Liquid wallpaper – modern “clothes” for walls

Recommendation points

• Composition and characteristics of liquid wallpaper
• Liquid wallpaper – application technology
• Panel from liquid wallpaper – technology
• At the end

In this article: the composition of liquid wallpaper; characteristics of decorative plaster – pros and cons; the technology of applying liquid wallpaper requires special care; how to make a panel yourself using liquid wallpaper; why you should buy decorative plaster of famous brands.

What finishing materials are most often used in our homes? Without any doubt, these are roll wallpapers – paper, vinyl, textile, etc. Wallpaper owes its popularity and widespread distribution to its decorative characteristics, their canvas allows you to hide cracks and pores, prevents plaster from dusting. However, in this article, we will not talk about wallpaper entirely – about a finishing material that combines the best properties of wallpaper and decorative plaster, known as liquid wallpaper..

Composition and characteristics of liquid wallpaper

Unlike roll wallpaper, this finishing material takes on a flat shape after being applied to the wall surface and in its original state looks like a dry free-flowing substance, packed in kilogram plastic bags. Before direct use, the contents of the bag are brought into a moist state by introducing a metered portion of water.

The composition of liquid wallpaper includes silk and cotton fibers, cellulose, special dyes, fungicides of natural origin, acrylic dispersion (binder), plasticizers and components that enhance the decorative qualities of the wall covering – wool fibers, mother of pearl, etc. Three types of wallpaper are produced – silk, cellulose and silk-cellulose. Decorative plaster containing dyed silk fibers is highly resistant to ultraviolet light – it does not fade and does not change color during use, retaining its original appearance and color for many years. Cellulose and silk-cellulose wallpapers are cheaper than silk wallpapers, but have a shorter service life.

A wide color palette allows you to create the necessary atmosphere in the premises – both business (in gray tones) and bright, sustained in modern design styles. Separately, it should be noted the effect of silk wallpaper – the coating formed by them looks like a fabric on the wall and at the same time is not a fabric. If desired, this decorative plaster allows for tinting and the introduction of decorative components into its composition, which allows you to obtain a wall covering of a unique color range and pattern. An interesting opportunity in decorating walls will be the creation of full-fledged panels using liquid wallpaper, tinted in different colors and applied to a drawing previously marked on the wall.

The walls, on which decorative plaster will be applied, do not need to be perfectly leveled, however, material consumption depends on how smooth their surface is. Before applying, it is imperative to priming the walls – this operation will increase the adhesion of liquid wallpaper and isolate their coating from contamination, the source of which may be the material from which the wall is created and the material of its rough finish.

Positive characteristics of liquid wallpaper:

• do not require careful leveling of wall surfaces before application, since they themselves act as a leveling decorative plaster;
• applied to vertical and horizontal surfaces, regardless of the wall material;
• the finished coating has no joints, gaps, for example, between the wall and the skirting board, can be easily filled with wallpaper material and leveled;
• the structure of liquid wallpaper contains many tiny pores, i.e. the finished coating has high sound and heat insulating characteristics, is capable of absorbing excess moisture from the atmosphere of the premises and giving it away when the air is excessively dry;
• antistatic material, does not attract dust;
• the content of fungicides reliably prevents mold infestation;
• it is convenient to work with this material – it is odorless, does not produce dust, when applying, an inexpensive tool is used, does not require a highly professional approach;
• this wall material is as easy to remove as to apply – just moisten the surface with water, wait a few minutes and scrape off with a spatula. Accordingly, the liquid wallpaper cover is maintainable, i. E. in case of local damage, it is easy to restore it by replacing this area.

Now let’s look at the disadvantages:

• rather high cost – about 600 rubles. per kg;
• due to the microporosity of the structure, the drying time of liquid wallpaper after application to the walls will take at least 24 hours;
• due to their high hygroscopicity, they are not recommended for use in rooms with an atmosphere of high humidity, such as a kitchen, a bathroom and a bathroom, without surface protection with a layer of varnish.

Liquid wallpaper – application technology

The sequence of work on applying liquid wallpaper to walls and ceilings is as follows – surface preparation, priming and painting in a background color, mixing, laying it on the surface, drying wallpaper.

Surface preparation. Walls and ceilings are thoroughly cleaned of previous coatings and dirt, foci of fungal infection are treated with antiseptic preparations.

