GARDZ is the best solution because it will not reactivate wallpaper paste.

Michael

Yep...
Definately Gardz here. You could also use Zinsser's Odorless Oil if you can't find Gardz.
Also, make sure the paper is CLEAN & bone-dry b4 priming. Because it's a bath, there is slight surface contamination from sprays, etc...Just to be safe!

Faron

I had a simialr experience throughout my home...apparently paper was put up over unpainted drywall---what a mess. I bought wall paper remover from SW and did the following and it DID come off. You may want to try this.

1) Use one of those CLAW thingy's to performate a million holes in the paper. Once you think you have enough holes, do it again. Then again. Do your best to get in the corners and along the ceiling as well.

2) Add warm water to an 6 - 8 oz spray bottle. Add some of the SW wallpaper remover to the water. Use about tripple strength.

3) Spray the entire area. Start with a small patch until you know this will work. Eventually you can get in a rythm and do several sections at a time. Spray again so everything soaks in but does not run down the walls. Blot.

4) Let stand 15 minutes. Walk away for 15 minutes!!!!

5) Spray again and blot. Walk away again. Waiting 15 minutes. Waiting is the most important step.

6) Spray again and start to remove. It should come off pretty easy now. Carefully use your putty knife, spray as necesary, especially if the paper separates from the backing.

I found this method to work quite well. Once you know it works and get moving, it does not take to long as you can work have multiple sections part way along at once.

Painting would certainly be easier but if something happens and you need to get that paper off you will really be in trouble.

Its a tough call. If you have an inconspicuous spot, I'd try to remove the paper.

You definitely do NOT want to use Gardz!
An application like yours is absolutely not what the product was designed for.

Gardz was formulated to be a torn drywall sealer. Anyone who has ever dealt with the "brown" paper layer of drywall knows the old process of sealing, skimming, cutting out the eventual bubbles, sealing, skimming.....until it's all done.
A product by Scotch paint out of california called Draw Tite ended all this. Truly amazing product. Put it on torn drywall and it penetrated, sealed all the layers of thin paper, and dried hard as heck. Skim over it with drywall mud and the moisture would just not penetrate. No more bubbles....ever.
When the product started to take off and do well Zinsser wanted to copy it. The rest is a long story...but they did. I tested their first samples and spent a week in Jersey at their factory.

Gardz is for porous surfaces. That, at this point, is not what you have. If wallpaper went over it successfully with no bubbles you have a sealed surface. Gardz will only briefly wet the old paste and, more than likely, create a lot of "fish-eyes" on the surface because it cannot penetrate.

So...what to do, right?

Wash the paste off the wall and seal with a 100% acrylic primer. Zinsser 1-2-3 would work well. Let it dry and paint at will.

If you want to remove the old paper or make removal of the old paste easier...go to www.safeandsimple.com
Safe and Simple is the most amazing wallpaper remover ever created. Created by paperhangers for paperhangers. It's the only thing that members of the NGPP use.

Good luck with your project and enjoy the space when it's done!

Homeprotex has a point, and I can't entirely disagree; but we've had good results with customers using Gardz over their paper.

* That said, even 123, or ANY Latex primer, has a slight "pulling/contracting" property to it when it dries.
* This "shrinking", combined with the brief "re-wetting" of the water in a Latex, CAN weaken and lift a seam if it's not totally secure. Kind of a slow-motion process, but it happens!
* That's exactly why I mentioned the Odorless-Oil. Oils don't shrink/pull when curing.
* They just "sit in place" and cure. Wallpaper paste isn't reactivated by it, and couldn't penetrate this film anyway.
* For the same reason, you COULD use the BIN-primer, but this is pretty smelly!! Have the windows open!

Faron

No acrylic primers allowed! Gardz may have been originally formulated to seal torn drywall paper, but that doesn't mean that is all it can be used for. When you remove wallpaper, there are times when you just can't get all the residual paste off. That is when you use Gardz. Here is what the can says:

 Penetrates deeply into porous surfaces
 Dries fast to a hard, moisture-proof film
 Prevents drywall blistering/bubbling
 Binds down chalky surfaces
 Strengthens soft texture finishes
 Seals in residual wallpaper paste
 Can be applied to high-pH surfaces
 Clear, low odor, water-base formula

So yes it is formulated to seal porous surfaces, but it also works to lock down wallpaper paste. Myself and many, many painters around the world have been using it for years for that purpose. What it does is it enables you to walk away from a job without having to worry about that wallpaper paste eating through the latex paint and crackling your paint film. Latex/acrylic primers will not give you that peace of mind. Sure you can use an acrylic primer if you get all the paste off, but how often does that happen? I'm trying to think of how many jobs I have done where the homeowner stripped wallpaper and hired me to paint and not once has the homeowner actually removed all the residual glue....it's a hard job....it's a lot of rinsing and rinsing and scrubbing and rinsing again. It's just much easier to get most of the glue off and then use Gardz.

