The ULTIMATE Wallpaper Extravaganza with Just Add Paint!

The ULTIMATE Wallpaper Extravaganza with Just Add Paint!
Project Profile by Just Add Paint! in Mechanicsburg, PA 17050

Reason for Client Contact: We received a call from an excellent past customer. He was moving his aging parents out of their home so they could be closer to him. A health situation had caused this move to take place sooner than expected, and the home needed to go up for sale AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. There was only one little problem- this large home had some wallpaper. And by some, I mean EVERY surface other than the ceilings and floor. Our client knew we specialized in wallpaper and requested a Just Add Paint miracle. Because of the very short time frame we had in which to work, and because the wallpaper had been expertly installed and would not come down easily, we chose to use our proprietary technique to seal the paper in place. Done carefully, this can yield an even better final product than removal! Despite quaking with fear when we did the initial walk through, we were able to get the job done and help our client get his house listed! (It sold in 3 days, for full asking price☺)

Services to be Utilized:

-Extensive sealing with Shellac-based primer over all Wallpaper surfaces
-LOTS and LOTS patching with Sherwin Williams quick dry spackle
-Extensive sanding using two Festool Dustless Sanding/HEPA Vac Systems
-Re-priming using Shellac and / or Oil-based aerosol primer (Sherwin Williams Brand)
-Final Sand using very fine paper on Sanding Disc (360 Brand)
-Painting using Sherwin Williams Superpaint Flat (Performs closer to a Matte finish, had very slight sheen to it)
-Application items included Wooster paint brushes and Arroworthy Microfiber roller covers
-Masking items included Sherwin Williams branded Painters Plastic, Butcher Block paper, 3m Blue Tape, and Yellow Frog Tape
-Use of 3M Organic Vapor certified Respirators during Shellac Application

Challenges of the Job:

Time Frame for Completion: We are a SMALL company. (A major part of our quality comes from maintaining a small team of well trained individuals who work well together.) This job needed to be completed in 5 days, despite being by far the largest wallpaper job we have ever undertaken. Our client really needed to get this property sold, and was only in state for a little more than a week. We needed to get the wallpaper done so he could re-stage the house and get it listed!

Massive amounts of wallpaper: We have a HUGE amount of experience with removing and / or sealing wallpaper. Even so, there was such a large amount of paper to be sealed, that finding the proper order of operations and getting the wallpaper ready for final painting was a challenge.

Surface Protection from Shellac Primer: Shellac-based primer is the BEST possible primer for a wallpaper sealing job. That said, it is also exceptionally difficult to work with, because it is actually the one paint that is thinner than water. It is alcohol based, and is exceptionally drippy and spritzy. This created the need for an even higher level of floor and carpet protection than normal.

Personal Protection from Shellac Fumes: Again, shellac is the very best sealer for wallpaper. However, it is also alcohol based. This presents a HUGE problem because the fumes are exceptionally strong, and can cause burning of the eyes, nose, and throat- even in small amounts. (On the flip side, the alcohol base dries VERY quickly, and unlike oil paint, with fumes that last for days, this smell can be virtually eliminated within a few hours of rolling it on, simply by venting with fans and running a heater to speed the dry time even further.)

We follow a two step process when using shellac. First, Clients are asked to be out of the house during application and drying of the shellac. We therefore made certain all shellac was done within 2 days in order to ensure the least disruption of our Client’s schedule. Second, we all use half face respirators and vent the home during application. While headaches are still common even with the use of a respirator, any lasting damage caused by the toxicity of the product is eliminated. We use Organic Vapor certified respirators for maximum protection.

Not Destroying the entire house with amazing amounts of dust from over 10 Gallons of Spackle Paste: This is where our FESTOOL HEPA VAC dustless vacuum system comes in. Without the use of a special dust capturing vacuum, the amount of dust created by sanding this much spackle would cover every surface in the house with fine powder. In addition to being very hard to clean up and to remove from the hvac system of the house, this dust can also cause respiratory problems for people with weakened immune systems or other sensitivities. Thanks to our (expensive) but highly effective HEPA VAC, we are able to capture almost all of the dust from sanding, before it ever becomes airborn.

The Process:

–We needed to work with extreme efficiency to get the paper sealed, so that the much faster final task of re-painting the walls could be completed. We accomplished this task in several ways. First, we sent in a prep crew early to get the entire home ready for work. This included butcher block paper on all floor surfaces, taped down to trim for absolute protection from the thin, spritzy shellac-based primer we use to seal the paper to the walls. Next, we sent in the whole team to shellac the entire house. (This was accomplished surprisingly fast because the careful preparation allowed us to apply the shellac very quickly with little worry about spritz getting anywhere we didn’t want it.)

–Once the wallpaper was 100% sealed with shellac, (and Sherwin Williams Pro Block Oil-based aerosol Primer in small areas where a spray paint was preferable,) we used Fans and Heaters to quickly dry the entire home. This helps us move more quickly to the next step of sealing the wallpaper seams, and also helps us remove fumes for the safety of our crew. Finally, the quick drying allows our Clients to return to the home as soon as possible.

-Once the walls were dry, we turned our attention to eliminating all visible wallpaper seams. We started by shaving the seams that overlap. We next used Sherwin Williams Quick Dry Spackle Paste to fill the seams in. Last, we use another layer of spackle to create a very smooth “feathered” patch over the area of each seam. (This allows us to make even deep wallpaper seams virtually invisible to the eye, even in rooms with difficult “side-lit” conditions.)

-Once all layers of spackle were completed and fan / heater dried, we then used our Festool HEPA VACUUM system to make all patched areas perfectly smooth and blemish free. This is an exceptionally important part of the process, because even the best patch will never look perfect unless it is sanded properly, using the correct tools and best grits / types of sanding paper.

-Once all sanding is completed, we then re-primed the walls where necessary. (With this much patching, we decided in this case to re-shellac all wall surfaces to help with paint coverage.) This ensures an even final coat with our paint, and also helps to hide any “flashing” which can occur when certain paints are used directly over spackle.
After venting and fan drying the final shellac-based prime coat, we then began application of Sherwin Williams Superpaint Flat paint to all walls. This paint was chosen because it has a small amount of sheen which provides wipe-ability and good luminosity, and because it is very low sheen, also covers any slight imperfections that may still remain.
We once again fan and heater dried the walls, then applied a 2nd coat of paint to all surfaces. This 2nd coat provides a nearly perfectly even final finish on the walls. (Plus, if you go to all that trouble to make the walls perfect, why would you even think about only applying one coat of paint??)

The Result:
While we were somewhat frightened by both the time frame and sheer scope of this job, we were thrilled with the result, and with completing the job on the tight time frame it required. We were able to take a house that was essentially unmarketable due to having outdated wallpaper of varying designs in every room, and make it “ready for sale” within the 5 day schedule we had to work with. In doing so, we were able to help out a past Client, which always makes us happy. And perhaps most important, by using our proprietary wallpaper sealing technique, were able to complete this job at a FRACTION of the cost that would have been required to remove this paper from the walls. The icing on the cake was that we received word from our Client that the house sold within days of being listed, and that it went for full asking price. We always love painting, which is why we do it- but we are also thrilled when our Clients have positive outcomes based on the work we complete for them.

Written by W. Grant Tankersley for Just Add Paint!  If you enjoyed this article, please stop by our facebook page at www.facebook.com/justaddpaint to see more