wall paper paste?

[Don Wiss]

We have an art project where we will be pasting paper sheets with outlines on oilboard. The oilboard will be first screwed onto a construction fence. Then after 10 days we will have to remove it. We can then simply unscrew the oilboard.

One of the planners of the project suggested this powdered paste:

The construction site can supply us with water from across the street. But this powder isn't available locally, and is more expensive to have shipped from Amazon.

But why this powder? There seem to be many wallpaper pastes available. And why not a premixed in 5 gallon drums? We will have 2,200 square feet of regular paper to paste. So the paper will be a lot thinner than wallpaper. And hopefully the paste won't absorb into the paper too much.

At my local Lowes I find two 5-gal options. I see one is for all weights, and the other for medium to heavy weight. I would want all weights.

Then the next question is what thickness nap rollers do we want. We plan to put the paste on the oilboard, then unroll each 20"x60" sheet onto it.

Don.

(e-mail link at home page bottom).

[philo]

Back in the old day we made paste from flour and water.

Don't know how good it is but it should last ten days

[J Burns]

The technical data sheet says it's starch adhesive. My mother used to make it with flour and water in a pan on the stove, with alum as a preservative. The alum prevented mold if it was used for a papier mache object that might be around a long time. You have to stir it as it heats to avoid lumps, and add water to get the consistency you want. I don't know if cornstarch works better.

What about rubber cement? Brush it on the board where the top of the paper will go, get some on the paper by pressing it on the board or brushing it on, let it dry briefly, and press it on. Then do the sides and bottom. You could cement the middle of the paper if you think the edges won't be enough.

[Frank]

If you mix flour with cold water and stir well, you get less lumps when heating to partially solubilize. Should be fine for school project.

[David L. Martel]

Don,

It's possible that someone here has tried this but I doubt it. No idea why your planner suggested one brand of paste. Have you asked him? You'll need to become the expert by doing a bit of experimentation. Hope the deadline isn't nearing.

Dave M.

[Don Wiss]

The problem is we need enough for 2200 sq feet. The 5-gal can says good for

1500 sq feet. We would buy two to be sure to have enough. To make 10 gallons wouldn't be fun. It's not like we can't afford $80 in paste. For the other parts of the project we have spent much more.

I have just learned that if the city levies a $1500 fine the site developer will eat it. Construction fences aren't supposed to have political art on them. And the city will know. We expect press.

For 2200 sq feet!? There are 264 sheets that are 20"x60".

Don.

(e-mail link at home page bottom).

[Don Wiss]

I could. But he's busy and we dropped him from most of the e-mail correspondence. It goes up on Saturday. The oilboards arrive on Wednesday. I'm trying to find a place with a paper cutter wide enough. One place says they can only cut paper and not heavy (0.015") stock. My local place has a cutter only 20" wide. He was telling me that the pressing of the stack is hydraulic, and wonders about crushing the board with the oil. Back when I was in school, the paper cutters had a wheel you cranked to clamp down the stack. Then a long arm to pull. Now all automatic.

Don.

(e-mail link at home page bottom).

[J Burns]

I haven't used rubber cement in a long time. I was mistaken. You brush it on one surface and press together. It sticks quickly and doesn't penetrate paper.

It comes in quarts and gallons. Brushing rubber cement along the top edge seems like a quick way to hang a 60" strip of paper in a precise position. Then paste or rubber cement could be added to keep it from flapping in the wind.

[hrhofmann]

What is oilboard?????

[J Burns]

I wondered, too. It's the kind of cardboard used for making stencils.

[J Burns]

The oilboard I've read about is a little thicker than a playing card. Is that what you're using?

[...]

[...]

I think if you put a long strip of thin paper on a pasty surface, you'll have to slide it a little. The moisture in the paste may soften the paper. It may tear and wrinkle.

One person could hold the top edge of a paper strip in place while a second person uses cellophane tape, the kind with a nonreflective surface, to secure it at several spots along the top. Then you could paste the oilboard and press the paper down without having to position it.

