At some point you’ll be done with that boring wall in the living room. It’s time to decorate the wall with a nice motif or a beautiful photo. BUT… the wall is painted with latex wall paint. So the wall must be pre-treated. How do you ensure that your wallpaper sticks to the painted wall?
Acclimatizing
Before you start wallpapering, the wallpaper must be in the same room for 24 hours before it can be applied. You do this so that the wallpaper gets the same temperature as the room. This prevents the wallpaper from shrinking and getting seams between the strips. It is best to lay the wallpaper on the floor to acclimatize.
Priming
Has your wall been painted or recently plastered? Then the photo wallpaper may have difficulty adhering to the wall. It is best to pre-treat the wall with a primer. This is a small job, but ensures that your photo wallpaper immediately sticks well to the wall.
Get the right tools: a large, wide brush and primer. Now you can get started.
- The wall must be dust-free and clean. Wipe the wall with a dry cloth or brush.
- Fill a bucket with the primer.
It is best to apply the primer undiluted to the wall. However, do you have a large surface (> 10m2) and is the wall not very absorbent? Then you can also dilute the primer. You can use a maximum ratio of 2:1. So a maximum of 2 liters of water on 1 liter of primer.
- Apply the primer with the brush. The primer has a yellow color, so you can clearly see where you have already been with your brush.
- Allow the primer to soak in for at least 3 hours before covering the wall with wallpaper glue.
Wallpapering in a damp room? Are you going to apply the wallpaper in a damp room? Or perhaps in the kitchen behind the sink or stove? Make sure you protect the wallpaper well against moisture splashes. Not sure how? You can read it in our blog about wallpapering in damp rooms.
