Older Boston homes often have several layers of wallpaper, sometimes painted over, on plaster walls. We strip the paper, wash off the paste, repair the wall and prime it. Where the surface is rough after removal, a skim coat brings it back to smooth before paint goes on.
Wallpaper in an old Boston house is rarely one layer. Dining rooms, front halls and bedrooms were papered again and again, and at some point someone often painted over the top. On plaster this can be stripped with patience. The trouble comes in rooms where paper was hung on unprimed drywall during a later renovation, because the paste bonds to the drywall face and pulling the paper can tear it. We test a corner before quoting.
Removal is slow, wet work. Painted or vinyl-faced paper is scored so water can get through. We soak it with warm water and a stripping solution, wait, and lift it with wide scrapers held flat so the wall is not gouged. Steam helps on stubborn layers over plaster. Floors, radiators and woodwork are covered, since paste water runs. Then the walls are washed until no paste is left, because paint cracks and crazes over paste residue.
What the wall looks like under the paper is unknown until it is bare. Expect some cracks, old patches and rough areas, especially where paper was holding tired plaster together. We fill and sand these, or skim the whole wall where it is uneven, then apply a sealing primer before paint. The quote separates stripping from wall repair, so you can see both parts, and we tell you once the first wall is open if the repair is larger.
Wallpaper removal in Boston: common questions
Can you just paint over my old wallpaper?
We advise against it. Seams and texture show through, and moisture from the paint can loosen the paper later. If the paper cannot be removed without wrecking the wall, sealing it with an oil-based primer and skimming is a fallback.
How long does it take to strip one room?
A single layer on sound plaster can come off in a day. Several layers, painted paper or paper on bare drywall can take two or three days before any repair or painting starts. A test patch tells us which you have.
Is there a lead risk when wallpaper comes off in an old house?
There can be if painted layers under or over the paper are scraped. In a building from before 1978 we keep the work wet, which holds dust down, and clean up carefully.
How it works
- Free estimate: Call, text or book online. We walk the job and measure.
- Written quote: Prep, paint and price in writing.
- Prep & protect: We cover floors and furniture, repair and prime surfaces.
- Paint & walk-through: Two coats, clean lines, full clean-up and a final walk-through.