Wallpapering / preparation
Wallpaper preparation tables
Use these tables to look up a wall's substrate and condition. They record Mr Wallcover's house practice where the wallpaper maker is silent; the product's current instructions and the actual wall take precedence.
For the reasons behind the checks, read our guide to assessing whether a wall is ready for wallpaper.
By what the wall is made of
| Wall | Treatment | Primer | Lining | Site inspection |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New skim plaster | Let it dry through, and confirm with a moisture reading, not the calendar. Cole & Son asks for two or three weeks. | Zinsser GardzGardz's data sheet: allow new plaster to cure at least 24 hours before applying it. | Erfurt MAV 800 grade | Always take a moisture reading before covering. |
| Old lime plaster | Historic, breathable fabric. Treated case by case with the wallpaper maker's instruction and, often, the specifier. | As the maker asks, after inspection | As the maker asks | Always. No standard treatment is given here. |
| Taped-and-jointed plasterboard | Joints filled and sanded smooth. | Zinsser GardzGardz's data sheet: it seals drywall facing paper and joint compound, and protects the board when the wallcovering is stripped later. | As the maker asks | Only if the facing paper is torn or the joints show. |
| Painted: matt emulsion | Clean. Scrape and sand anything loose. | Zinsser GardzGardz's data sheet: it binds chalky, builder's flat paint to the wall. | As the maker asks | If the paint lifts on a scratch test. |
| Painted: vinyl silk or oil-based | Walls painted with gloss or a vinyl silk emulsion are checked on site before a treatment is chosen. | As the maker asks, after inspection | As the maker asks | Always: the treatment depends on what the paint is and how well it holds. |
| Stripped, previously papered | Old backing and paste residue removed. | Zinsser GardzGardz's data sheet: it seals in residual wallpaper paste. | Erfurt MAV 1000 grade | If the plaster under the old paper is loose or cracked. |
| Cement render and blockwork | Alkaline, and often too rough to paper directly: skimmed or heavily lined first. | Dulux Trade Alkali Resisting Primer | Erfurt MAV 1700 grade | Always. |
| MDF, timber and ply | Joints and movement decide the build-up; paper on joinery is a specification of its own. | As the maker asks, after inspection | As the maker asks | Always. |
| Existing lining paper | Kept only if it is sound and firmly stuck at every edge; otherwise stripped and relined. de Gournay says not to prime on top of its lining. | As the maker asks, after inspection | As the maker asks | Always: a lining that is letting go takes the new paper with it. |
By the state it is in
| Condition | What we do | Products | Lining | Site inspection |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sound, clean and dry | Prime. | Zinsser Gardz | Only where the wallpaper maker asks for it. | Not usually |
| Chalky or flaking | Scrape and sand off anything flaking, then bind the surface. Gardz's data sheet: it binds down chalky surfaces. | Zinsser Gardz | As the wall needs, once it is sound. | Needed |
| Sealed or non-porous: gloss paint, an existing vinyl | Washed, degreased and keyed as the wallpaper maker permits. We confirm a compatible sealed-surface or vinyl-over-vinyl adhesive (VOV) for the product and wall. Muraspec and Vescom require old wallcoverings and backing papers to be removed. Any fire classification applies to the specified complete build-up; check the product's current instructions. | A VOV adhesive | Only with an adhesive the lining maker accepts on a sealed surface. | Needed |
| Damp: rising, penetrating or condensation | The cause is found and fixed first. Nothing is papered over damp. | None until the cause is fixed | Not until the wall is dry. | Needed |
| Stains: water, smoke or nicotine | The cause of a water stain is fixed first. Stains are then sealed with a stain-blocking primer, then primed. | Zinsser B-I-N, then Zinsser Gardz | As the wall needs. | Needed |
| New alkaline surfaces | New plaster: left to dry, then Gardz (rated to pH 12.5 on its data sheet). Cement render and blockwork: an alkali-resisting primer. | Zinsser Gardz, then Dulux Trade Alkali Resisting Primer | As the wall needs. | Not usually |
| Cracks and filler | Cracks raked out and filled, filler sanded flush, then primed. A heavier lining bridges fine cracks; it does not hold a moving one. | Zinsser Gardz | Erfurt MAV 1200 for minor cracks, 1400 for larger cracks, 1700 or heavier for damaged plaster. | Needed |
| Uneven porosity | Primed so the paste dries at one rate everywhere. A lining paper gives one even, absorbent surface. | Zinsser Gardz | Often, as the maker allows. | Not usually |
| Out of true | Lining does not straighten a wall. It is made good first, or the set-out allows for it. | None until the cause is fixed | Does not fix it. | Needed |
| Mould | Mould means a moisture problem. The cause is dealt with first. | None until the cause is fixed | Not until the cause is fixed. | Needed |
The rules behind the tables
- The maker's instruction comes first
When the wallpaper maker names a primer, a lining grade or a paste for the product, we use what it names.
- Where the maker is silent, our house standard
Walls are primed with Zinsser Gardz. Where lining is needed, it is Erfurt lining paper, hung with Wallrock Power Adhesive.
- We hang only with pastes we have tested
We hang with the paste the wallpaper maker names, or one of the pastes listed here, which we have tested on our own jobs. Some other pastes we have tried let joints open and the top and bottom edges lift as the paper dried. It is easy to put right, but a client should never have to see it.
- Our house practice: the lining paste is at least one step above
We use our own four-step scale to choose a lining paste at least one step above the wallpaper paste. This is Mr Wallcover's house practice, not a cross-brand manufacturer strength standard. When either paste is unknown or the wallpaper paste is at the top step, we check the combination before anything is ordered. The wallpaper maker's instruction takes precedence, including a requirement to use the same paste for both layers.
- Every lining roll is the same product and grade
Lining paper has no batch to match, but every roll on a job must be the same product and grade, so the same thickness and the same shade of white.
The products, grades and paste ladder are listed with their data sheets on lining papers, pastes and primers. The long read, with what each maker says, is Is the wall ready for wallpaper?
Your next step
Not sure what your wall is?
Send a photograph in daylight and tell us what you know about the wall. We will say what it needs, and whether we should see it first.