Chinese-made drywall ruining homes, owners say
By Jason Hanna
CNN
How about we don't get anything else from China and start building stuff we need in this country again. I'm getting sick and tired of hearing how everything imported from over there makes, babies, children, dogs, and now entire communities physically ill.
Clearly, cheaper isn't always better. :angryfire2:
By Jason Hanna
CNN
(CNN) -- Officials are looking into claims that Chinese-made drywall installed in some Florida homes is emitting smelly, corrosive gases and ruining household systems such as air conditioners, the Consumer Product Safety Commission says. The Florida Health Department, which is investigating whether the drywall poses any health risks, said it has received more than 140 homeowner complaints. And class-action lawsuits allege defective drywall has caused problems in at least three states -- Florida, Louisiana and Alabama -- while some attorneys involved claim such drywall may have been used in tens of thousands of U.S. homes. Homeowners' lawsuits contend the drywall has caused them to suffer health problems such as headaches and sore throats and face huge repair expenses.The drywall is alleged to have high levels of sulfur and, according to homeowners' complaints, the sulfur-based gases smell of rotten eggs and corrode piping and wiring, causing electronics and appliances to fail. "It's economically devastating, and it's emotionally devastating," said Florida attorney Ervin A. Gonzalez, who filed one of the lawsuits. It would cost a third of an affected home's value to fix the dwelling, Gonzalez said. "The interior has to be gutted, the homeowners have to continue paying mortgages, and they have to pay for a [temporary] place to live," Gonzalez said.
In a neighborhood in Homestead, Florida, owners of homes with Chinese-manufactured drywall say the dwellings smell like rotten eggs, especially on humid days, according to CNN affiliate WPLG-TV. Electronics and appliances with copper components stopped working in short order, and copper pipes and wiring turned black, homeowners told the Miami station. "The breadth of this thing is a lot bigger than people think," said Chaikin of the Parker Waichman Alonso law firm in Bonita Springs. Chaikin said the problem is perhaps more easily recognizable in Florida because humidity exacerbates it.
How about we don't get anything else from China and start building stuff we need in this country again. I'm getting sick and tired of hearing how everything imported from over there makes, babies, children, dogs, and now entire communities physically ill.
Clearly, cheaper isn't always better. :angryfire2: