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hvac1000 · Mar 24, 2009, 07:18 PM

Chinese-made drywall imported during the height of the housing boom is suspected of being responsible for the corrosion and failure of metal components, as well as foul odors, in homes in the Sarasota area and down both coasts of Florida.
State and federal health officials are now trying to determine whether gases emitted by the drywall are hazardous to humans.
The Sarasota County Health department was at the forefront of the issue, beginning an investigation in the summer. The agency spread the word, sparking a sweeping inquiry that brought in state and federal health agencies. Builders, suppliers, one of the manufacturers and private testing labs are also involved -- some conducting parallel investigations.
"There does seem to be a strong association between the presence of the Chinese drywall and the coil corrosion issues," said Dr. David Krause, state toxicologist with the Bureau of Environmental Public Health Medicine.
Air-conditioning evaporator coils, which are supposed to last a decade or more, are corroding and failing in homes only a couple of years old. Pipes and wiring may also be deteriorating.
"We are very interested in the possible health issues here," said Bob Kallotte, environmental specialist with the Sarasota County health department. "We have some evidence that people are experiencing symptoms as result of this, but we have not confirmed the cause. We are taking this very seriously."

WHAT TO LOOK FOR: A strong odor of sulfur (which smells like rotten eggs); corroded air-conditioning coils. In some cases, pipes and electrical wiring may also be corroded.

Article

IN THE WALLS, A NEW CONCERN; IMPORTS: Chinese-made drywall used in boom has health officials' attention - January 11, 2009 Sunday - HousingZone.com

KC13 · Mar 25, 2009, 03:56 AM

Dwywaw? Bad dwywaw? I'm not surprised at aww. No more wo mein for me, thanks.:rolleyes:

hvac1000 · Mar 25, 2009, 04:00 AM

I thought I would post that info since it kind of caught me by surprise that drywall is now a problem for copper and other metals. The lawyers will have a field day with this one.

KC13 · Mar 25, 2009, 04:06 AM

I have a Carrier SMB from a few years back that reports the results of lab research on the effects of airborne chemical vapors on indoor coils. Lots of construction materials and domestic cleaning products made the list. I'm going to dig it out and write in this one.;)

hvac1000 · Mar 25, 2009, 07:41 AM

You are correct about the cleaning materials but beauty shop chemicals for some reason was the worst. About 40 years ago we serviced a few beauty shops and had a heck of a time with indoor coils and heat exchangers. We ended up adding make up air to dilute the mixture and make the parts last longer.

The worst ofender was P&G's dryer sheets. They bought a laundry mat and allowed people to wash and dry for free as long as you used there test products. The commercial dryers were getting killed by the new style at the time dryer sheets and the hvac equiptment was another major problem. We had to fill out forms along with our bills so that they could keep track of the problems. Towards the end of the testing in this laundry mat the damages lessoned to a almost normal state since P&G made corrections to the chemical content of the dryer sheets. That was a interesting project.