Help removing baseboards without damaging sheetrock

Lighthearted

We just bought a house (our first one!) and are going to paint, then replace all the laminate flooring throughout the whole house with carpet and tile. Before we paint, we are going to remove all the baseboards because the baseboards we want to install are not as tall as the ones currently in the house. The people who installed the baseboards apparently glued them to the wall. I am having a very tough time removing them without pulling the paper off of the drywall. How can I remove the glued on baseboards while doing as little damage to the wall as possible? Also, how can I repair the spots where the paper is peeling off the drywall after removing the glued on baseboards? I don’t want it to be obvious that there were taller baseboards installed previously. Thanks for any advice in advance.

Thanks, Ken

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Scuba_Dave

If they glued it you are going to have a tough time getting them off without damage. You will need to re-mud the damaged drywall, not a fun project

You can try a metal drywall knife down behind the baseboard to try to pry the glue off without tearing. But with glue its going to reuire peeling it off the drywall, no real way around it. I'm not sure heating wouldl have any real effect to soften the glue. Fumes might be bad

aggreX

Removing glued on baseboards will damage the paper surface of the wallboard just like removing tiles. You should be able to put a thin layer of mud on the damaged areas, smooth it out and install your "shorter" baseboard. To save time and energy you might reconsider the height of the replacement baseboard.
Good luck

chrisn

Apply Gardz to the torn drywall first before mudding to prevent bubbeling of the torn paper.

http://www.zinsser.co.nz/wtb-GARDZ.asp?SID=11&WID=27