Question about painting over old wallpaper glue

After scraping off 70s wallpaper in my kitchen, I spent a whole weekend scrubbing the leftover adhesive with TSP and it just smeared. On a whim, I rolled on a coat of oil-based primer, which sealed it right in and let the latex paint stick perfectly. Has anyone found a different primer that works for this without the strong smell?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_fiona4d ago

Used to think you had to get every last bit of glue off. Your oil primer trick is the only thing that ever worked for me too.

the_rose4d ago

Tried a water-based shellac primer once and it locked that sticky mess down. It dried super fast and the smell was nowhere near as bad as the oil stuff. Honestly saved my sanity on a bathroom remodel.