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Anyone that has ‘Made in China’ stamped on their drywall, their house is worthless, said Randy Noel, president of Louisiana-based homebuilder Reve Inc. Testifying before Senate Sub-committee hearing on Chinese Drywall May 20, 2009
We have recently filed the first consumer class action complaints in Mississippi and Alabama. Hopefully, these will provide some relief to the homeowners. From our site visits, there appears to be at least two (2) types of Chinese dry wall used in Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana: one being Knauf and one of an unknown manufacturer simply marked "Chinese dry wall". We are having photos of both of these posted on our web site soon. Most all of the homes we have seen thus far have had HVAC systems or coils replaced. All of the homes have had cooper wiring and materials turning black. This indicates that both types of dry wall are emitting excessive sulphur dioxide and other corrosive compounds. We will have our first samples sent to a lab for gas chromatograph testing this week.
Unfortunately, most of the homeowners I have visited with so far who have small children, the minors seem to be having upper respiratory problems. I have suggested that they invest in multiple hepa air filters to help dilute the presence of gas and will be investigating whether painting the walls may also help dilute the off gassing of the dry wall. We have heard from other affected homeowners that this seemed to help, but we cannot conclusively state this at this time. We would like to state for the record that there is no study that has been produced that the health affects of this dry wall are anything but transitory at this time. Stated differently, the symptoms should resolve once the dry wall is removed.
Many people also want to know if their house needs to be tested. I would strongly advise to determine whether you have the affected drywall before even thinking about testing. The best way to determine this is to generally go to your attic and remove some of the insulation or move it around if it is blown and inspect the backside of the drywall. If it says Knauf-Tianjin or "Made in China" you have Chinese drywall and a problem. Some US drywall companies that are not problematic are Georgia Pacific, Temple Inland, National Gypsum, USG, American Gypsum and BPB. Also, if you bought your drywall from Lowe's or Home Depot, you are probably OK.
Areas that seem to be particularly affected are obviously the New Orleans area, the Baton Rouge area, the Mississippi Gulf Coast and north to Hattiesburg, the Pensacola area and the Birmingham area. Contact us to learn more.
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