Paint wallpaper?

[ohiohatteras]

My old 1976 Hatt has a textured wallpaper in the head. The Admiral wants to change colors........

Wondering if anybody knows if we can just paint over it? And if so...anything special or needed to know?
Thanks!

 

[SeaEric]

I've done it plenty of times. Make sure it's clean and tight, then roll on. Or brush.

 

[saltshaker]

I've done it plenty of times. Make sure it's clean and tight, then roll on. Or brush.

X2. If it's at all lose forget it. The added weight of the paint often accelerates peeling of the paper. If it's a vinyl face you may need to prime it first.

 

[SEVEN]

If it's vinyl just clean really good and apply a good latex smi gloss or low sheen. If it's paper you will have to seal it with a oil base primer because the water in the paste will re wet the paper and cause bubbles.

 

[Angela]

Have you looked to see what's under it yet? I peeled the old wallpaper off the walls in my head (1980 model) and found cream colored laminate walls. I cleaned the clue off of them, and they looked like new. I left them like that and chose to add color using towels, and as of just recently, a re-skinning of the countertops. The smooth formica walls are so easy to keep clean.formica wall

 

[SEVEN]

Good call Ang, I didn't even think of that. Hopefully if isn't wood the prior owner didn't sand it down to dull it.

 

[saltshaker]

My '74 46C had wood under the wallpaper along the hull and on the wall shared with the stateroom in the master head. Some of the walls had Formica but not all. The Guest head had Formica on all surfaces. The guest head didn't have an enclosed shower stall so this may be why it was different. I'd check to see what's under the paper on the hull side first. Maybe other 36C owners will chime in with what's in theirs.

 

[Walter P]

On my 1982 48 MY (3 heads) I have the formica which is in excellent shape in the fwd and mid ship heads. I agree with Angela that it is very easy to maintain so it will stay that way. The Master head has some sort of heavy duty wall covering which appears to be some kind of plastic wall paper. I actually hate it and would love to remove it if I was sure that it had formica (or other laminate). Re-skining it at this point would not be a fun job because as anyone who had worked with formica and contact cement can attest, once you make contact you're stuck with the result. By the way, the laminate covered wood that was used at the Hatteras factory was pre glued on the plywood sheets, then cut to fit thereby giving it a good fit with a bunch of less work. I checked the brochures section and the photo of the master head doesn't really show the walls well enough to be certain of the finish. Any other Series 1 48 MY's out there that can enlighten me?

Walt

 

[madhatter1]

While a bit more expensive than a do it yourself paint job consider just getting the walls re skinned in Formica. Brand new surface that will last for years and be easy to keep clean. All the Formica in my boat is now 20 years old and only staining is in the galley countertop. Just a thought.

 

[Red Hatt]

Good call Ang, I didn't even think of that. Hopefully if isn't wood the prior owner didn't sand it down to dull it.

I agree

 

[Christophatt]

Have you looked to see what's under it yet? I peeled the old wallpaper off the walls in my head (1980 model) and found cream colored laminate walls. I cleaned the clue off of them, and they looked like new. I left them like that and chose to add color using towels, and as of just recently, a re-skinning of the countertops. The smooth formica walls are so easy to keep clean.formica wall

Did you use anything special to clean it? I've started peeling my wallpaper off and alot of the backing/paste has turned to powder (50 years old). Did you just use a scraper?

The guest state room wallpaper was painted many years ago and looks good, BTW.

Thanks!

 

[Angela]

Did you use anything special to clean it? I've started peeling my wallpaper off and alot of the backing/paste has turned to powder (50 years old). Did you just use a scraper?

The guest state room wallpaper was painted many years ago and looks good, BTW.

Thanks!

I really don't remember, but I don't think I would have used a metal scraper - maybe a plastic one, or maybe warm water and a gentle scrubbie pad. I didn't scratch or scour it. I did it 9 or 10 years ago.

 

[ohiohatteras]

Thanks for all the replies.....the Admiral likes the looks of the texture and its on there pretty good...so she's gonna try to paint it this weekend......

 

[wired up]

Thanks for all the replies.....the Admiral likes the looks of the texture and its on there pretty good...so she's gonna try to paint it this weekend......

Since I do this for a living I will throw my two cents in. Yes it can be done and there is a chance it will bubble but most of the time they will pull tight after drying. You should use a primer if latex I use a product from Zinsser called 1-2-3 primer or INSL-X Stix primer. Good Luck Kurt

 

[Dreamboat]

My galley has vinyl on the walls, which was starting to peel. As it turns out there was a leak at the starboard window, but wasn't apparent because it didn't bleed through the vinyl. I peeled the vinyl off only to find a layer of wallpaper over nice afromosia paneling. I'm having a heck of a time getting the wall paper off tough. Any suggestions from the experienced lot?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Angela]

My galley has vinyl on the walls, which was starting to peel. As it turns out there was a leak at the starboard window, but wasn't apparent because it didn't bleed through the vinyl. I peeled the vinyl off only to find a layer of wallpaper over nice afromosia paneling. I'm having a heck of a time getting the wall paper off tough. Any suggestions from the experienced lot?

Thanks in advance.

I had the same situation in my 4th stateroom. It was the only room, other than the heads, that were wallpapered. I found beautiful wood behind there, so I tediously peeled it all off only to discover that Hatteras had used some sort of dark hard-as-epoxy filler material over the joint where two panels of teak plywood met. THAT was not coming off, so I had to re-wallpaper that one room. Such disappointment.

 

[SEVEN]

The paste is water base. Soak it with warm water 3 to 4 times until it softens. You can then sponge it off. Just keep rinsing the sponge until you're happy with the surface. Don't start wiping it down until the past stays wet. Easy pezy.