If you don’t know about Chinese drywall, don’t feel bad.

For some reason I haven’t seen very much publicity about this in San Diego. The only reason I am familiar with it is from a visit to Florida. In Florida, Chinese drywall is as big as asbestos. My Mom, who is a real estate agent in Sarasota, Florida, had to attend a seminar about it. She started asking me what I knew about the product, and unfortunately I knew nothing. So I thought this might be an area specific problem since I hadn’t heard anything in San Diego. Well I thought wrong.

Chinese drywall was primarily used from 2003-2007 and was installed throughout the US, with concentrations in California, Arizona, and Florida. So why is this product currently causing a bigger “stink” in Florida? One of the biggest complaints is a sulfur emission that corrodes metal pipes, wires, appliances and even faucets from the drywall and that also smells like rotten eggs. Experts believe that because of the combined high heat and humidity in Florida, the sulfur emissions are more readily emitted and noticed.

So are San Diego homes next? We may start hearing about this more as we get into the summer months and things start to heat up. There was a lot of construction here in San Diego during the peak of Chinese drywall use. Some of the prominent construction areas from 2003-2007 include homes in Del Mar, Fallbrook, La Jolla, Oceanside, El Cajon, and Carlsbad homes. But we won’t know the full extent until the complaints start to surface. Let’s hope a majority of San Diego County avoided this product.

If you are concerned that your home may be victim to Chinese drywall, you may want to set up an appointment with a qualified home inspector. Get more information at chinesedrywall.com.

Steve Scheckner, Realtor
Team 73 Degrees
sdrelo.com, 858.761.2375