Another approach would be to put rubber cement in a squeeze bottle. The cement comes in gallon cans, and the squeeze bottle would keep it from drying before use. Run a bead along the oilboard where the top of the paper will go, flatten the bead with a plastic spreader if necessary, and attach the top edge of the paper. Then paste.

[Don Wiss]

That is correct. If you buy letter stencils they are oilboard. This is where we are buying our sheets:

We did not come up with the idea of screwing on oilboard and then pasting onto it. We were at a loss on how to remove our sheets after a week. Then one of the group asked his artist friends. He/she/they came up with this is the way it is done. The oilboard is very stiff and can withstand rain.

I presume it was the artist friends that suggested that powdered paste. They guy asking wouldn't know anything about paste.

Initially it was to be a rogue action on a fence around city property. Then someone asked Norman Siegel. He said don't do it roguely. So we asked the city. They said no. Finally we asked a major developer with many construction fences. He liked it. Next week -- assuming we aren't rained out and delay it a week -- I will post about the results.

I bought a couple boxes of short screws at Lowes. Tomorrow I will test driving them through oilboard into plywood.

Still no one has suggested what sort of roller nap to spread the paste.

If we take up the suggestion of using rubber cement along the top, we would use a paint brush for that.

Don.

(e-mail link at home page bottom).

[Don Wiss]

I sort of answered this in another post. It is 0.015" thick. A bit thicker than a playing card. And heavy, with the oil impregnated in it.

Okay. I was thinking paint brush, as a brush is what is attached to the caps of the cans of rubber cement. I get your point about it could dry out. With 264 of these to paste, it is going to take hours. Probably far more then we realize. With two rolling scaffolds, one would put up the oilboard and the next the sheets. I don't know the length of them.

The reason for the scaffolds is the plywood sheets start on top of Jersey barriers. The sidewalk is behind the construction fence, so we will be blocking off one lane of traffic and be doing this in the street.

Don.

(e-mail link at home page bottom).

[J Burns]

How about a 6" brush used for wallpapering? I imagine a roller could leave the paste too thick, making the paper lumpy and wet.

I suppose a brush should have a lid device around the handle to slow evaporation when the brush isn't actually in use.

[J Burns]

I've been involved in more than one wallpapering project, but I was pretty young. We steamed the old paper loose, brushed on paste, kept moving the new paper until it was in position, and went over it with a roller.

On oilboard, one could probably thin out the paste like paint because the oilboard wouldn't absorb much. I'd want to see how well starch paste sticks to oilboard, before I started pasting up 2000 square feet. I'd want to test rubber cement, too.

Thin paste would mean less moisture for the paper to absorb.

Thin paste might be applied with a short-nap roller or a garden sprayer and a sponge. Spray on a little and spread with the sponge.

[J Burns]

How about 1/4" staples? Quick and cheap to apply, and they can be removed with a screwdriver and pliers.

[J Burns]

With all those staples, I'd use a heavy duty staple remover. Why not also use staples to position the paper prior to pasting?

[Don Wiss]

I had asked about a staple gun to the fellow that asked the artists. And then use one of the lever type staple removers. No response. I gather this is because the artists suggested screws, it became screws.

Some of the screws will be hidden underneath the paper. If staples under the paper they could be very hard to find.

I bought #6 x 1/2" flat Phillips wood screws. And these:

Don.

(e-mail link at home page bottom).

[dadiOH]

I have no idea what oilboard is but if it is anything like Masonite I'd be using a short nap roller, probaly 1/4 foam.

[Norminn]

What is oilboard? Familiar with art supplies but never heard of it. Consider watered-down Elmer's Glue or some other version of PVA. Here is a link to Dick Blick, which is the best low-price online art supply dealer:

Given the size of the individual panels, I would use a foam roller with thinned glue....thinned Elmers/PVA will become tacky more quickly and dry faster than wallpaper paste. If the paper is delicate, like newsprint, the wetness of wallpaper paste might make it fall apart while trying to position the paper. If using larger rollers, the shortest nap would be the best, being careful to spread paste thinly. If there is plenty of help, old paint brushes or larger chip brushes would work, too.

If intent on using wheat paste, go to any paint/wallpaper/hardware store and see what they have....plain old wheat paste shouldn't be more than $4-5.