DIY Doctor UK DIY Forums

When I strip off my old wallpaper the emulsion paint underneath comes off in large areas but other areas are left on. The paint which is left on the wall is well stuck on but if I try to paint over as I wish to do you can obviously see where the patches of paint still are. is there any way I can remove all the emulsion paint. Thiss has happened on all the walls in the house. Obviously something was done wrong when it was painted as a new build.

Hi pammy, some emulsion will always come off when stripping the old wallpaper. If it's coming off in large amounts then the walls were probably not sealed properly in the first place, ie with a mist coat of emulsion which is a watered down first coat to seal the walls. You could get some fine glasspaper and flatten the edges of the old stuff then put the new on but if you want to get all of it off which sounds to be the way you want to go then go to B&Q or one of the other big DIY stores and get some varnish and paint remover the one that can be used on waterbased paints such as emulsion. Most of them sell it these days. Once it is all off wash the walls down to make sure you have got all the remover off. Then give one or two mist coats before putting the finish emulsion on. Good luck with it.