DIY Supermarket

It’s amazing how closely you can approximate to a major property development overhaul simply by painting and decorating. Forget architects and major building programmes if you’re on a tight budget – getting rid of that dreadful wallpaper and lifting the colour scheme with some fresh paint can work wonders in themselves. Be prepared, though – the paper may be concealing damaged wall surfaces, so there may be some plastering work to consider.

Clear as much floor area as you can and spread dust sheets to catch the debris. Using a steamer is the most efficient way of removing old wallpaper, but you must take care not to steam too great an area (it’ll just cool down and won’t scrape off if you do). And keep away from electric switches and sockets.

Start in one of the bottom corners and hold the steam pad over the wall for at least 30 seconds. Strip the paper away as you move the steam pad to an adjacent section – try to work across and up the wall. You’ll make a lot less work for yourself if you throw the peeled paper into a plastic bin liner as you work – if you leave it to fall on the dust sheet and skirting, the paste just resets and sticks the paper to it! Clean the scraper as you go, every so often, removing clumps of paste and keep going until you’ve got bare walls. You’ll need to wash the walls down with warm soapy water to remove excess paste and any remaining bits of paper. After filling cracks with filler and sanding, it’s time to get painting!