Can I Mud Over the Wallpaper? [Solved & Explained]

Removing wallpaper from the entire drywall takes time and hard work. So for skipping this part, you can have a question: can I mud over wallpaper?

Generally, you can mud over wallpaper, but it is not recommended. If your project is cheaper and you have no time to remove wallpaper, you can go for wallpaper mud. 

Before mud, remove old and peeling wallpaper from the wall. Make wallpaper water seal. And make sure under the wallpaper, there should not be any bubbles.

However, if you have time, remove the wallpaper and then mud. It will save you a lot in the future.

Is mud over wallpaper adhesive?

Joint compound mud sticks to almost every type of surface which you use on a wall.

Mud has a good adhesive ability to dry on wallpaper. After cleaning the wallpaper surface, you can directly go for mudding.

However, mud is adhesive on the wallpaper, but also wallpaper should need to be properly attached on the wall. Wallpaper should not peel off from the wall in the future.

Why should not mud over wallpaper? Pro & Cons

Mud is used to fix joints and crack areas. You can easily fix this type of issue from wallpaper. However, there are a lot of cons to using it on wallpaper.

Cons of using mud

These are common problems with mud on wallpaper.

Bubbles: when you cover old and cracked wallpaper, there are high chances of bubbling. The moisture of mud creates bubbles of paper.

Wrinkling: when you use mud on paper, it can quickly absorb water from the mud before drying. It creates cracks or wrinkles look on the wallpaper.

Tough to remove wallpaper: After applying mud on the wallpaper, it dries hard, and there is a high chance the paper will seal to the wall strongly. Sometimes you can not be able to remove wallpaper from the drywall, and it can damage the drywall permanently.

Paper is peeling: mud makes wallpaper heavy. Also, it can create bubbles and wrinkles. For all issue final results paper peeling.

Pros of using mud over wallpaper

There have some pros also this project.

Quick job: if you have no time and the project is not permanent, this is a recommended mud project.

Cheap: you do not need extra coats of mud like a drywall mudding project. Apply 1 or 2 coats, then go for paint.

Small fix: you can fix your wallpaper small crack issue with mud. You should follow the proper method; otherwise, there can be an issue.

Is it OK to skim coat over wallpaper?

It is not a good idea if you want to hide paper with skim coat. Although You can skim coat over wallpaper and it will stick properly.

The skim coat can babble, wrinkles on the paper. And why can this happen? I have already explained the above.

However, if necessary, you can skim coat over the wallpaper.

Do you have to remove wallpaper before skimming?

If removing wallpaper is possible, of course, you should do it. If you cannot remove all wallpaper, at least remove bobble area paper, old paper, or peeling paper.

You can easily fix the area with a sharp blade and putty knife.

Here is the tutorial video,

How to mud over wallpaper

After removing the babble or cracked paper area, you will see different layers of paper. This paper layer is not ready for mudding directly. If you use mud on it, there have a very high chance of bubbling mud.

Before applying mud, you should make the fixed area waterproof. That’s why you need a premier like Zinsser Gardz [ad].

After the primer dries, you can apply all-purpose joint compound to the area.

Here is the tutorial video.

How can I do skim coat on paper?

You already fixed the peeling wallpaper, primed and then mud on it. Now use mesh tape over the mud area. After this, again apply one more coat for cover tape. After dry mud, it is ready for skim coat.

Use all-purpose joint compound to apply the skim coat.

Here is the tutorial video:

Can you apply texture over wallpaper?

Directly applying the texture of wallpaper is not a good idea. The texture contains water. Maybe the first texture coat wallpaper can handle, but when you use multiple coats, the wallpaper will be watery, and the moisture will create bubbles in the paper.

Before applying the texture, you should make the wallpaper water seal. It would help if you used Zinsser Gardz [ad] sealer on the wallpaper and then applied texture.

Can I skim coat over Torn drywall paper?

You can paint over Torn drywall paper but should not directly.

Use a water sealer on paper, make sure there is no bobble, fix old cracks, clean dust properly, then apply skim coat.

I already shear a tutorial video about fixing drywall paper above the article. You should check it.

Can I tape and mud over the wallpaper?

It is a tricky answer. The majority time, you do not need to use tape on wallpaper. But if your project needs you can use tape on mud.

For taping, you should use mesh tape. You can apply it on the first dry coat of mud. After taping, again apply one more mud coat on it.

Can I apply drywall mud over wallpaper seams?

Most of the time, fixing drywall seams does not need drywall mud. If the seams joint gap ⅙ higher and you want to paint on the wallpaper, you can use drywall mud to fix the seams gap.

You can this article, where I explain what gap is proper for taping.

Before applying mud, use any primer to make water seal the area. Then use mud and tape as you do in general drywall.

Can I use sheetrock mud over wallpaper?

USG sheetrock manufacture different type of product which is related with joint compound. However, they are a popular band in the U.S.A.

You can check this article where I compared USG Easy Sand 5, 20, 45, 90, 210.

They have different easy sand setting products, all-purpose compounds, and premixed compounds. You can use anyone which you need for your wallpaper project.

But of course, before applying, read manufacturer guidelines about how to use the product properly.

Conclusion

Mud is adhesive on the wallpaper, and it has pros and cons. I tried to answer everything about the topic.

I hope you got the answer. If you think this article is helpful, share it with your friends and family. Stay with me for more articles about this topic.