Is Chinese drywall a problem in some homes?
 

In a discussion group about real estate near Fort Myers, several people mentioned that some homes in that area built in the early 2000's had Chinese drywall and it caused serious problems. Has that problem ever occurred with the homes in The Villages?

This issue came up when it was initially recognized some years back. As i recall there was no chinese wall found in The villages but you may want to call the Warranty Department. If there is chinese wall a possible means of discovery is to remove the electrical outlet plates and see if the siring is corroded

No. We don't have Chinese Dry Wall here.

I hope some of the building inspectors jump in here as they would probably have first hand knowledge. On a previous post, if you remove the switch or receptacle faceplate, the copper wiring should be bright and shiny, if you see black, contact an expert.

Chinese drywall in the south Fort Myers area was a big problem but it was limited to homes built during only a couple of years around 2006 then banned. Even if it was in a neighboring unit, it still was considered damaging to your health according to some realtors. Taking it out was not always sufficient.

It is my understanding that no chinese drywall was used in the building of homes in The Villages. None has been found here in The Villages to my knowledge by the inspectors I know. It is estimated that around 25,000 homes built in Florida between 2004 and as late as 2009 were built with "Chinese Drywall".

The issue is complicated. Not all drywall made in China was confirmed contaminated. Some homes have been found with a mix of U.S. and Chinese drywall. Many of these homes were built in South Florida.

I could write pages on this subject, but all of this info can be found by searching the internet.

Bottom line is that the risk of this being found in a home here in The Villages is to my understanding very, very low. I would never say never, as there is always the slight chance that out of the thousands of homes here, someone years ago may have hired some aftermarket contractor from south Florida to do a remodeling job where the contractor could have used some, but the chances are very low and unless you have the evidence of a symptomatic home I would not be concerned.

With how active this forum is I believe that even if there was the slightest chance of this here, folks would be posting about it all over. That does not seem to be happening. As the old saying goes, no smoke usually means no fire....

Hope this helps...

Frank D.