Painting - Paint over Wallpapaer

Is it necessary to remove old wall paper before painting?

Yes. View this thread. (http://forum.doityourself.com/showthread.php?threadid=86223)

No, no, no! Not necessarily...I did a few years ago in a bathroom; my mother told me too...it came out great! But the wallpaper can't be peeling...in that case, it's best to remove it first.

---just my experience :)

With all due respect to the other opinion, let me validate my thought process on painting wallpaper.

1. Can it be done? Yes.
2. Is it the correct thing to do? In most cases, no.
3. If I go ahead and paint it anyway, will it turn out OK? Maybe.
4. What could happen if I went ahead and painted it? The paint can reactivate the wallpaper adhesive causing the wallpaper to peel from the wall. Also, it will weaken the adhesive bond due to the paint's additional weight. This will also double efforts in future removal.
5. With proper preparation on suitable wallpaper, will it turn out OK? Yes, directions are in my first post.

To quote the comedian Chris Rock, "You can drive a car with your feet, but that don't make it right!" The same analogy applies. Many people have painted wallpaper successfully, but you never hear the same success stories from the people who have catastrophic failures.

Paint it or not, the choice is yours. Best of luck whatever road you choose to take! :cool:

I am just a lay person, but when DH and I bought our fixer-upper, three rooms had painted wallpaper in them. If you plan on staying in your house and will redo your room again in the future, then bite the bullet and take the paper down. The paint makes it impossible for steamers or chemicals to soak in and remove the paper. Also, if the glue fails in six months, then you are out all of the money and time you put into the new paint job.