Wallpaper Stripping for First Time...please have a look at these pics.

[united4ever]

Seems like the back paper got really stuck on and I am at my wits end trying to get the last bits off. I think the next step anyway would be sanding the wall. Would the bits of back paper come off with a sanding anyway or do I need to get all these little bits off?

Also, one of the pictures shows some wall paper stuck behind a cover for cables. How do I get that out? Do I need to take out the cable covering or is there any way I could conceal the messy bits of wallpaper?

After this I think it's sanding and then do I need to put a primer on that colour wall? My plan is to paint the walls some sort of off white shade but one wall onlywould be a light shade of green.

You may see some cracks in one of the pictures, there are some minor cracks and damage in parts? I was looking at polyfilla (in the tube) can i just use this? Or does it need skimming? that would be getting domeone in to do that but I wasn't planning on that stage to be honest.

Any advice on these points most welcome

one more pic here (the bit that i can't get to between wall and cable covers).

They look like the walls in our house did, we got them skimmed by a professional before painting them.
We weren't planning on having them skimmed originally, but I have to say the finish is fantastic, and it was worth every penny. Much better than a polyfiller bodge job and probably quicker.
You'll need to let the skim dry for a week ideally and then do a couple of mist coats, after that it's a dream to paint.

You can run a Stanley knife carefully down the side of the cable cover to cut the paper so you can remove the part from the wall

Small pieces of paper can be a pain - a good soaking (wipe the wall with a dripping wet sponge and let it soak into the remaining paper) and then scraping by hand should work

Filler will be fine for the cracks. You will obv get a much more perfect finish if the walls were reskimmed but it's not totally necessary unless you're after total perfection

Thanks a lot. Do you think a primer layer will be requirdd after sanding?

I did as recommended above and still ended up getting a skim done, I don't see why you would want to spend the time and effort redecorating and end up with a lumpy wall. The quality of the finish if you sell, and you'll have to look at every day!

The quality of the finish eill affect the price if you want to sell, is what I meant to say!

Will! Gah

Understood, although i have no plans to sell anytime soon i would like it to look good. How much to skim the average bedroom? One wall is just fitted wardrobes and the ceiling will not be done. Anyone know a good plasterer in trafford/ south manchester?

You need to soak the walls first by spraying water on them, then leave for 10-15 mins. Then scrape or even just wipe off the last remnants. The water just loosens the last bit of glue from the wallpaper.

You may need to use filler after that on the cracks but if it's really bad the only way to sort it out might be to have a plasterer give it a layer of skim.

What others have said about soaking to get the last few bits off - they do budge eventually! The last time we had to strip wallpaper, I hired a steamer and it made such a difference - the room was like a sauna by the end of it, but it was quicker.

An alternative to skimming, would be to paper with lining paper then paint over that. We did that in our last flat - took out a (badly) fitted wardrobe and the wall was covered in filled in holes. We didn't have the funds to get the walls skimmed, so filled and sanded as much as we could and then did the whole room in lining paper, followed by two coats of our chosen paint.

When we have scraped paper in the past we have found that after the initial scrape you need to go back several times, spray with water, scrape etc and then finally sand the wall (several times!) to get a really smooth finish. I can definitely tell the walls where we did this to the ones we didn't. It's worth the effort and elbow grease

Oh -- your photos have given me post traumatic stress disorder remembering doing this at my house.

I will echo others' advice regarding getting the paper wet and scraping the rest of by hand. So fiddly, but the best way.

Also confirming that getting SOMEONE ELSE to skim the walls for you is money well spent. I did my own, thanks to several breezy DIY bolgs that made it look so easy....