Priming and staining. Depending on the wall material, this operation is performed as follows:

• concrete-lime walls before priming should be putty with mixtures on a gypsum binder, since they perfectly absorb water-soluble primers. Then a layer of deep impregnation primer is applied, on top – two layers of white VDAK;
• areas made of wood materials (chipboard, MDF, plywood, etc.) should be primed with GF 021 gray alkyd primer, then painted with white VDAK in two layers;
• drywall surfaces are completely filled with gypsum mixtures – it is necessary to putty exactly the entire drywall surface, and not just the joints between the sheets. The next two primers are white water-dispersion acrylic paint;
• areas previously painted with oil paints or enamels are examined for swelling and peeling with a spatula. If such areas are found, it is necessary to thoroughly clean them, apply plaster putty, then VDAK in two layers.

Be careful with areas of walls and ceilings with rusty streaks – traces of previous water leaks! The high hygroscopicity of the components that make up the liquid wallpaper will cause these stains to appear on their surface after application – carefully remove the areas with streaks, regardless of the quality of the plaster in them. Then a two-layer application of putty is carried out and priming with two or three layers of VDAK.

Any metal objects covered with liquid wallpaper must be spotted with a layer of oil paint.

Silk decorative plaster – mixing. Water at room temperature is poured into a plastic container of a suitable volume in the amount indicated on the package and taking into account the number of bags with dry wallpaper material used, the contents of the bags, decorative components (if used) are poured into it. The mixture is mixed by hand, i.e. without the use of mixers and spatulas – gently rub the material between your fingers to remove glue clots. For the stirring operation, the use of rubber gloves is not particularly necessary, since the components of dry wallpaper cannot do any harm to the skin on the hands. After completing stirring, leave the mixture for 12 hours to swell.

The main thing is to apply liquid wallpaper. After 12 hours, stir the mixture again, add 0.5-1 l of warm water to simplify the laying of the material on the surface. Liquid wallpaper should be applied with a plastic float, the layer thickness is about 2 mm (the wall surface should not be visible behind the applied layer), the movements during application are reciprocating (not circular!), The number of passes on the freshly laid surface should not exceed 10. Some types of decorative plaster can be installed with an air compressor and spray. Within 1.5-2 hours from the moment the liquid wallpaper is applied on the surface, it is allowed to adjust the layer – for this, the wallpaper layer in the necessary areas is ironed with a plastic float moistened with water.

Drying wallpaper. The period of complete drying of the wallpaper depends on the temperature (must be above 15 ° C) and humidity in the room, as well as the thickness of the applied layer. It is necessary to take about 48 hours to completely dry..

Panel from liquid wallpaper – technology

The creation of a panel is an opportunity for a unique design solution available to everyone who has a little artistic talent.

The selected drawing is applied to the putty and primed surface using a simple pencil (do not use markers!). When it is ready, we compose an aqueous mixture of liquid wallpaper in different plastic containers, tint each one in the colors chosen for the panel.

After 12 hours, we start creating the panel. Using a plastic trowel, apply the material to the corresponding areas of the pattern so that the wallpaper extends beyond the contour boundaries by a millimeter or two. Then, using a rubber spatula, carefully move the superimposed material inside the contour, opening its borders and smoothing the protrusions with a trowel. Wallpaper is applied to areas not adjacent to each other, when they are filled, the work stops – you need to give the material time to pre-cure. The period of such drying is about 3 hours at a temperature of + 22 ° C, to shorten this period, you can use a regular hair dryer to dry your hair.

Filling the sections of the panel, located close to the previously hung ones, is carried out according to the following scheme: by typing the material with a thin strip on a rubber spatula, we form it the inner contour of the panel section, retreating 1-2 mm from the edge; then fill the inside with liquid wallpaper with a trowel. In the process of laying the material with a trowel, it will inevitably shift to the edges, and a predetermined indentation will allow you to avoid wallpaper going beyond the boundaries of the site.

To enhance the decorative effect, you can decorate sections of the panel with beads, various sparkles, sequins, bugles, etc. After the wallpaper is dry, if necessary, you can emphasize the contour lines using markers.

At the end

Like any finishing material, liquid wallpapers from different manufacturers have different qualities: large and well-known companies strive to improve the quality characteristics of products; small and little-known – to bring it to the “optimal level”, which does not provide the proper quality. Yes, it is possible to use cheap products for wall decoration, but this will require the involvement of an experienced professional decorator who can improve the quality of the material to the required on-site, relying on his own experience. But even this measure will not allow to increase the life of the coating – the solution of this issue is beyond the power of even the most experienced craftsmen, this requires serious laboratory tests and a number of tests that are carried out only by large manufacturers.

You should not try to save money by purchasing liquid wallpaper of unknown and dubious origin – it will cost yourself more.