Decorating can make the world of difference to the appearance of your home, and if you’re lucky enough to be good at hanging wallpaper, the transformation can affordably cover up cracks in walls and poor quality plaster. When you’re done though, how should you dispose of excess wallpaper paste?
Wallpaper paste can be disposed of in the general waste bin as part of your kerbside collection. Pour it into an old carrier bag and tie the top, or use a container that’s reasonably well sealed. Never flush wallpaper paste down the toilet or pour it down the sink as it can cause blockages.
How Long Does Wallpaper Paste Last?
This question can actually have three different meanings:
- How long is a packet of wallpaper paste usable after being manufactured?
- How long do I have to use wallpaper paste once it’s opened and made up?
- How long does wallpaper paste keep wallpaper stuck to the wall for?
Given the nature of this page, it’s likely that you’re wondering one of the first two, and most likely it’s the second one. However for completeness, let’s address each variation in turn.
How Long Is A Packet Of Wallpaper Paste Usable After Being Manufactured?
As a literal answer, you can probably use wallpaper paste for around ten years after buying it, but it’s likely degrading after a couple of years.
If you’ve had a packet of paste sat in the garage for years on end, it’s a good idea to bin it and get some more as it’s not very expensive, unlike ruining wallpaper by using paste that’s beyond its best. It’s certainly a false economy to try and save money by using old paste and ruining your fancy wallpaper and finding it doesn’t stick to the wall or peels soon after hanging.
Therefore, use the rule of thumb that you should use paste as soon as possible after purchase, and certainly use it within a year or two.
How Long Do I Have To Use Wallpaper Paste Once It’s Opened And Made Up?
While some pastes come ready mixed and others are mixed with water before use, both varieties will be fine to use for a couple of days if stored carefully after opening. Many of us are quite slow at hanging wallpaper, so it’s common to need a day or two to complete the job.
When you’re not using the paste, it’s a good idea to prevent it from drying up. The best way to do that is to cover it up with cling film, so that the moisture is trapped in. Just give it a good stir when you come back to it, and you’ve got 48 hours of prime pasting fun!
How Long Does Wallpaper Paste Keep Wallpaper Stuck To The Wall For?
The final interpretation of our question has a very much ‘it depends’ answer. While it partly relates to the quality of the paste, it’s probably most dependent on the quality of the wall.
If you’re using a freshly plastered wall that’s perfectly primed for hanging your paper, you can find that a good wallpaper job can last years, although the pattern’s will date well before that (1970’s patterns anyone?).
On the other hand, if you’re making the best you can with an old crumbling wall where the plaster is disintegrating, the life of the paste is probably most inhibited by how long the surface remains intact behind the wallpaper.
Poor quality walls can mean that paper starts to peel away within a year in extreme cases, but for most walls that aren’t too badly worn, you should get at least five to ten years before the signs of wear and tear expose themselves.
Can I Flush Wallpaper Paste Down The Toilet?
It’s a bad idea to put anything down the toilet apart from bodily waste and toilet paper. We’ve talked about other things people make the mistake of flushing in the past on this site, including cooking oil, tampons and medicines.
The golden rule is that the three P’s and the three P’s only can be flushed – Pee, Poop and Paper.
The reason is simple, while you may get away with it for a while, each flush can cause a little more to get stuck in your waste pipes.
It’s inevitable that sooner or later the capacity of the pipe to take your waste away will be impaired sufficiently to cause waste to drain away much more slowly, or even become blocked completely.
When you consider what you normally flush down the toilet in your day to day routine, having your toilet backing up and overflowing really doesn’t bear thinking about!
Can I Rinse Wallpaper Paste Down The Sink?
The same goes with the plughole in your sink, regardless of whether it’s the kitchen or bathroom. In fact, these are even worse options to dispose of wallpaper paste than the toilet as the waste pipe is narrower.
You’ll hear theories about people diluting the paste, rinsing it with hot water, rinsing it with cold water, using substances to break it down and so on.
The fact of the matter is, paste shouldn’t go down the sink, toilet or even the back yard drain, as it’s possible to contribute to a future blockage. Instead, bag up what’s not required and put it into the general waste bin.
