Sabatini 
Wallpaper Removal, Down to a Wall You Can Actually Paint
Stripped, washed clean of adhesive, skimmed and primed. The job is not finished when the paper is off, it is finished when you cannot tell it was ever there.
Removing the paper is the easy half
Almost every wallpaper job that goes wrong goes wrong for one of these four reasons, and three of them happen after the paper is already in the trash bag.
What is under the paper decides everything
Paper hung on a primed wall usually peels off in sheets. Paper hung straight onto bare drywall bonds to the paper face of the board itself, and pulling it takes the surface with it. You do not know which one you have until you start.
The adhesive is the real work
Getting the paper off is the visible half. What is left behind is a film of old paste that has to be washed off completely. Paint over it and the adhesive reactivates under the new coat, and you get bubbling weeks later.
Layers hide behind layers
In older houses around here it is common to find two or three papers on top of each other, sometimes over a painted layer. Each one comes off differently.
The wall almost always needs work afterward
Even a clean strip leaves torn facing, gouges and seams. Skimming and sanding that flat is what separates a wall that looks new from one that looks stripped.
How a removal actually runs
We test a patch first
Before we quote, we pull a small area in an inconspicuous spot. That tells us whether the wall was primed, how many layers there are, and what the job actually is.
Everything gets covered
Floors, trim and furniture. Wallpaper removal is wet, messy work and the mess travels further than people expect.
Score, soak and strip
Perforate the surface so moisture can get behind it, soften the adhesive, then work the paper off in sections. Patience here is what protects the drywall underneath.
Wash the adhesive off completely
The walls get washed down and rinsed until they are clean to the touch. This is the step most DIY jobs skip and most callbacks come from.
Repair, skim and sand
Torn facing gets sealed, gouges get filled, and the wall gets skimmed and sanded until it reads as one flat surface in raking light.
Prime, then paint
A primer suited to what we found underneath, then your finish coats. Your crew leader walks the room with you at the end.
Rooms we have stripped and repainted
Real houses where wallpaper was part of the job, with what we walked into and what we did about it.
Three Levels of Scaffolding in a Custom Brookhaven, PA Home
Francy and her husband built this Brookhaven house themselves and have lived in it for close to forty years. The living room runs two stories...
Wallpaper, a Textured Ceiling and Crown Molding in Brookhaven, PA
Joe and Debbie had just fired a large renovation company partway through a kitchen project. They called us for the living room, the stairwell...
Painting a Brand-New Construction Home in Wilmington, DE
Past customers moving into a brand-new construction home in the Wilmington, DE area asked us to replace the builder's single coat of flat...
Bathroom & Master Bedroom Painting in Malvern, PA
A repeat client deep in a renovation called us in after firing a sloppy painter, and we delivered a flawless bathroom and master bedroom on a...
An 11-Day Whole-Home Transformation in Wallingford
A thoughtfully timed refresh helped this Wallingford homeowner turn a long-overdue paint project into a meaningful new chapter for her space.
Interior Painting- Gladwyne, PA
A full interior refresh completed on a tight schedule without compromising quality.
Putting paper up instead?
Whether paper comes off cleanly in fifteen years is decided the day it goes on, by whether anybody primed the wall first. That is a separate page and a separate conversation.
What homeowners say
"They painted the ceilings in our living room, foyer and kitchen, plus the exterior posts. Clean, careful work."
"A fantastic experience from start to finish. Incredibly responsive and provided a fair estimate."
"Rick and Dani were detailed and responsive. The painters were professional with high quality work in our daughter's room."
"Great job painting the aluminum siding on our house. I recommend them to Swarthmore residents."
"Great experience. The team was very responsive and communicative."
"A wonderful company to hire. Great crew, respectful of clients."
Where we work
Every color below is a town we have actually worked in, sized by how much we have done there since 2020.
Questions we get asked
Can I just paint over wallpaper?
Sometimes, and we will tell you honestly when it is a reasonable option. But paint does not stop seams from telegraphing through, and if the paper ever lifts it takes the paint with it. On anything textured or peeling, it is a false economy.
Will removing it damage my walls?
Some damage is normal and expected, especially if the wall was never primed before the paper went up. That is why repair and skim coating are part of the job rather than an extra. We tell you what we found before we start filling.
How long does a room take?
A small powder room is often a day. A large room with multiple layers, or paper hung on unprimed drywall, can take two or three. The test patch is what lets us tell you which one you have.
Do you paint afterward, or just strip it?
Both together is the better job, because the person who stripped the wall knows exactly what is under the primer. We are happy to do removal only if you have another plan for the room.
What about the smell and the mess?
It is wet work, but it is water and steam rather than harsh chemicals in most cases. Everything is covered before we start and cleaned up at the end of each day.
Can you take down a ceiling paper or a mural?
Yes. Ceilings are slower and messier because gravity is working against you the whole time, and murals often mean matching panel seams as they come off.
Request your free wallpaper removal estimate
Tell us the room. We will pull a test patch, tell you what is really under there, and put the price in writing.
Not sure what is under your paper?
Neither is anyone else until they pull a corner. That is what the test patch is for.