Wallpaper versus painted walls?

WhoisDannie

Most of the walls in my house are painted with emulsion, the interior walls are made from plasterboard  "eggbox construction " and the inside of the external wall are made from dot and dab plasterboard stuck onto breezeblock.

Will it make much difference to the "warmth" feeling of the external walls if I put wallpaper on the exterior walls instead of repainting them with emulsion?

onomatopoeia99

I'm gradually converting all of my house from wallpaper to emulsion and I can detect no difference.

If I ever move again I won't buy a house that's been wallpapered.  Terrible stuff to remove, at least woodchip that's been painted is. Never again, the amount of plastering I've needed to sort it out .

ss2020jd

I have heard of something called thermal lining paper but not sure how effective it is and it would still need to be painted, I believe. I don’t think standard wallpaper would make much difference.

cymruchris

No difference whatsoever. Other than when it comes to redecoration time painting over paint is easier and cheaper than stripping wallpaper and doing it again. Depends on the look you want of course and the budget you have

FreeBear

ss2020jd said:

I have heard of something called thermal lining paper but not sure how effective it is and it would still need to be painted, I believe. I don’t think standard wallpaper would make much difference.

Thermal lining paper is not very thick (maybe 4-5mm), so the amount of insulation it provides is minimal at best. For some people, it is enough to get the surface temperature up slightly and reduce condensation, but it won't do much to limit heat loss. If you have cold walls, you need to be putting 50-75mm of PIR insulation up. Even 25mm will make an improvement, but is probably not enough to meet current recommended targets.

As for paper versus paint - Neither will make the slightest difference to heat loss. OK, the thermal wall paper will feel slightly warmer, but so would a glove on your hand.

FFHillbilly

It won't make a difference. insulation is made from specially selected materials and typically worth installing at thicknesses of 25mm min (depending on cost), so if you compare that with your "paper" (not specifically made of insulation materials) and the 1-2mm of thickness you'll see it's pointless
Yes there will likely be a slight difference in thermal conductivity with a plastered and painted wall vs a wallpapered wall, but not likely to pay back in your lifetime. if you were to line the walls with 25mm celotex and plasterboard, it may take 10 years to pay back and then will save money after that

ss2020jd

FreeBear said:

ss2020jd said:

I have heard of something called thermal lining paper but not sure how effective it is and it would still need to be painted, I believe. I don’t think standard wallpaper would make much difference.

Thermal lining paper is not very thick (maybe 4-5mm), so the amount of insulation it provides is minimal at best. For some people, it is enough to get the surface temperature up slightly and reduce condensation, but it won't do much to limit heat loss. If you have cold walls, you need to be putting 50-75mm of PIR insulation up. Even 25mm will make an improvement, but is probably not enough to meet current recommended targets.

As for paper versus paint - Neither will make the slightest difference to heat loss. OK, the thermal wall paper will feel slightly warmer, but so would a glove on your hand.

That’s good to know. And gloves are much cheaper!