UPDATE: Click here for the latest Contamination News Article.
This is an area of great discussion. Some people say that there is no possibility of cross-contamination if you move your furniture to a new location, while others say that the possibility is very real.
The idea in contention is that porous surfaces, such as fabrics and woods, absorb the chemical compounds emited by the Chinese Drywall. They also say that these pieces of furniture, like sofas, mattresses and even dining room furniture, will later re-emit or "off-gas" the chemicals it has absorbed and could potentially infect the non-Chinese Drywalls of your new place.
Interestingly, I was reading the Florida Department of Health initial test results of two pieces of drywall. One of them was the Chinese Drywall and the other was not, but apparently, they were transported together in the same bag and when they got to the lab, the non-Chinese piece of drywall had the same problems as the Chinese Drywall one - emitting the same gasses. The report stated that their tests were inconculsive and they admitted there was possibly some cross-contamination of the pieces.
This alone leads me to believe that there may be some truth to the furniture debate. As for me, I did not want to take the risk that my furniture would be contaminating my new living space, so I did not bring it with me.
What do you do with your furniture then? I looked into having it "restored" by one of those companies that does mold and fire restoration. The estimate was for $7,000. I figured I could just buy new furniture for that amount. As for now, we still don't know what to do with the furniture, but we definitely didn't want to bring it with us. We did bring with us anything that is NON-POROUS such as glass or metal and just gave it a really good wipe down with cleaners.
You have done an amazing job with this Blog!
ReplyDeleteLatest news on Contamination. You're going to want to read this one.....
ReplyDeleteChinese drywall leaving home toxic after it's removed
By Christina Hernandez, WINK News
Story Created: Jul 21, 2009 at 3:48 PM EDT
Story Updated: Jul 21, 2009 at 10:26 PM EDT
NORTH PORT, Fla. - A Charlotte County couple has had enough of the Chinese drywall in their home. Now, they are taking matters into their own hands... literally.
They ripped it out, thinking that would solve their problem, but it didn't.
This couple is fixing a problem that seems bigger than ever. They thought taking the toxic drywall out of their North Port home, would make it livable again, but even after the drywall was removed, they said toxic gases were still there.
"I just want to come home," Jenny Waegenere said holding back tears.
Jenny Waegenere is eight months pregnant and her home looks like it's being built, but it's really being torn apart... much like the homeowners.
"We were really excited, then we found out we had a baby on the way, then even more excited," Waegenere said. "We spent two months painting his room, and well, then we found out we had this drywall issue."
So, the obvious thing to do was rip it out, and begin installing new wiring to replace the wiring that had corroded.
Four days later, that new copper was turning black.
A building inspector said even though the drywall was gone, the leftover sulfur fumes were still contaminating everything else in their home.
"You can almost think about it like second hand smoke," said Anthony Gimenez, owner of Professional Building Inspectors Services, Inc. "Once the smoker leaves the room, someone can walk into the room and still smell smoke, and the reason that is, is because that smoke has cross contaminated other components in the home."
These homeowners, along with the help of family members, are trying to get those toxic gases out, but how?
"Right where we poked a hole in the wall, you can smell the sulfur smell," one of the homeowners father, Michael Abernathy said. "You can actually smell it."
They said this is more proof, the fumes are still in the home. So, they said blowing the bad air out seemed like their only option.
"They need to have time to off gas before the houses gets put back together, or those vapors will still be present in the home," Gimenez said.
But how will they know the gasses are gone for good?
"We have to see exactly what it's going to do to the copper," Abernathy said. "If it's going to stay clean, then we know all the gasses are out."
So, they put brand new copper wires in... and waited.
"We put copper in there and it tarnished it - turned it black."
So, they blew the air out again... and again... and again.
They even kept examples with the last time the wires were corroded.
"Some time needs to pass for those cross contaminated building components to off gas to the point where it's okay to put the building back together," Gimenez said.
Now, after nearly two weeks, the copper wires are starting to come out clean.
"We need to know when this is out of this house, so these kids can move on," Abernathy said. "They need to move on."
The building inspector says until the government steps in, everyone with Chinese drywall should follow this example.
The homeowners paid for everything at a cost of about 10,000 dollars, but they are saving their receipts.
They hope the home will be ready for family living in about a month.
What about clothing, hair products, hand mirrors, foods, cell phones, keys on key chains, photographs of family and friends ( in frames or just in boxes), computers, tweezers, nail clips, dishes, food processors with metal blades, knife sets, lamps, electric cords, holiday decorations made of all different types of materials, artificial trees, plants throughout a home, brief cases, baskets, dog leashes...the list goes on and on...can someone tell me how I could possibly walk out of my house and be absolutely certain that I have not cross-contaminated anywhere? Who are we kidding?
ReplyDeleteI agree... who are we kidding?
ReplyDeleteWe had to get rid of EVERYTHING! and I mean every single thing! You can and will cross contaminate. How do you get rid of a car? I'm still exposed to it daily in my car. ~ I don't ever see anyone complain of the odor emitting from themselves. I smell it on my skin, in my sweat, breath, urine, etc... My whole family is the same. And we all are sick. But! But.... NO ONE WILL LISTEN OR TALK TO US! The state of Florida, the local health department, lawyers, etc.... I get the run around. And I'm told, "here, try this number." When I call them, they ask if I've called so and so and I tell them, that is where I got YOUR number.
I'm calling the local news tomorrow. HOPEFULLY! I can get somewhere. We are sad and desperate.... and at the end of our rope.
Signed, Sad & Sick in Florida
PS: ♫♪♫Money talks... but it don't sing and dance and it don't walk♪♫♪♫
~ I'm sure you get my meaning.