Can you add plasterboard over wallaper

Johnny Volume

Hi,

a friend of mine has just bought an old second-hand house which he intends to do up.
One builder suggested adding new plasterboard to all the walls and then freshly skimming them, without stripping off the existing wallpaper first, as means of saving time/money.

Is that advisable / a standard practice?


Thanks,
John

DOCARCH

No, you need to remove the wallpaper...I would suggest.

Welruc

Are the walls in that bad shape?

Other wise it would be a lot quicker and cheaper to remove the paper and re decorate, they will still have to decorate the newly skimmed walls.

If the walls are in need or re skimming then i don't see there being an issue with applying a plasterboard over wallpaper, I'm assuming there is no damp coming through the walls, which would be easy to spot on the wallpaper.

A fella called fish

That's ridiculous. Remove the wallpaper first.

sky6

The best job is to remove the Wallpaper and re skim the Walls if necessary.
The old Wallpaper will act like blotting paper and create problems later on.
The Builder doesn't care he'll be long gone with your money.

rickmoister

I did for my sister 10 years ago, pegged foilbacked plasterboard onto the walls and skimmed it and there hasn't been a problem. It is less problematic than stripping wall paper and trying to reskim the walls. I have come across houses that were reskimmed and the skimcoat reacted with the lime in the render and peeled off in a matter of weeks:mad:.In my humble opinion it is a quicker and cheaper option and also allows the use of insulated plasterboard on the external walls to reduce heat loss.:)

prewtna

if you are dabbing on adhesive to fix the plasterboard to the wall - then the wallpaper must go (it will not provide a sufficient key / bond).

but i would tend to agree that there should be no need to take off the wallpaper provided you are mechanically fixing the (insulated) plasterboard to the wall beneath (eg fixing it to SW studs / battens or metal studs)

Johnny Volume

There's no signs of dampness on the walls. So, as long as the plasterboard is being attached to the wall (not stuck on with adhesive) it should be okay? The builder's reasoning was that it would save time and thus save my friend money, and make it easier for chasing electric wires for new sockets etc.