Features of choosing a primer for liquid wallpaper

Liquid wallpaper is a popular finishing material when decorating walls and ceilings in different rooms. In order for this finish to stay on the surface for a long time, you must use a special primer before gluing. In this article, we will understand the intricacies of choosing a primer for liquid wallpaper, researching the recommendations of experts.

The primer is a means of preparing the base for further finishing. It is produced in the form of a concentrate or a ready-made composition that does not require adjustment before being applied to the surface. The concentrated version is a powdery mixture, which must be diluted with water at room temperature before processing the surfaces of the walls and ceiling. The amount of water to dilute a specific type of material is indicated on the product packaging. The consistency of the finished composition resembles thick milk.

The structure is distinguished by its viscosity, due to which this material binds microcracks, pores and dust of the treated surfaces. In the process of processing, the primer penetrates into the thickness of the floor layer to a depth of 1 cm and makes the walls homogeneous. This is especially true for walls made in violation of technology, which gives out sand crumbling from them, as well as porous bases.

The material is sold in plastic buckets and cans. The most demanded volume for processing the surfaces of walls and ceilings (when pasting the ceiling zone) is the volume of 5 and 10 liters. If the gluing area is small, a volume of 5 liters is enough for processing. As a rule, the surface is treated twice before gluing with liquid wallpaper. The first time the material will take more, as often the walls are highly absorbent. The second layer of soil will be economical.

A distinctive feature of the primer is a different color and consistency. The color of the material can be transparent, white, light gray and pinkish. You cannot use a colored primer to strengthen the walls, especially if the color of the selected wallpaper is light. For surface treatment, it is better to use preparatory raw materials of two types: transparent and white.

A transparent primer is immediately applied to the surface. White will allow you to see where the treatment was carried out and even out the tone of the walls, masking different spots. It is especially appropriate in the event that gluing liquid wallpaper is planned on a dark concrete base. At the same time, the lining material applied by means of a spatula or a spray gun with a large nozzle will not show through the dark tone of the base.

To date, on the market for construction products, the primer is presented in a wide range. This material does not relieve the walls of serious problems. The primer is applied to the base only after all cracks are covered, the bumps are leveled and visually noticeable pits are removed. If you ignore this preparatory process, more liquid wallpaper will go away during gluing, and their application layer will be uneven, which can be visually noticeable.

The use of a primer before pasting will not only reliably connect the facing material to the base, it will also simplify the finishing process. It will relieve the overlap of high absorbency, while performing pasting, it will be easier to make adjustments.The mass of liquid wallpaper will not dry out instantly, which will allow it to be distributed over the wall surface in a dense uniform layer.

The use of a primer before pasting wall surfaces with liquid wallpaper reduces the consumption of raw materials. This composition insulates problem areas of planes, for example, with metal reinforcement, therefore, rust spots will not appear on the surface of the finished cladding over time. The film layer formed after treating the walls with soil will allow you to keep quite heavy types of liquid wallpaper on the surface. Applying the primer three times to the walls will mask and isolate the stained base.

From the mass of varieties, one can distinguish There are three categories of primer that can be purchased for treating walls before covering them with liquid wallpaper:

• acrylic;
• universal;
• special (like concrete contact).

A good primer is capable of leveling out minor wall imperfections for finishing. The acrylic variety is quite popular. This primer has good viscosity, the film formed on the surface after drying is quite strong. Such soil dries optimally quickly, does not emit an unpleasant odor during operation, and is suitable for interior work. When dry, it forms a polymer crystal lattice on the surface, providing a sufficient level of adhesion.

The best choice for preparing the surface of walls for gluing with liquid wallpaper is a primer for concrete contact. Its distinctive feature is the presence of quartz sand in the mixture, due to which, when dried, the surface acquires some roughness. This fact ensures maximum adhesion of liquid wallpaper to the treated surface. This feature is explained by the fact that a too smooth base complicates the pasting process (liquid wallpaper is worse distributed over the surface and can roll off). The presence of roughness on the wall retains the adhesive mass, so it is much easier to lay out the desired pattern from material of different colors.

