Teeny Dots Could Stain Wallpaper

Top photo … my razor knife is pointing at pin point-sized specks on this wall. I found similar in multiple spots around the room. What’s interesting is that I have seen these exact same size, color, and configuration of specks on at least one other job.

What’s scary is that I fear these are made of something that will stain the wallpaper. There are lots of substances that can bleed through – through paint, through primer, and through the wallpaper and appear on the surface.

These could have been splashed onto the wall. But my feeling, especially since I have seen it in other homes, is that they are coming from within the wall surface. Maybe something contaminated the painter’s materials, or something inside the drywall.

There are stain blockers that can be used to seal these dots. My favorite is shown in the second photo. Oil or shellac-based work best. The problem is, wallpaper paste won’t stick to them. If just daubing onto a teeny dot, I wouldn’t worry about it. But when a larger area needs to be treated, you have to let that dry, and then follow up with a wallpaper primer.

Actually, depending on the stain, I don’t always trust the blockers. For these very tiny specks, I used my razor blade to dig into the wall and actually remove the affected area. The resulting holes were small enough that I didn’t worry about dents showing under the wallpaper.

In some instances, I did go back and cover them with KILZ.

Tags: bleed through, drywall, KILZ, oil based, paint, primer, shellac, stain blocker, stains, wallpaper