In response to concerns regarding problems with homes constructed with drywall imported into the U.S. from China between 2004 and 2008, on April 23, 2009 NAHB’s Senior Officers approved an emergency funding request authorizing the Building Product Issues Committee to prepare a Plan of Action to help define the role the Association should play on behalf of the membership.

The Committee and NAHB staff have been working on the emerging technical, media, consumer, legislative, insurance and legal issues, and the Plan will build upon that work.

Some of this drywall is alleged to contain high levels of sulfur and/or other contaminants, which it is emitting or off-gassing.  This Chinese drywall is generating a new wave of litigation against builders and others for personal injury and property damage. The issue has generated national media attention and led to the introduction of the Drywall Safety Act in March 2009, federal legislation that calls on the Consumer Product Safety Commission to work with federal testing labs and the Environmental Protection Agency to determine the level of hazard posed by certain chemicals and as yet unidentified organic compounds in the drywall. The legislation is aimed at initiating a recall and imposing an immediate ban on defective building products from China. The Chinese drywall is likely to be the subject of disputes between insurers and their policyholders.  Little is known about the proper methods for investigating and remediating the drywall, which has led to uncertainty and fear in the minds of many. 

The Plan of Action, which is expected to be completed within the next few weeks, will set forth how NAHB might work with US and Chinese government agencies, and other stakeholders to most effectively investigate the scientific cause of the ill effects that have reportedly been associated with Chinese drywall, such as noxious odors, corroding copper wiring and HVAC coils, and possibly harm to human health and devise an effective and affordable approach to identifying and managing homes with the Chinese drywall, including a remediation method for repairing the defective drywall short of removing and replacing the drywall in the homes in which it has been installed. 

NAHB has created the resources below, which are available at nahb.org, to help you address this issue with consumers and the media; and provide guidance to your members on how to approach this issue with their customers: 

-- Chinese Drywall Media Talking Points

-- Chinese Drywall Q&As

-- Chinese Drywall Customer Relations Overview

Please note: treat the information about the funding request confidentially and feel free to share the documents with members, however, they are an internal NAHB resource and should not be shared with external parties such as reporters. [ return to top ]