The type of soil depends on the type of liquid wallpaper used. It is unacceptable to buy the first thing that you like on the counter: the choice must be thorough. It is important to consider not only the manufacturer's brand: it makes sense to buy soil with an antiseptic effect. Due to this, the surface will be reliably protected from the formation of an environment for the appearance of mold and mildew.

When buying, pay attention to the "deep penetration" mark: such a primer will more thoroughly prepare the surface for finishing work. It will make the base uniform, reduce porosity and strengthen the walls. Experts recommend treating walls with two types of material - transparent and white. Despite the fact that the primer can be painted with the usual color scheme, do not experiment with color, as this will distort the color of the intended lining.

If you plan to paste over the walls with white or light liquid wallpaper, use a white primer twice during preparation: it will mask problem areas of the walls with better quality. Due to the color in the process of working with such a material, each treated area is visible. This will allow you to treat the surface with an even layer: the film lattice formed after drying must be uniform.

When buying material, pay attention to the purity of the color; it should be perfectly white or transparent (without admixtures of other shades). Consider the nuance: a high-quality deep penetration primer is more expensive than conventional counterparts.When buying, look at the expiration date: after it has passed, the material loses its properties. If repair work is not planned in the near future, and the expiration date of the selected material is coming to an end, such material cannot be taken. If using an expired primer, the adhesion will not be sufficient.

It is necessary to buy a primer strictly according to the field of application and the type of surfaces to be treated. If there is a question of choosing a specific brand, you can pay attention to the products of the companies Ceresit, Knauf, "Silk Plaster". Sometimes on such materials there is a mark "for silk decorative plaster" (liquid wallpaper based on silk or paper fibers).

So that the surface treatment process before pasting liquid wallpaper does not cause difficulties, you can use a small instruction. Before the working process, prepare a roller, a medium-sized flat brush, gloves, work clothes, a container for a primer solution.

The work algorithm will be as follows:

• The composition is poured into a prepared container, the dry mixture is diluted according to the instructions on the package.
• They take a construction roller, soak it in a primer solution, squeeze it slightly and roll it over the surface.
• It is necessary to prime, evenly distributing the composition. At the same time, it should not flow along the walls, forming puddles on the floor.

• In hard-to-reach places, a flat brush is used: it will allow you to process the corners, joints of the ceiling and walls more accurately, without overspending the solution.
• If the walls do not absorb liquid well, they roll it with a roller several times over the same area, then move on to the next. At the same time, a new portion of liquid is added for each site.
• At the end of the treatment, the tools are thoroughly washed, since if the composition remains, it will become coarse, the brush and roller coat will have to be thrown away.

In order not to doubt which primer to choose for preparing walls for pasting with pasty liquid wallpaper, pay attention to the information indicating additional properties of the soil.

Plasterboard walls must be treated with a deep penetration primerstarting from the joints of the sheets. It is not superfluous before this will be the processing of the connecting fasteners with enamel or acrylic paint.

It is necessary to treat wooden surfaces or walls based on pressed wood with a primer with waterproofing properties. If the wooden wall has not been treated with liquid wallpaper, use a shellac-based solution: it will not allow resin stains to appear on the surface.

If possible, clean the paint off the surface of the painted substrate and treat it with an antifungal agent. If the wall has metal fixings, treat it with an alkyd primer or phenol or glyphthal based material. For concrete, it is better to use soil for concrete contact.

If the store does not have a primer with quartz sand that makes the surface rough, you can buy ordinary deep penetration soil and add fine-grained seeded river sand to the composition. Do not replace this material with a home-made primer made from water-based paint with the addition of PVA glue. The composition of this material is different from what the brands are developing.The components of the primer are specially designed, they balance the necessary components to strengthen the walls from the inside, which is not the case with home-made compositions.

In the next video, you will find instructions on preparing the surface for applying liquid wallpaper.