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Detailed Installation Guide

Wallpaper Installation Guide paste-the-wall

Nowadays it’s easier and quicker than you think to install wallpaper. It’s also simpler to change and remove the wallpaper when that time comes.

New technology means wallpapering is much easier than it was!

If you are ready to install then you have read all the sections featured in ‘About vinyl wallpaper & installation’ and have prepared your wall for Installation. Please also read our handy tips section for before and during installation.

Please note in this wallpaper installation guide the method for joining the panels is a ‘butt join’, basically meaning the wallpaper panels simply butt up against each other. If you are hiring a commercial installer than the wallpaper panels will be printed with a ‘overlap, double cut’ which is more technical and suitable for an experienced installer. ‘Overlap, double cut’ installation method is preferred as it reduces the visibility of seams, to watch a great detailed video explaining this method please click here.

Wallpaper Installation Guide paste-the-wall

Types Wallpaper Installation paste-the-wall

Wallpaper Installation Guide paste-the-wall

Wallpaper Installation Guide paste-the-wall

INSTRUCTIONS: How to install our paste-the-wall wallpaper.

We use vinyl wallpaper with the revolution paste-the-wall technique, making installation, cleaning and removal easy.

Wallpaper panel size:

Our custom made wallpaper is printed onto panels that 130cm wide times by the height of your intended wall. ‘Waste’ is then added to these measurements as a safety precaution incase the wall width and height measurements vary slightly (see below). The final panel (usually panel 3 or panel 4) will have a smaller width depending the size of your wall.

STEP 1: Prepping the wall

Wipe and clean the desired wall. Surfaces should be clean, dry and free of dust, grease, and other residue.

You are ready to begin installing your wallpaper once the wall has been prepped and cured from a primer (click here for guide).

STEP 2: Marking a boundary line for the first panel

Boundary line:

Always start installing your wallpaper from left to right. Firstly we are going to make a boundary line for the first wallpaper panel. We print on wall panels that are 130cm wide but the first panel will have 5cm ‘waste’ added to the left side therefore the boundary line needs to be 125cm wide from the left wall edge. A spirit laser level will ensure that even if your ceilings or floors are not level (highly likely), the wallpaper will still be installed straight. This line will give you a perfectly straight vertical marker to hang your first strip of wallpaper against.

If you don’t have a laser level then use your spirit level to mark the boundary line with pencil. Alternatively you can use a plumb bob to mark the line – click here for an alternate guide.

STEP 3: Glue your first area

Applying the glue:

Roll the glue on the wall using the roller but only in the 125cm wide area that we marked up from STEP 2 . Also allow roughly 5cm of glue past your laser level or marked line. Use a paintbrush to paint the glue in areas the roller cant do. Recommended high quality adhesive glue is quite thick so you need to be generous with the glue but don’t go overboard. Make sure the edges and corner of the wall have a reasonable amount of glue or the seams of the wallpaper panel may not stick down properly.

Fittings or fixtures:

If you have any fittings or fixtures (such as a light switch) on the wall then stop rolling the glue when you get to the top of that fitting. STEP 5 will explain how to make an ‘X’ cut in the wallpaper to allow the fitting or fixture to pop through, after STEP 5 you can finish rolling the glue for the remainder of the wall section.

STEP 4: Hang your first wallpaper panel

Arrange the wallpaper:

In a clean area free of dust, arrange the wallpaper panels in order from left to right that you wish them to appear on the wall.

Positioning the wallpaper:

Carefully climb your step ladder with the first wallpaper panel in hand (panel 1). It would be good to have a friend hold the bottom of the panel slightly off the wall while you position the top of the panel to the wall. Or you could climb the ladder with the wallpaper rolled up, position the top 50cm or so and rest the wallpaper roll on the top of your ladder.

Hold the wallpaper panel up slightly off the wall and position the top left corner of the panel to overhang approximately 5cm further past the left wall edge and 5cm above the top edge of the wall. This overhang is your ‘waste’ which will be cropped off a bit later (STEP 7). Please note: it is ok if you are not 100% accurate with the overhung 5cm waste but do your best. Your ceiling height and wall edge will vary in size and will unlikely be straight which is why this ‘waste’ area is needed. The first panel will be used to line the additional panels up, therefore take time to position it as perfect as you can. Be sure to adjust the wallpaper panel so that it is running straight inline with your spirit or laser level line before you press it against the wall.

wallpaper

The panels may slip out of place until the glue hardens, depending on your location the glue may dry faster or slower. This will also happen if you are too quick or the room doesn’t have much ventilation (which assists in the fastness of the adhesive drying time). If the wallpaper panel keeps slipping you just need to hold the panel into position for a time and let the glue harden so it stays in place. You will not be able to crop the overhang until the panel adhesive is dry and the panel doesn’t move. It is best to wait until Step 7 to crop off the excess waste, or you can crop as you go but the adhesive must be dry and the panel unmovable.

Installing first wallpaper panel:

Press the panel onto the wall starting with the top 30cm. Keep sliding the wallpaper to adjust into place. No need to rush, smooth it across using a squeegee or your hand to remove air bubbles. Continue to do this is in roughly 30cm increments making sure the wallpaper is still being installed straight against your laser level line. When smoothing down the panels use only light force to get the bubbles out. We do not want glue seeping out the edges.

