How to Remove Wallpaper Border Without Damaging Your Walls
This modular‑home kitchen had an old wallpaper border that had been up for years. It was starting to peel near the sink and range, and the whole room felt dated. Instead of using harsh chemicals or risking damage to the drywall, I used a gentle method that works on older walls, manufactured homes, and modular homes.
The Kitchen in the Modular House
Before
My Mom added the apple border a couple years after they moved into the house. By the time I decided to remove it, it had probably been in place at least twelve years. It was looking pretty tired.
I don’t recommend putting wall paper border near the sink or the range. The wall paper border in these two places took quite a beating from the water , heat and grease from cooking.
After Border was Removed
I had googled “how to remove wallpaper border” on the internet when I was getting ready to work on the farmhouse. I learned the most popular way seemed to be to add fabric softener to warm water in a spray bottle, spray the border , let it sit and then gently scrap.
Once again, I used this technique of mixing warm water and fabric softener in a spray bottle and applying it to the wall paper border. I let the fabric softener solution sit on the border for a few minutes and then I began scraping. This border came off a lot easier than the border in the entryway at the farmhouse. I didn’t end up gouging any holes in the walls this time!
After the walls & ceiling were painted
After all the wall paper border was removed, I painted the kitchen walls and ceiling. The kitchen looks so spacious!
October 11, 2024
I sold the property in Illinois in May 2021. Today, I learned that while trying to burn down one of the sheds on the property, the modular home caught fire and was destroyed. Fortunately, no one was hurt. The mother/grandmother of the family that bought the property had been living in the modular.
I am saddened at the loss of the home. It could have been much worse as the harvested field could have caught fire and the fire could have spread to the big farmhouse.
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