Imagine for a second that you have a bit of water damage on your RV’s wallpaper and to fix the solution you had to take that section of wallpaper off. Once you have fixed the issue, you have two options, either choose to look at the new unsightly section or try to replace the wallpaper.
If you decide to replace that section of wallpaper, it would be decidedly more difficult than simply swapping out a part. What you would have to do is to match the wallpaper you buy with the one used on your RV model. There are a few factors you will have to consider when choosing to go down this route.
The first thing you will have to do is put in a call to your RV’s manufacturer. This is most likely the best source to find matching RV wallpaper. If your RV is relatively new the company might still have the design in use and all you have to do is order a replacement.
If your RV is more than a couple years, it might be difficult to find a replacement, particularly if your RV model has been discontinued.
That being said, even if you can find the exact pattern, what you would be dealing with is wallpaper in the RV that has aged since you first purchased it. It will likely be faded having been exposed to wear and tear, the elements, cooking smoke, campfire smoke as well as water vapour.
While the patch you get from the manufacturer will look brand new, like your RV’s wallpaper once did.
Typically, when wallpaper is purchased, the exact amount needed is purchase at the same time from a single batch. When you put the new wallpaper by the old one, you will notice a glaring difference between the two.
If this is something that does not bother you, then you can go on to replace the stricken section of wall. That being said, the results would leave a lot to be desired. The best option is usually to just repaper everything.
While this might seem like a stressful task, it is much easier and satisfying to do. This is because it provides you with the opportunity to transform your RV in the way that you want, especially if you purchased a pre-owned RV.
Steps to replaster your RV wallpaper
Thankfully, taking off the current wallpaper to put the new one on is not as difficult as some might think. that being said, before you go ahead to rip the walls of the RV up, you have to understand that there is quite a massive difference between the textured wallpaper on the walls and the additional bordered wallpaper placed on it for decoration.
The inside walls of an RV are manufactured from lauan plywood, which is made from the Lauan tree. The plywood is an extremely lightwood making it one of the choice materials for RV interior walls.
The lauan plywood typically has a textured wallpaper glued to it, this bit of wallpaper in some RVs cannot be removed. Most RV owners tend to paint or replaster over them.
To remove your wallpaper in your RV, there are a few materials you will need:
- A paint scraper
- An adhesive remover
- A rag or sponge
If there are any outlets in the area you want to work on, you must cover them. Doing so can ensure your adhesive remover does not seep in into the outlet rendering it useless.
How to remove the outdated wallpaper border in your RV
What you can do is get your paint scraper, start at one corner of the wall and trip to pry the wallpaper loose. Depending on the wallpaper and how old the RV is, it might be surprisingly easy to lift the wallpaper off.
If you encounter a bit of difficulty with the wallpaper, you could try using a blow dryer to help you loosen the adhesive up. If the adhesive gives way pretty quickly, it should take about 10 minutes to remove a portion of the wallpaper.
Removing the wallpaper would most likely be the easiest part, but if you ask anyone that has had to remove wallpaper before, they will tell you that the actual difficulty would be getting rid of the sticky residue.
This is where your adhesive remover and rag or sponge comes in. You simply just spray some on the sponge and begin wiping away. Depending on how long the wallpaper was up, you might have to wipe more than a few times to get rid of all the residue.
Additional ways to remove your RV’s wallpaper residue:
Not everyone will be able to seamlessly remove their RV’s wallpaper. If you find yourself in this category you can utilise any of the following options.
Lemon or Orange Essential Oil
There are more than a few RV owners that state using orange, lemon or just about any other citrus-based essential oil can help remove stubborn residue left from wallpaper removal.
Not only is it meant to get the stubborn residue out, but it also helps to make the RV smell great.
Portable Steamer or Blow dryer
If you happen to be having difficulty removing your wallpaper, you can utilise a portable steamer or a blow dryer as mentioned earlier. Heat is an effective tool to loosen up the adhesive.
Spray bottle consisting of fabric softener and warm water
It is possible to also use this solution to get rid of the residue left behind after the wallpaper has been removed. What you should is mix equal parts warm water and fabric softener into a bottle with a spray nozzle.
The affected area should be sprayed and left to sit for a couple of minutes. After this time, it should be easy to wipe off using a rag or a sponge. It also has an added benefit of making the RV smell great.
Alcohol can be used after the adhesive remover is used. Alcohol helps to get rid of any traces of adhesive remover on the affected surface. WD40 can be another method to help you get rid of the residue.
When all else fails, you can bring out a bit of sandpaper which will be used to smooth the affected area down. This method should only be used as a means of last resort.
You can also use TSP or Trisodium Phosphate to wipe the walls down. It can be particularly helpful if your plan after removing the wallpaper is to paint the wall.
Conclusion
Locating a pattern that matches the wallpaper in your RV should not be a difficult task. You simply need to reach out to the RV manufacturer with the model of your RV and you can have a replacement at cost.
This, however, is the likely solution if your RV is just a few years old. If your RV is a lot older, it might be difficult to find the pattern as the manufacturer might have discontinued that model. Your next port of call can be service centres to see if they have it in stock.
If you can get a pattern that matches your RV’s wallpaper, you have to understand that years of use, cooking smoke and any other factors might cause your wallpaper to look faded next to the replacement.
