I would be afraid to paint over wallpaper because down the road, it could start to peel. Then you would lose the paint you put up on the wall. You should really take the wallpaper down before painting.

If any other option..do not paint over it! I had a wallpaper removal party once at a friends house..we had wine, scrappers, steamers, removal spray. It made the work go fast, laughing and chatting.

Don't sweat "losing" paint you've put over wall paper -- "lose the paint" ... how silly that sounded when I read it. A lot of people repaint frequently and some more than others.

The reality is that you, not a pro, could damage the drywall trying to remove stubborn wall paper and that would be a lot more trouble and a lot more costly to replace than buying another can of paint.

Even if you're going to hire a pro to remove it, the pro could make a mistake and damage the dry wall -- and then there is the cost of hiring the pro.

Not a pro, but my practical advice is that if you were planning to paint the wall yourself, DO try painting over the wall paper first -- at least one wall, perhaps behind a door where it will not be seen if it proves to have been a mistake.

Remove it. It's the right way to do it.

HI -- Never ever never paint over wallpaper !! I know there are people who will tell you it' can be done . There cannot be that much wallpaper in the bathroom that you cannot re-move it . Or get someone to do it -- worth it ! If you can peel off the top layer which is probably glossy or maybe a vinyl because it's bathroom paper , then the under layer should come off with a wallpaper re-mover . I actually like re-moving wallpaper and it's easy with the right products and some good music and maybe a little wine and a little time .

I actually have painted over wallpaper. There are times when then paper has been applied to the drywall without it being properly primed. It isn't coming off without ruining the drywall! The glue from the wallpaper bonds to the paper backing on the drywall and it is a nightmare. This may not be the case in your room however; so do try a small spot and see. If you do decide to paint it be sure the seams are all tight , use a good primer first and then paint it.

Once painted over, wallpaper is a devil to remove at a later date, so I advise against it. Remove and repair wall.

Unless you live in a very old home and the paper is pulling off the plaster - definitely remove it. Even if painting over it works for a while, you will cause problems for yourself or whoever lives in your home in the future. Strippable wallpaper has been around a long time. Give it a shot - it may come down easier than you thought. If worse comes to worse, you rent a wallpaper removal steamer. Do not leave a mess for someone who moves in down the road to deal with.

Hi---

If the wallpaper is in good shape, then you definitely can prime and paint over it. You'll save yourself time, money, and effort not having to remove wallpaper that's been up for years. Good Luck!

Thank you for your input. Is there a special type of primer I should use that would be better to cover wallpaper? Any ingredients to look out for?

Pardon my ignorance, but why, tribbletrouble, would a layer of paint make wallpaper removal in future more difficult? Thanks.

Thank you, lynartist. It sounds like it may be worth a try. Also, it seems I may be able to try out a color. If deterioration of wallpaper occurs, then I'd have to call in the pros to remove.

My contractor skim coated a wallpaper wall with thin plaster and painted over it. The wall paper was very tight to the wall, no tears or pulled up corners. It is a seldom used room, so we went with the idea. I'd always thought wall paper had to come off before painting, but this seemed to have worked. (It's been less than a year, so very thin anecdotal evidence.)

I am immediately turned off when I look at a house to buy and I can see that wallpaper was painted over. I can see the seams and sometimes bubbles appear over time, or wrinkles in the corners. I would remove it, even though there is a risk of damaging the drywall if it was not installed properly.

You can use Zinnzer oil base primer. You can then top coat this with latex if you want. Using an oil base primer will lessen the chance of moisture loosening the wallpaper.

We moved into our house 18 yrs ago and the painter could not get the wallpaper off the main entry hallway, staircase, and upstairs hall because it had not been applied properly. It was shiny pink with a green border (really!!, and the carpet in the area was similar) so leaving it was not an option. (Removing the pink and green from the entryway was the only change I insisted on before we moved into the house). He convinced us that he could satisfactorily paint over it, and he did ... and there are no signs of seams or other indications that there is wallpaper underneath. We just had the space repainted and it still looks great. Unfortunately I don't recall what if anything he did to prepare the wall, but my home is living proof that painting over wallpaper can work and can last for years and years. Removing should always be the first option, but if it's not possible, covering with paint does work.

Good question, lindanance. It's because to remove wallpaper you use a steamer gadget and a scraper. Quick and easy normally. The steam cannot get through paint, which makes the removal of painted wallpaper a nightmare.

Showing tools for wallpaper removal (sorry about the dummies)

http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/tools-for-taking-off-wallpaper.html

you said it well, jh. someone will pay for you taking a shortcut, down the road. if voodoo dolls worked a previous owner of a house i lived in years back wouldnt have survived my wrath.

I agree with you JH; but I also wouldn't jump to conclusions here either. Perhaps the previous owner wasn't a good steward of this home and didn't install the paper correctly leaving a headache for this one. In which case I always say" never say never".

Yes - but an attempt to remove the paper should be made before going with the paint. We do not know what has been tried.

Thank you all for the good info for someone who has not had to considered this before. We love our home, do not take "shortcuts", are very good stewards and do not believe the discussion regarding that go any further. It simply comes down to sharing pertinent info from experience and/or education and that is much appreciated!

I would not recommend painting over wallpaper. It is true, it can technically be done for a short term solution, however you might be creating a bigger problem long term. There are plenty of products available in the market that will make your job much easier, and since you mentioned it is a powder room, I would assume it is a small space.

Please also keep in mind that if you would want to paint a different color in the future, you would have a problem sanding the walls in preparation for painting, and would need to remove the wallpaper at that time and it would be much more dificult, since you would have to remove the paint first.

Yes, it could possible work as a short but long term you would be setting yourself up for a headache.

Good Luck!

When I was in high school, I went on a trip with my youth group to a poor section in Kentucky. It was a work camp and we had to scrap many layers of wall paper off the walls of this house. It was grueling work due to the layers of wall paper and paint. I know things have changed since then but I would still be leery of painting over wall paper. On down the road, someone if not you, will have a mess!

I've painted over existing wallpaper in my powder room 3 times in the past 7 years and have never had any problem. The room is small, 6'x5' so when the time comes, I'll have the drywall replaced. Hope this is helpful. Keep us posted.

That's a task you can do on work breaks from another job!!

Remove it!!! It is more of a nightmare if the painting doesn't work..boy than it is a Hugh project to remove...spray walls with equal parts fabric softener and water and spray on wall until saturated let sit for about 10-15 min. Than start to scape off...you can do it!! The important part is after paper is off walls should be washed to remove any leftover glue. Good luck!!

Why ask a question if you've already determined the course of action?

Many times, people use dilemmas to eliminate alternative decisions, and refine their thinking.

Jennifer, to whom are you addressing your comment? I asked the question since I did not know the plusses and minuses of painting over or tearing out wallpaper. Simple as that. Thanks, tribbletrouble, for all your help and sound thinking.

Many have been helpful here. There's a lot of knowledge among Houzzers.

Yup, that's true! And now that you have heard all this life experience it's up to you to decide what to do. It's your house so you make it beautiful! No judgement here;)

I was addressing it to you Linda. It makes no sense to me.

Kinda rude Jennifer:(

Question was paint over or tear out wallpaper, Remove wallpaper before painting imo

Powder room is tiny...won't take long to remove - even if it is difficult. Once you paint and don't like (maybe seams will be showing) then you have a bigger problem trying to get off. If you start to remove and the dry wall is damaged, have repaired. I have removed wallpaper until I had no fingernails left - lol - and then had to fix the dry wall and I still would never paint over wallpaper. All this feedback and it may come down in an hour. Good luck.