Florida builders brace for suits over odor-emitting Chinese drywall

Chinese drywall has become the home construction scare story of the season. USA Today highlighted the problem in a long story this week. At least three class-action lawsuits in Florida have rattled builders and drywall suppliers. Plaintiffs allege the drywall fumes destroy appliances and copper wiring, and cause headaches and coughs. No one knows the number of Florida homes built with defective Asian wallboard. It was imported by the millions of pounds between 2004 and 2006 when American companies couldn't keep up with the building boom and post-hurricane reconstruction. Estimates vary between 800 and 36,000 homes. Close to 100 homeowners — about 10 in the Tampa Bay area — have reported the problem to the Florida Department of Health. In a report released late Friday, the health department confirmed Chinese drywall samples put off a strong sulfur smell when exposed to heat. An American-made sample did not. The tests also showed that Chinese drywall had an organic content of more than 5 percent. That could lend credence to a theory, propagated by personal injury law firm Morgan & Morgan, that Chinese manufacturers tainted drywall with waste ash from coal-fired power plants.

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