If you’re a Gulf Coast resident with major storm-damage repairs from 2004-2007, your troubles may not be over. Does your house sometimes smell like sulfur? Is your copper piping and electrical wiring turning black? You may be one of the estimated 100,000 homeowners with toxic Chinese drywall.
Chinese drywall imported from 2004-07 emits sulfide gases that corrode metal fixtures and wiring and are probably a health hazard. The liability may be as high as $25 billion. While the courts sort out who pays, homeowners already hard hit by weather and the economy are struggling to cope with a cost as high as $100,000 per home for replacement of the hazard.
A recent Consumer Products Safety Commission draft report admits that homes with the drywall have high levels of hydrogen sulfide and formaldehyde, although the agency refuses to comment on the extent of the health risk. The probe has moved to China, with attempts to identify the source(s) so that better evaluation of effected homes can take place. Louisiana has offered builder’s risk insurance coverage to homeowners who have been forced to move out while awaiting repairs. In Virginia, insurance companies are evoking a “pollution exclusion” to deny homeowners coverage for repairs. The House has recently approved a bill allowing SBA disaster loan funds to be made available to homeowners. The Senate has not yet acted.
How can you tell if you might have the problem? If you had extensive repairs or even new construction from mid-2004 to late 2007, check your drywall source. Most of the material has made in China stamped on the back. Check your copper plumbing for corrosion. Be wary if you are having electrical problems after repairs.
Meanwhile, the rest of us can learn from these experiences. Cheap imports are seldom a bargain. Quality control issues will continue to plague manufacturers in the developing world. Don’t jump for joy when your contractor says he can get you a “great deal.” Ask questions about the source of the material. It’s better to pay a little more and be safe. And for those blaming foreign imports, let’s not forget that similar cost-cutting at American factories has produced tainted peanut butter and plant explosions from lack of maintenance. When you demand unrealistically cheap products, what you get is shoddy, unsafe products. Consumer Beware!
Comments
The U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) just released a report that has linked Chinese drywall to high levels of hydrogen sulfide and the corrosion of metals in homes. The highly anticipated report comes a little over one week before some victims of the Chinese drywall debacle face an important deadline for filing suit against Knauf Plasterboard (Tianjin) Co., Ltd., a maker of Chinese drywall.
Hundreds of homeowners have filed suit over defective Chinese drywall, and all pending federal cases have been consolidated in a multidistrict litigation currently underway in New Orleans. An agreement has been reached and victims whose homes were built with wallboard manufactured by Knauf must sign on to the omnibus class action suit against Knauf no later than December 2, 2009. This is a hard deadline; the omnibus complaint will not be amended later to add additional claimants. Eligibility involves submission of photographs or other proof that the home in question was constructed
Thanks Cynthia,
I appreciate this follow up. Homeowners, if you might have this problem, follow up tomorrow.
Parker Waichman Alonso LLP, the first law firm to file a federal Chinese drywall lawsuit, is offering assistance to any homeowner interested in joining the Knauf Plasterboard lawsuit. Free consultations are available through the firm’s website at yourlawyer. com, or by calling 1-800-LAW-INFO (1-800-529-4636).
Got something to say?
Examiner.com is looking for writers, photographers, and videographers to join the fastest growing group of local insiders. If you are interested in growing your online rep apply to be an Examiner today!