How Does Peel and Stick Wallpaper Work?
What removable wallpaper is made of, how a pressure-sensitive adhesive actually holds, and why that one fact answers almost every question people ask about it
Peel and stick wallpaper is a non-woven paper with a pressure-sensitive adhesive already applied to the back, protected by a backing sheet. You peel the backing away and press the paper to the wall, and the adhesive bonds on contact, with no paste, no water and no soaking. Ours is 180gsm, super-matte and smooth, on the same 48cm × 10.05m roll as our pasted papers.
Understanding how that adhesive actually holds explains everything else about it: why it needs a smooth wall, why it fails in a bathroom, and why what happens on removal depends on your paint rather than on the paper.
What it's made of
- The face: the same printed non-woven material as our traditional paper, in a super-matte finish.
- The adhesive: a pressure-sensitive layer on the back. It is permanently tacky and bonds when pressed, rather than curing like a paste.
- The backing sheet: a release liner that protects the adhesive until you peel it away.
- Weight: 180gsm, heavier than our standard paper, because the adhesive layer adds to it.
- Fire rating: EN15102 Class B-s1,d0.
How the adhesive holds
A pressure-sensitive adhesive works by contact area. Press it against a surface and it flows into every microscopic irregularity, and the grip comes from the total area of contact rather than from any chemical reaction.
Two consequences follow, and they explain most of what people ask about this paper.
It needs a smooth surface. On a textured or embossed wall the adhesive only touches the high points, a fraction of the contact area it was designed for, so it holds for a while and then lets go. This is why texture, Artex and woodchip are not an option, and why a chalky or powdery paint fails too: the adhesive grips the loose surface layer rather than the wall.
It bonds to the paint, not the wall. What the paper is really stuck to is the paint film. That is why the paint has to be fully cured, thirty days rather than thirty hours, and why what happens on removal depends on how well that paint was bonded to the plaster in the first place.
Why steam defeats it
Moisture works its way between the adhesive and the paint film and reduces the contact that holds it there. In a bathroom, repeated steam does this every day, and the edges are the first to go, which is why we do not recommend peel and stick for bathrooms. For a bathroom, our heavy-grade paper is the one to look at.
What it will stick to
- Smooth painted plaster and plasterboard, clean, dry and fully cured
- Smooth painted woodwork and MDF, such as doors, panelling and shelving
- Smooth laminate and melamine furniture, cleaned first
What it will not stick to
- Textured or embossed walls, Artex, woodchip
- Bare plaster or bare plasterboard
- Freshly painted surfaces
- Chalky, powdery or flaking paint
- Damp walls, and rooms that regularly fill with steam
Rubbing the paint with a finger before you order will tell you whether it is chalky.
How it differs from other "easy" wallpapers
- Prepasted wallpaper has dried paste on the back that you activate by dipping the length in water. It is a mainstream American format and is not the same thing at all.
- Wall stickers and decals are vinyl shapes, not a wallpaper, and they cover a motif rather than a wall.
- Paste-the-wall paper is the same printed face as our removable paper, without the adhesive layer, held on by paste applied to the wall.
How long it stays up
It is designed to stay on the wall for as long as you want it there, not to be a few months' decoration. What shortens that is almost always the surface rather than the paper: a wall that was not quite clean, paint that had not finished curing, or a room with more moisture in it than the adhesive can cope with.
Prepare the wall properly and the paper will behave. Cut corners on the preparation and you will be pressing edges back within weeks.
What happens when you take it down
It comes away dry. You lift a top corner and pull slowly downwards at a shallow angle, keeping the paper close to the wall rather than pulling it out towards you. A hairdryer on a low setting softens the adhesive if a section resists.
What the wall looks like afterwards depends on the paint. Well-applied, fully cured paint generally comes through it well. Old, chalky, poorly bonded or freshly applied paint may not, and no adhesive-backed paper can promise otherwise. This is why testing one length in an inconspicuous corner is worth the twenty minutes, particularly in a rented home.
Re-using a length after it has been taken down is possible but not something we would recommend, because the adhesive picks up dust the moment it leaves the wall.
Where it is genuinely the better choice
- Rented homes, with the landlord's agreement
- Rooms whose use is about to change, such as a nursery, a first flat, or a study that will become a bedroom
- Furniture, drawer interiors, stair risers and the backs of shelves
- Anyone who would rather not own a bucket of paste
Does peel and stick wallpaper damage walls?
It is designed to come away cleanly, and on well-bonded, fully cured paint it usually does. On old, chalky or freshly painted walls, paint can come away with it, because the paper is stuck to the paint film, so the paint's condition decides the outcome.
How long does peel and stick wallpaper last?
As long as the surface it is stuck to stays intact. Failures are nearly always a preparation problem, such as dust, uncured paint, texture or steam, rather than the paper wearing out.
Can I put it on textured walls?
No. The adhesive needs full contact with a smooth surface, and texture would show through the paper in any case.
Is it waterproof?
No. It copes with gentle cleaning, so blot with a slightly damp white cloth and never scrub, but it is not suitable for bathrooms or anywhere that regularly gets steamy.
Can I reposition it while I'm hanging?
Work in short sections and set the top edge carefully before you press it down. Getting each section right as you go is far easier than correcting it afterwards.
Can I paint over it?
We would not recommend it. Paint soaks into the surface and swells the paper, and it makes removal considerably harder.
Is it the same design and colour as your other papers?
Yes. Every design is available on all three papers, in the colourway you choose, printed to order.
