oil compositions, in turn, successfully pass the moisture resistance test, and you can distinguish them from each other by picking off a piece of coating with a spatula in an inconspicuous area. The former will hold tight and lag behind in small portions, while the latter will crumble in large pieces.

Important! Any coloring composition on the walls impairs adhesion to the wallpaper and increases the risk of premature peeling. Therefore, before gluing expensive materials, it is still recommended to clean the surface.

Getting rid of old wallpaper

If we are not talking about a new building, the walls, as a rule, have to be cleaned of previous coatings. Not all owners consider it necessary to remove old wallpaper, but preparing walls for gluing should begin with this.

Old wallpaper is easier to remove with a spatula

To get rid of the remnants of old material, you will need:

• water;
• foam roller or sponge;
• putty knife;
• sandpaper;
• vinegar or other substance suitable for dissolving glue.

It is better to start wallpaper separation from the joints with window sills, radiators, sockets and the like, since in these places the coating usually holds less firmly. Poorly drained material should be moistened with a roller soaked in hot water.

Advice! Softening the wallpaper will be more effective if you add vinegar or a special glue solvent to the water.

Wet wallpaper is removed by prying with the sharp edge of the spatula. The remaining small particles of glue and coating are removed by sanding with sandpaper or by treating the surface with a drill with a grinding nozzle.

Preparation for wallpapering previously painted walls

As already mentioned, the preparation of painted walls for wallpapering depends on the condition and type of previously applied coating. Possible options are complete cleaning (preferred) and improving surface adhesion without removing the old paint.

Removing the old coating

Building hair dryer

Cleaning paint from the walls is a laborious and long process, but if the condition of the paint layer is unsatisfactory, it is better not to neglect this stage of work. For high-quality removal of the coating, you will have to use one or more of the auxiliary tools:

1. Sander. Using a brush attachment, it is convenient to clean flaky coatings, but there is also a minus - the formation of a large amount of dust. Therefore, before starting work, all items that may become dusty are removed from the room, or covered with a film. You should also close the door, open the windows and be sure to use goggles and a respirator.
2. Building hair dryer. With this method, the painted areas are heated until softened and removed with a spatula. The method is effective, but, due to the evaporation of harmful substances, unsafe for health. It is possible to clean walls under wallpaper using a building hair dryer only in a well-ventilated area.
3. Special paint remover. Good results are obtained by the complex use of mechanical means and washing. First, a chemical composition is applied to the walls with a roller or brush and left for several minutes (the recommended exposure time is indicated on the package). Then, the softened coating is removed with a metal brush or spatula. Finally, the walls are washed with water. In view of the toxicity of the composition, all work should be performed only in protective equipment and with open windows.

Chemicals quickly soften the coating

Further preparation of the walls for wallpaper consists in leveling and priming the surface. Suitable formulations and methods for their application will be discussed below.

Pasting walls coated with a water-dispersion composition

If the walls were painted with water-dispersion paint, a thorough cleaning can be dispensed with. In this case, the preparation consists of:

• identification of problem areas (cracks, lagging paint), their stripping and filling;
• surface degreasing;
• applying the primer mixture.

Pay special attention to the adhesive composition. It is advisable to use ordinary wallpaper glue in half with PVA, applying it to the surface of the wallpaper and to the walls.

Advice! It is better to glue paper wallpapers on top of the paint, since moisture evaporates faster when the glue dries out of them and, therefore, has less effect on the paintwork.

Preparing a surface painted with oil paint

How to prepare the walls for wallpaper after painting with oil paint? If the coating is held securely, the main problem that prevents the adhesion of the wallpaper to the walls is that the surface is too smooth.

There are two ways to fix this:

1. The walls are cleaned with coarse sandpaper and coated with a primer mixed with PVA glue in a ratio of 1: 1.
2. Every 20 cm, the paint is removed from the wall surface with horizontal lines 5 cm wide. The resulting strips are filled with putty so that the surface is leveled.

When working with oil-painted surfaces, sanding is indispensable

These methods do not give a 100% guarantee of reliable fastening of the wallpaper, however, they increase the chances of success.

Putty uneven walls under the wallpaper

After removing the paint, surface irregularities may be detected. To eliminate them, you will need spatulas of different sizes, a building level, sandpaper and putty mixture for wallpaper. It is preferable to use polymer compositions, as they are moisture resistant and do not shrink.

