Some help with what to do with painted over wallpaper that is tearing

[Itai]

Hey All.

I am beginning my renovation project by starting with the first bedroom. I was planning to paint over the existing paint (in a 1970's house).

However, after pulling some hooks off the wall, it has ripped a bunch of the underlying wallpaper off with it, leaving a nasty fibrous part that paint won't like. See the photo below.

I assume this is the backing of wallpaper under the paint. That's what it seems like anyway, but I could be wrong (I've never done this before).

What should I be doing in this case to prep the walls? Should I be stripping the wallpaper / paint off all 4 walls? Should I just somehow clean up the areas where it tore (it's very easy to lift off the surrounding paint and expose more of this fibrous backing - so not sure new paint will hold strong in these areas). Or in the most extreme case, should I be looking at replastering the walls?

And for any method you think is good, how do I go about doing that? What are good products to use that I can get at bunnings?

Thanks

Itai 

[Mathy · Accepted solution]

Hi @Itai - are your walls solid (Brick/plaster) or are they gyprock? It’s a bit hard to tell, but that looks like gyprock that’s had the “paintable” layer torn off. Actual decorative wall paper isn’t usually that brown colour if your rip it.

So, assuming it’s gyprock, you’ll need to apply some skim coat to that area, as you’ve realised that it can’t just be painted.  Something like this Unipro Smooth Coat - this is 500gm, there is a bigger size available. So, you smooth this over that “cardboard” with a paint scraper, make sure you go past the edges, as when you sand you’re going to have to feather the filler into the undamaged area. Then you’ll need to apply a coat of primer to the repair, before you paint. Here is a Bunning video on wall preparation for painting, it shows you how to fill areas that are not holes, but large and flat, like you’ve got How to prepare walls for painting - hope this helps, cheers Deb

[Itai]

Hey Deb. Thanks for that tip. The walls are stud walls, so I assume that's the Gyprock then. Lucky you said so, because I would've gone an got a scraper and tried to scrape that "wallpaper" off

Good to know there's a solution to this. I was dreading having to rip wallpaper off all the walls, or worse, replace all the Gyprock.

Does this affect the structural integrity of the Gyprock? I was intending putting some 10kg Gyprock wall mates in.

Thanks

Regards

Itai

[Shane]

Yeah, it looks like you've taken the outer layer off the plasterboard sheet. You'd know for sure by checking whether it's lower than the painted surface. If it was higher, it would be wallpaper on top of the paint, but it doesn't look to be. 

I'd be tempted to cut out the damaged section and replace as plasterboard is cheap and you'll ensure you get a great result. 

[Mathy]

Hi @Itai - you’ve really just ripped off the cosmetic part, so structurally you should be fine. Good luck with it, take your time and have a wonderful festive season, cheers

[Itai]

Thanks Shane. I supposed I'm more nervous about that on a technical ability level. If I do it, and it doesn't work out, I'll have uneven plaster (because I didn't do a great job).

How would one replace the sheet? I've heard a few ways. Remove just enough, attach some wood to the inside of the leftover plaster and attach the Gyprock to that. Alternatively, remove a bigger sheet to expose studs, and then attach to that.

[Shane]

https://www.workshop.com.au/t5/Whole-of-House/An-easy-way-to-repair-holes-in-plaster-walls/m-p/8318