We are removing wall paper and we noticed that the walls behind the paper are brown. What are they?
Question:It is an old house and we assumed it was plaster, but it turns out to be this spongy brown stuff behind the wallpaper. What is that, and how do we fix it to paint?
Thanks
Answers:
That brown sponge stuff is the wallpaper backing..Your not taking all the paper of the wall.
Get a spray bottle with water and spray and using a scraper carefully scrape it off
painted
it's probably an old gypsum board. once you have all the wallpaper off use all purpose joint compound and skim coat the walls. then you can lightly sand and prime and paint
I would suggest that you consult a mold specialist. It sounds like you might have mold. This is extreemely dangerous and should be handled by experts only.
Don't panic yet, but don't go any further and don't stir up any dust in the air.
It is possible that you are removing the paper face of the drywall along with the wallpaper and that the gypsum itself is spongy from moisture damage. If so then there is no good way to patch it and you must tear out the drywall and replace it.
it could be what I believe they call MDF board, which in older homes was used both for insulation value and finished wall, best bet, find measurements for studs and do 1/4 inch drywall overtop of the MDF, mud, tape,and sand and you're finished and you have a sturdy wall for hanging things on!
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