cheap usually equals bad

I read an article from Foxnews titled “Chinese Drywall Poses Potential Risks to American Homeowners, Apartment Dwellers”

The article states that when the U.S was at the peak of its housing boom, building materials were in short supply. American construction companies used millions of pounds of Chinese-made drywall because it was cheap.

Now, after being used in hundreds of homes and apartment buildings, people are worried that the wallboard gives off fumes that can corrode copper pipes, blacken jewelry as well as silverware and even make people sick.

The Associated Press indicated that during a four-year period of time, imports of Chinese building material exceeded 500 million pounds. They also said that the drywall may have been used in more than 100,000 homes, including those built after Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
The drywall is said to cause a chemical reaction that gives off a rotten-egg smell and grows worse with heat and humidity. The drywall is made with a coal byproduct called fly ash, which is less refined than the form that U.S drywall makers use. Others possible causes of the reaction are fumigants which is sprayed on the drywall as well as material inside it.

Dozens of homeowners have already sued builders, suppliers and manufacturers. They are filling out their own lawsuits saying they unknowingly used the bad materials.

One example is Marry Ann Schultheis, who suffered burning eyes, sinus headaches, and a general heaviness in her chest since she moved into her brand-new house a few years ago. She has no idea what she is going to do, her builder is in bankruptcy, the government is not helping and her lender will not give her a break.

Experts say that the problem is only beginning to surface. The Article goes on and talks about the Chinese and how they haven’t responded to any requests. A spokesman from Knauf Plasterboard Tianjin, a Chinese company named in many of the lawsuits, stated “What we’re trying to do is get to the bottom of what is precisely going on”

I think that this is going to become a huge mess. It was American construction companies that chose to buy the Chinese products without real knowledge of it. But now that most construction companies are no longer in business because of our economy there is nothing for these new homeowners. It’s a really sad situation and I hope that the government is able to help them as much as they can. I would be absolutely devastated if I just build a house and found out that if I live there I or my family could become very sick.