Doing it yourself? Avoid these traps
The Job: REMOVING WALLPAPER
The Pitfalls: Removing part of the drywall along with it, resulting in pitted walls that need to be repaired or even replaced.
The Pros Say: If the wallpaper was put on incorrectly in the first place, drywall holes may be unavoidable when you try to remove it. Try to soften the glue behind the paper first with a steamer or a wallpaper removal product such as Diff. If the paper doesn't come off easily, you're probably just asking for trouble. Leave it on and prep for painting over it instead.
The Job: REMOVING "POPCORN" CEILINGS
The Problem: Getting rid of the tacky ceiling texture, popular in the 1970s and 1980s, can be a messy, dirty, backbreaking process that results in ceiling gouges or worse -- some of the stuff just won't come off.
The Pros Say: Never scrape a dry ceiling. Wet it first with a garden sprayer and then scrape with a putty knife. The texture should come off in neater clumps. And there's less risk of ceiling holes.
The Job: PATCHING DRYWALL
The Pitfalls: Inexperienced fixer-uppers routinely fill holes in gypsum wallboard with too much joint compound and use the wrong-width knives. The result can be bumpy walls that look a lot like a rough, textured ceiling.
The Pros Say: Use a six-inch knife to smooth the first coat of joint compound and eight-inch and 10-inch knives for the following two coats. For an even smoother surface, try using less compound for each application and apply four or five extra-thin coats instead of just three coats. |