The more time I spend here....the more I can understand why the average consumer is completely confused.

It's not your fault (consumer). It's just because there are so many people who proclaim so loudly and boldly their "opinions". They must be right....right? They are "professionals". This is what they do for a living...right?

The one truth about the internet is that everyone is 10 feet tall, bulletproof, successful, beautiful, and amazingly intelligent. Who would have ever guessed the power that anonymity and a keyboard could create?

I can read the side of a paint can just as well as the next person. If it says it....it must be true....right?
Maybe that's why I currently cook every meal with the Magic Bullet...use Oxy Clean daily...the Swivel Sweeper cleans my floors...magic Asian foot pads keep me healthy...which allows me the time to be the next "no money down" real estate millionare.....you'll see.

What really matters most to you, pamies, is your project and what you want to achieve. The bad news is that there are several opinions...even more on the web. That's why you are confused (rightfully so).

The GOOD news (and isn't that what matters most?) is that with the shape your walls are in (already having wallpaper over them) you can take any one of the offered suggestions and, at the end of the day, you simply won't have a problem.

Kilz...not really the best idea only because it's oil base and a pain to work with. Would it work? Probably so.

Gardz...not really meant for the job...could "fish eye" if the old paper is vinyl coated...but will actually dry to a film regardless. Would it work? Probably so.

Acrylic primer...will wet the surface and then dry to a film. Would it work? Probably so.

The bottom line to you is to not get caught up in a confusion of self proclaimed experts (yes...that means me too). You just want your bathroom done and looking good.

With the shape it's in...and the fact that the pressure of a top layer of wallpaper caused no failure...you can paint (prime) that space with just about anything and pull off a successful paint job.

Don't stress too much, pick something...anything, knock it out and paint it the way you want to see it.

Then relax and enjoy it.

Acrylic primer...will wet the surface and then dry to a film. Would it work? Probably so.

I am going to throw my 2 cents in here and state that this last comment in the post above "may" be true but certainly is not the "best" idea. The best would ideally be to remove ALL of the residual paste,apply a primer and 2 finish coats. If this does not or most likely will not( remove ALL paste) then the best next step would be to apply an oil based primer to lock down the residual paste,and yes Gardz will work just fine if MOST of the paste has been removed,I have been doing this for more than 20 years and applying an acrylic primer over wallpaper paste is just asking for failure down the road.

The bottom line to you is to not get caught up in a confusion of self proclaimed experts (yes...that means me too).

That's how that sentence should appear. :)

Michael

Laptop.......899.95
Broadband......34.95
Having your point about anonymity and the keyboard materialize so quickly....PRICELESS

;)

Well this has been a very interesting thread. My attention deficit now has be partly finished with priming some walls in a bathroom...(originally painted a very dark color) and instead of taking the next step of picking out a color to paint.................. I am looking at my powder room and thinking about painting over that very well installed wallpaper which was put directly on painted wall.
If you do paint, please let us know what you decided to use.thanks. and good luck

Thank you very much for all the advice. I will let you know how it goes. Our contrator is scheduled in about 3 weeks. Once the coving and vanity with the banjo is removed we will have a better idea of what repair is needed on the wall.
Pam

I know this is old, but can you follow up Pam?

I am contemplating painting over wallpaper too and would like some more feedback. Which method did you end up with? and the result?

My room is actually the laundry closet (behind bifold doors) with the washer and dryer and shelves. I think access will be tricky for wallpaper stripping. so painting over is very appealing. Plus, it doesn't have to look so great being a closet, right? Plus, I have removed wallpaper in two bathrooms in this house (original owners builder installed) and made a mess of the walls in both cases.

The closet is in a hallway/mudroom that also has the wallpaper on it. I was planning on attempting removal of that and see how it goes.

My Dh went to the local Duron store and bought what they recommended- Thinks it was Gardz. 2 coats, and it looked fine- smelly though. 2 coats of paint and it is perfect.
You would never know there was wallpaper underneath.