Between 2001 and 2005 the home construction industry in the United States was enjoying a period of almost unprecedented growth and prosperity. New homes were being built in record numbers all over the country and, if you were a contractor involved in the industry, life was very good indeed.
Of Course the demand for materials increased as well and one of the construction commodities that became scarce in the US was drywall. In order to keep projects moving along contractors began purchasing imported drywall, much of it from China. Between 2005 and 2008, millions of tons of Chinese drywall were imported into the United States and used in both residential and commercial construction projects.
The good news for contractors was that the Chinese drywall seemed to be of perfectly good quality and it was of course cheaper than that manufactured in the United States, meaning even more profits for everyone.
Then the problems began. Homeowners began complaining about strange smells in their homes for which they could find no obvious explanation. Appliances began to fail without warning and people complained of feeling ill. After months of investigation, the problems were traced back to certain shipments of the imported Chinese drywall.
Eventually, the "bad" drywall was found to contain several chemical compounds that caused the bulk of the problems. These chemicals included Iron Disulfide, Sulfuric Acid and Carbon Disulfide. The manufacturer was traced and the specific drywall products identified. That particular drywall is no longer imported into the United States.
However, that still left many homeowners stuck with homes that had been constructed with Chinese drywall. Many people have identified the problem and have had to have the dry walling in their residences replaced. But how can you tell if such a product was used in the construction of your home?
An unexplained sulfur-like smell is one indicator that bad Chinese drywall may have been used in the home, but there are other more subtle signs. Appliances like microwaves and televisions may fail unexpectedly, or light bulbs burn out at a far faster rate than they really should. The chemicals in the dry walling cause copper and silver wiring used in the home to corrode and tarnish and this effect may even extend to the utensils used in the home.
Many of the people living in homes that were constructed with the toxic drywall developed a variety health problems, most commonly respiratory problems, rashes, headaches and nosebleeds. There have never been any confirmed deaths linked to living in a home with Chinese drywall but there have been many hospitalizations related to such an existence.
If you suspect that Chinese drywall was used in the construction of your home (remember this really only applies to homes built between 2005 and 2008), your first step should be to call the Homeowners Consumer Center at 1-866-714-6466. They will be able to guide you through the process of determining whether or not this is the case and how to get started on to the road to remedy.