The wallpaper is very forgiving, you can peel back edges and resmooth if large bubbles won’t go away, you can even peel back the panel and paste more glue if you feel it’s needed even after the adhesive behind the panel has dried. This will come in handy when you crop the excess off in Step 7 as you may find some edges of the wall need more adhesive. If any glue gets onto the printed side of the wallpaper or on the wall then just wash off with a cloth and water or baby wipes.

What if glue seeps out from behind wallpaper:

If glue adhesive seeps out onto ceiling, floor, wall or wallpaper panels then simply wipe off with baby wipes. These wipes will come in handy many times during installation.

When to crop the excess from the ‘waste’ area.

It is better to wait till all panels are installed before you crop the excess. This way after you install the first panel you can use the top of that panel to line up the second panel, making it easier to line up the design. If you are finding the excess annoying or it keeps pushing your panel out of place then crop as you go. Just make sure you have a friend holding the panel against the boundary level line.

What to do when there are fittings or fixtures:

If you have any fittings or fixtures (such as a light switch) on the wall then stop pasting the wallpaper down when you get to the top of the fitting or fixture.

STEP 5: Cutting an ‘X’ for fittings and fixtures

For any fittings or fixtures on the wall (such as a light switch) we will create an ‘X’ cut that allows the fitting or fixture to pop through the wallpaper.

Before cutting:

If you have a power point or a light switch on the wall make sure the power is turned off before you begin. Take the outer shell off the fitting.

Marking the ‘X’ cut:

Smooth down the wallpaper in STEP 4 until you reach the top of the fitting or fixture. Let the wallpaper fall over the fitting or fixture without being pasted down. From the front of the wallpaper feel for the corners of the fitting or fixture and mark each corner with pencil, then draw two diagonal lines from the left top corner to the right bottom corner and the reverse to make an ‘X’.

Cutting the ‘X’ cut:

For your safety lift the wallpaper away from the fitting to cut the marked ‘X’ with a stanley knife or scissors (take care not to cut the X bigger than the fitting).

Push the wallpaper down gently onto the wall. The fitting should pop up through the X cut you made or adjust the X cut if needed to allow the fitting through.

Finish applying glue to the rest of wall section:

Lift the wallpaper back up, holding it away from the wall and finish rolling the adhesive to the rest of the wall area (still only within our first boundary line). Allow the fitting to pop back through the ‘X’ cut in the wallpaper and smooth down the rest of the wallpaper.

Trim the excess wallpaper from ‘X’ cut:

Trim the flaps of the paper leaving about 10mm over lap. Replace the fitting shell making sure the flaps are tucked behind it.

Further help for large fixtures (such as hanging bedside tables):

For large fixtures you may need to make vertical slits to allow the fixture to pop through. Do this in the most inconspicuous place (such as at the bottom). They can easily be pushed back together when you paste the wallpaper down.

STEP 6: Additional wallpaper panels

Once the first panel is in place on the wall, follow steps 2 to 5 again for the remaining panels.

How does the wallpaper line up?

We have two options for joining the panels. 

Option 1: A butt joint method where the panels simply butt up against each other. Good option if you are wishing to install yourself.

Option 2: (highly recommended) An ‘overlap, double cut’ method. This option is better for reducing seam visibility but requires a commercial or experienced installer. Click here for a detailed guide on how to join the panels using this method.

STEP 7: Trim the excess wallpaper

Now that all the panels are correctly installed we can trim the excess. There will be approximately 5cm overhang on the left side of the first panel, 5cm overhang on the right side of the last panel and 5cm overhang on the top and bottom of all panels. Use a steel ruler and stanley knife to carefully remove excess trim. The wallpaper is heavy duty vinyl and force will be required to push the steel ruler flat against the wall especially in the edges of the wall. A large scraper or dry wall taping knife would be very helpful to use instead of a steel ruler if you have one. It is a good idea to have someone push the wallpaper down with the metal ruler in place and the other person to do the cropping. Do this carefully and slowly.

wallpaper

Sometimes after cropping you will find that edges of the wallpaper require more glue, not to worry there are two things you can do: Firstly you can get a paint brush (or use your finger) and push some adhesive into the gap, then hold it down for a short time so that the wallpaper doesn’t curl up and the new adhesive has dried. Secondly you could simply pull the panel off at one of the corners and re glue the exposed area again. Don’t take the whole panel off the wall, just peel back enough to get to the area you need, re-paste that whole section with new adhesive, press down and re-smooth to remove any new air bubbles (this will only work if you have properly primed the wall with the recommended primer. If you havn’t primed the walls throughly then you risk damaging the gyprock).

Detailed Wallpaper Installation Guide paste-the-wall Vinyl

STEP 8: Take a step back and enjoy your wall transformation!

We hope you have found our detailed guide on how to install our premium vinyl paste-the-wall wallpaper easy to follow, easy to understand with many handy hints.

If you have any further questions get in contact with us.

Wallpaper Installation Guide paste-the-wall

Detailed Wallpaper Installation Guide paste-the-wall

Types Wallpaper Installation paste-the-wall

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