A few gaps in lining paper

[Bobbya82]

Hi,

I have recently put up some lining paper and have some gaps between the joints. I plan to fill these with some fine surface filler but wondered if I should fill now before painting or after the first coat or apply some kind of sealer to the joint before filling?

Thanks.

 

[footprints]

Fill now sand very carefully with fine paper on a block try not to rough up the paper surface too much , then give the joints an extra coat or two of paint with whatever you intend to paint with roller, brush or pad. The idea is to get an even texture over the wall as the sanded areas having a diffrent texture will show up after painting otherwise.

Do not leave fine surface filler over night it sets very hard, sand as soon as possible to avoid having to sand too firmly.

 

[Bobbya82]

Thats for the quick reply was a bit worried about the filler joint line cracking so just wondered if it had to be primed with some kind of sealer first after?

 

[footprints]

You could give it a coat of watered down paint, but I never worry and so far its been fine. If the filler cracked it will most likely be because it has not been firmly pushed into the gap and bonded to the wall.

 

[FRANCISQUAN]

Someone on this site theorised that leaving small gaps in lining paper was the way to go and painting before filling would show up any areas requiring filling while also allowing you to see any edges which may have lifted to be gently glued back down. The fact that an edge may lift after filling (wet plaster) and painting could then prove more difficult to deal with.

Here's my experience so far...........

Daughter's flat (1950's ex council) consists of unpainted boarded walls and poorly jointed ceilings which were wallpapered and after strippingl required lots of filling and sanding to get a reasonable surface for lining paper. First room walls came out good but you could see where improvement was required so a steep learning curve for my second room with lining paper, where I did the walls as well as the ceiling,

I took great care to ensure good paste cover to the edges of the 1400 lining paper, allowing it to soak for ten mimutes then instead of a wallpaper brush I used an old "Artex" caulking blade which gave a very flat finish indeed squeezing out any small air pockets, glue etc.
I also made a point of turning the lining paper round each corner about 50mm which gives a nice clean finish. Also means not having to worry about filling corners with easyfill or caulk (caulk gives a slightly different texture which shows through the finish)

Gave it a coat of white emulsion then after drying used a snap blade to tease out and fix a couple of loose edges.

Filled the gaps with Easyfill 20 and allowed to dry.

Sanded using fine sandpaper folded over once as I found this gave me a better feel for the light amount of sanding required rather than using a block. (Easyfill sands very easily unlike some surface fillers which dry rock hard and would need a block)

Ran a coat of emulsion down each join, making sure to avoid leaving a thick edge before leaving to dry then painting as normal with one more coat of emulsion.
I used coving for the ceiling so didn't have to worry about the joints up there.

Turned out very well indeed and my daughter was very pleased as opposed to her face when I was sanding it all down at the start...... messy

Now on the narrow hall where the ceiling was so bad it was easier to screw in a small frame and put up tapered edge plasterboard.
Only 2300mm at it's widest so no cut edge joints. and it also proved a lot faster than scraping wallpaper, filling, sanding, papering etc, etc.
Quick fill of the tapered edge and light sanding and we're good to go with the coving.

Look, forget the force, use patience.

 

[lasors]

I would recommend using Red Devil One Time filler for filling in gaps in lining paper. It's extremely light weight, so easy to apply, dries quickly without cracking, sands easily (and as smooth as glass) so doesn't damage the paper at all. It beats any polyfilla product or similar hands down. It's not for big areas or big holes, it's not structural. For this application it's perfect.

Trust me and buy some!

You won't find it in B&Q but it's online in lots of places, Amazon etc, and Toolstation, think maybe Screwfix too.

 

[opps]

I would recommend using Red Devil One Time filler for filling in gaps in lining paper. It's extremely light weight, so easy to apply, dries quickly without cracking, sands easily (and as smooth as glass) so doesn't damage the paper at all. It beats any polyfilla product or similar hands down. It's not for big areas or big holes, it's not structural. For this application it's perfect.

Trust me and buy some!

You won't find it in B&Q but it's online in lots of places, Amazon etc, and Toolstation, think maybe Screwfix too.

I too second Red Devil, it is quite soft so you will need to use a fairly fine abrasive (otherwise you risk gouging it out of the gap

 

[opps]

Someone on this site theorised that leaving small gaps in lining paper was the way to go and painting before filling would show up any areas requiring filling while also allowing you to see any edges which may have lifted to be gently glued back down. The fact that an edge may lift after filling (wet plaster) and painting could then prove more difficult to deal with.

Edges shouldn't lift if applied properly. I never intentionally leave gaps.

Pasting the wall and paper reduces the risk of dry spots, especially on warm days.