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Benefits and Challenges of Wallpaper and Wall Coverings

calander Jun 5 , 2019 user-iconAnderson Painting

Your home’s interior is like a canvas. Each wall provides a blank slate for various colors and design options. But before you make any detailed decisions, you have two main options to choose from when transforming your walls: paint or wallpaper/wall coverings. Wallpaper, while not as popular as it was fifty years ago, remains a viable option for interior design. However, this choice also comes with many challenges. Let’s go over the pros and cons of wallpaper so you can make a more informed decision.

The Good

Wallpaper was once all the rage for a reason. Here are three major benefits of wallpaper and wall coverings.

Easily Transform a Room

While painting is now the common choice for transforming an interior space, a proper paint job can take a lot of time and effort, even if you’re just painting with one solid color. Homeowners might try painting a room two colors, which takes even more effort. More intricate patterns and designs require the touch of an artist and/or craftsman. Wallpaper, on the other hand, is pre-loaded with whatever design you like. This means you can easily transform a room by installing the right amount of wallpaper for your interior spaces.

Low Maintenance and Durable

Wallpaper can also last a long time, up to 15 years, so long as you maintain it properly. Paint, on the other hand, might need touching up every few years. Fortunately, maintaining wallpaper is relatively simple. Most wallpaper material is easy to dust and scrub. Be careful not to damage the print when cleaning, of course. High-quality wallpaper won’t fade or rub away as easily as cheaper options.

Hiding Imperfections

Both paint and wall coverings serve to conceal your drywall’s imperfections. However, wallpaper does a better job in this regard. Your walls’ bumps and bruises will still reveal themselves through the paint, no matter how thick or how flat its finish. Wallpaper, on the other hand, completely covers the wall. Of course, if your drywall has serious holes in it, you’ll still want invest in drywall repair before applying your wall coverings. Otherwise, your wallpaper might get easily punctured as well.

The Bad

As convenient as wallpaper might be, it comes with its share of inconveniences as well. Let’s go over three of the big ones.

Expensive Installation

It might seem like wallpaper would be easier to install than painting a room, but making sure every strip is perfectly aligned and evenly spread takes practice. It’s usually best to hire professionals to do this. Additionally, depending on the size of your interior, you may need quite a bit of wallpaper for full coverage. One roll can cost anywhere from $15 to $50, and covers only about 30 square feet.

Rough Removals

If you ever decide to take your wall coverings down, you may be in for a headache or two. Following proper wallpaper removal methods is crucial for peeling it off without leaving sticky marks or patches, or damaging the underlying wall. Removing paint has its own challenges, of course, as Raleigh house painters can surely tell you. But in many cases, a new coat of paint can easily go over the old one. Painting over wallpaper, on the other hand, is not advised, and will lead to more problems in the future.

Weak Against Moisture

Wallpaper isn’t the best choice for certain rooms, namely those that experience fluctuations in humidity and temperature, such as bathrooms and certain areas of kitchens. This is because moisture and heat can cause wallpaper to peel away and fade over time. You shouldn’t have this problem in living rooms, bedrooms, or dining rooms. Of course, if you have leakage problems in your home, you should address these issues before installing wallpaper in any room.

Whether you go with wallpaper or paint, always follow proper preparation and maintenance practices to get the most life out of the covering. Anderson Painting contractors can help you put up or take down your wallpaper, as well as paint your interiors and exteriors if necessary. To learn more about us and all our services, call Anderson Painting today at 919-610-1855 or email us at info@andersonpaintingnc.com!


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