Deep cracks are covered with starting putty

If a large number of chips and cracks are detected, the walls are completely leveled, and small defects can be covered up separately. To do this, the damaged areas are cleaned to a solid base and the starting putty is applied. Applying the composition in 2 layers helps to smooth out the bumpiness: one in the horizontal direction, and the second in the vertical direction. To make the surface perfectly smooth, after the starting layer has dried, it is covered with a finishing putty.

Preparation of concrete walls with exposed reinforcement for wallpaper requires a special approach. Aligning them, the reinforcing bars should be hidden under a thick layer of putty, otherwise traces of rust may appear on the surface of the new coating over time. It is more convenient to distribute the composition with a wide spatula (30-40 cm), holding it at an angle to the wall. After waiting for drying, the surface is cleaned with sandpaper, checked by the level and the top coat is applied.

Primer application

Another stage, without which the preparation of the walls before wallpapering cannot be considered complete - priming. If you managed to completely remove the old paint, a regular wall mix will work to improve surface adhesion. On top of painted surfaces, it is recommended to apply compositions specially designed for this, for example, VGT VD-AK-0301 or Neomid.

It is advisable to purchase a white primer, as it evens out the color and prevents the base from showing through the new coating. This is especially important for thin non-woven wallpaper.

White primer - the best solution for walls

The composition is applied to walls leveled and dust-free from top to bottom, evenly distributing it with a roller. If there are hard-to-reach areas (near the radiator, window sill, pipes), it is better to use a paint brush. To ensure high-quality adhesion of surfaces, the primer is applied twice, waiting for each layer to dry.

The time after which you can stick wallpaper varies depending on the composition of the primer mixture, temperature and humidity in the room. But for reliability, it is recommended to wait at least a day.

Conclusion

Preparing previously painted walls for wallpapering requires considerable effort and careful adherence to technology. Whether to glue the coating on top of the paint, thereby saving time, or to clean the walls completely - it's up to you. But remember that haste in this matter is not always appropriate, especially if you use expensive material and want it to serve you for a long time. Happy repair!

Wallpaper is still the most popular finishing material among many alternatives. It would seem that every adult at least once had to take part in wallpapering, and therefore what questions can there be regarding this process?

Nevertheless, it is still rare to meet a wall perfectly pasted over with wallpaper. Many sin on the manufacturers of the material, they say, for the sake of economy, they produce wallpaper from low-quality raw materials, or they suggest paying attention to where the hands of the master who carried out the repair work grow from. All these comments have the right to life, but according to the observations of professionals, most of the problems and shortcomings are related to the preparation stage, and not at all to the wall finishing process. Therefore, in today's article we will tell you how to prepare the walls for wallpapering with your own hands and give step-by-step instructions for this process.

Many people ask why even prepare and process the walls before wallpapering. We will answer with a story about what awaits you and your repair, if you decide to ignore this stage:

• The wallpaper simply does not adhere well, because there are pores on the unprepared wall, the presence of which leads to voids between the wall and the wallpaper, and therefore the material will sag and hold loosely. When you start preparing the wall and begin to peel off the previous layer of wallpaper - pay attention to this, the coating glued to the unprepared wall will be removed very easily;
• By hanging wallpaper without preparations on concrete walls, you run the risk of being very surprised at the completion of the repair by how uneven your walls are, and the wallpaper is completely unable to hide this. In order not to get into such a situation, the walls must first be leveled;
• Harmful microflora in the form of fungus and mold does not always form on the walls of abandoned premises, it is enough just to leave microcracks and not prime the walls and these unpleasant companions will settle in you for a long time.

Preparing the tool for work

To prepare the walls for wallpapering, we need the following materials and fixtures:

1. Starting and finishing putty, with which we will level the walls and make the last layer before the wallpaper.
2. Primer, optimally - deep penetration.
3. Serpyanka, we will repair cracks and close the seams with her.
4. To apply putty, you will need to use spatulas, you may need tools of different sizes.
5. The primer and the container in which it will be located during work.
6. Brushes and rollers, for applying a primer, respectively.
7. Various rags

Work sequence

Cleaning surfaces from old materials

As mentioned above, first you need to remove the old finishing material, otherwise it will not be easy when gluing and subsequent operation of the wallpaper. If you have to rip off the old layer of wallpaper, then proceed as follows:

If you have to remove water-repellent wallpaper - before carrying out the procedure described above, first make cuts on the wallpaper, otherwise they will not absorb moisture. If you have to shoot the so-called liquid wallpaper, then you should arm yourself with an industrial hair dryer and preheat them.

