wallpapering prob's

[H. Neary]

I bought some light grey "heavyweight paper" from Focus.

I am not too well accustomed to papering, but I have had a few problems.

The first problem was the lining paper, I put this up horizontally as the various websites and DIY helpsheets suggest. I butted the joins up very carefully and slced overlaps with some pizza cutting device that Wickes sell. The overlapping portion was removed and butted, then rolled with a seam roller just to be sure.

The joins still come through.

The next problem was with the paper itself. In all fairness it did state on the instructions [ On the back of the label presented to the customer and only readable once the packaging was stripped], that a pre mixed paste should be used. I had bought a couple of packs of Solvite, so I used these.

Mixed the stuff and pasted the paper, let it stew for five minutes and gave it another dollop of past on any dryish bits.

I then appled it to the wall, I had given the lining paper a coat of PVA incidentally.

After brushing out the bubbles, I left it. 30 minutes later it seemed that more bulges had formed, so these were brushed and stroked out with a Harris plastic blade type device.

After twelve hours spaces have developed between the butted edges of one of the strips of paper. It seems to have shrunk.

There is also a problem with colour matching, I can see obvious differences between the rolls on the wall. I am not usually able to define shades too well, so I would think the paper is suspect.

The paper had the trademark "Opera" on the pack, has anyone used this or is it my technique.

Incidentally I found that the key to solving the horizontal lines in the final job was to simply leave a small space of a half millimetre or so and use filler to bridge the gap.

Is there a lot of difference between brands? I bought this for it's colour, a fairly bland mid grey. I think it was at the lower end of the price bracket and it emanates from Eastern Europe. Should I try for an alternative Crown or something?

I had a quick look via google and the going rate for a roll of grey wallpaper is around £20-00, I think the Focus stuff was around £6-00 or £12-00. Was this the cause of my problem?

HN

[Ericp]

You sealed the wall with PVA and made it impervious to the paste. The paste can't dry.

[H. Neary]

It seems to have dried o/k. It's just that in drying it decided to shrink.

I used PVA to prevent the lining paper soaking in the paste and perhaps loosing adhesion.

HN

[Invisible Man]

Did you check the batch numbers? DIY sheds tend to have numerous rolls of paper but with only a few of each batch/shade number. Their ordering systems tend to dislike you ordering 10 rolls to get the same colour when their computer shows they have 30 in stock. If you can prove the numbers were the same and the colour varies time to start complaining.

I think I have used Opera but cannot be sure. I have never had bad enough walls or used delicate enough paper to bother with cross lining. I spend time filling and sanding walls if necessary.

I am rubbish at getting a decent finish with paint but my own papering has produced far better results than 3 separate highly recommended decorators who were told we wanted a good job rather than a cheap job.

[Dave Liquorice]

The paper will try to shrink as it dries but normally the paste has stuck it to the wall firm enough that it can't move.

I don't use lining paper either but if going to "size" it, like a wall, I'd have similary used a weaker paste to do so.

I also suspect that a plastic blade type device might stretch the paper more than a wall papering brush would do.

For something without a pattern I'd use paint... no chance of obvious colour variations or joins showing.

[Tabby]

PVA not recommended. I've no experience with an overlap slicer, just butting edges up works well, as long as you align thigns accurately. By the way, don't be tempted to pull paper sideways and stretch it, this will cause trouble, and I wonder if that might be what went wrong.

I wouldnt pay =A320 a roll for plain grey paper. Can you not fix the surface and paint?

NT

[stuart noble]

I use the most lightweight lining paper I can find. Even with soaking the heavyweight stuff doesn't stretch well and has a tendency to revert to its original position on drying.

[sm_jamieson]

Soaking it for too long can cause that. Whatever, I hate wallpapering ;-) Simon.

[H. Neary]

Thank you, this sounds like the main cause of my prob's.

I did put some effort into the pulling out.

I will try again with a little more finesse!

I am ver tempted to paint incidentally, but I hate to give up on the papering now that I've put the effort in.

HN

[H. Neary]

Just rechecked the old labels. All D5's withe the final one a D7. I should have been more careful. I selected thenm from the 'pile' :-(

I had one portion of the wall I coated with finishing plaster. Sadly my plastering needs a little more than paint to cover its bumpy bits.

Many thanks

HN