If the wall is to be cleaned of old paint, then depending on the type of paint, we will need different tools. Since it is likely that you do not know what kind of paint was applied by the previous owner of the apartment, you will have to try different methods and look at the effect. In general, there are three main methods:

1. Mechanical, that is, a banal physical impact on the coating with a scraper or puncher with a special nozzle;
2. Heating, here you need a heat source like an industrial hair dryer;
3. Chemical - the use of special means to remove paint.

Primary primer

Regardless of the type of wallpaper that you plan to apply, you must first treat the walls with a primer - this will facilitate the gluing procedure, as well as help the walls absorb less moisture and protect against mold. It is applied with a brush or roller, the main thing is to do it carefully and conscientiously, without missing hard-to-reach areas. If you see that the composition is absorbed into the wall almost instantly - apply another layer.

After that, the walls should dry thoroughly, the time required for this depends on the type of primer, but it is better not to rush and not start plastering earlier than in a day.

Plaster

Unfortunately, the walls in a standard Russian apartment leave much to be desired, and therefore we cannot achieve it without plastering and leveling the surfaces. The choice of plaster mixture depends on the type of walls - brick should be covered with cement-sand, and concrete walls should preferably be equalized with gypsum mixture. If you are going to glue dense, for example, vinyl wallpaper, and the unevenness of the walls is insignificant, you can do without plaster, but you will not be able to mask serious curvature with wallpaper. The plastering process is as follows:

1. We prepare a solution from the purchased mixture according to the instructions, it is most convenient to do this with a drill with a special nozzle;
2. We apply the resulting mass to the wall and tear it with a thin layer using a profil or a large spatula until all cracks and irregularities are eliminated;
3. We give the plaster to dry, after which you can proceed to the stage of puttying.

putty

This stage is extremely important, because putty will reduce the roughness of the walls, which will have a positive effect on gluing wallpaper. Before starting work, it is worth protecting the floor from the inevitable dirt, and therefore we lay oilcloth or other unnecessary material, now you can proceed:

1. We carefully grind the wall, after which we apply a putty layer starting from the bottom, which helps us with a spatula, and then we level it.
2. We are waiting for drying, after which we re-grind the wall, making it as even and smooth as possible;
3. We shake off the dust formed on the walls or remove it with a vacuum cleaner. Wall putty finished.

Re-priming walls

In the end, it is worth repeating the priming process described above. Now it will be easier to do this and less primer will be needed, because the walls have already been prepared. Often, glue well dissolved in water is used as a finishing primer, which will later be used to fix the wallpaper. Having carefully smeared our surface, we will complete the preparation of concrete walls for wallpapering. As you have seen, the wall preparation technology does not require unique skills at all, and therefore everyone can prepare the walls for wallpapering with their own hands.

Above, the stages of preparing the walls for wallpapering in an apartment belonging to the secondary housing stock were described. Many people think that, having entered a new building, such difficulties will not arise - this is both true and not true. Yes, you don’t have to rip off the old finishing materials, but no one guaranteed smooth walls, therefore we inform you how to properly prepare the walls for wallpapering in a new building:

1. Throw a layer of plaster of a creamy consistency up to 1 centimeter thick on the wall;
2. After the first layer is sprayed, dried up, apply and carefully level the second layer up to 0.5 cm thick;
3. The last layer - covering, should have a thickness of 0.2 to 0.4 cm, after drying it must be carefully rubbed and at the end we will get smooth walls.

Another non-standard situation is the use of liquid wallpaper. You can prepare the walls for sticking such wallpapers with your own hands not only by leveling, puttying and bending the walls, but also by painting them. We advise you to give preference to white tones, otherwise the paint may subsequently shine through the wallpaper. After such preparation, liquid wallpaper will lie down easier and will hold on to the wall more firmly.