Medallion Homes, a Bradenton, Florida-based builder, has been added to the list of those firms known to have used Chinese drywall. According to a report on Herald-Tribune.com, Medallion Homes used Chinese drywall manufactured by Knauf Tianjin Plasterboard Ltd. Co. in at least three homes. Just last month, Knauf was named in a massive class action […]
Medallion Homes, a Bradenton, Florida-based builder, has been added to the list of those firms known to have used Chinese drywall. According to a report on Herald-Tribune.com, Medallion Homes used Chinese drywall manufactured by Knauf Tianjin Plasterboard Ltd. Co. in at least three homes.
Just last month, Knauf was named in a massive class action lawsuit that involves nearly 2100 plaintiffs from Florida, Mississippi and Alabama, and 600 other defendants. That lawsuit, and other Chinese drywall lawsuits pending in federal court, were consolidated in a multidistrict litigation in the Eastern District of Louisiana over the summer. The first bellwether trials in the litigation are slated to begin in January.
According to Herald-Tribune.com, Medallion Homes has been building houses in Florida’s Manatee and Sarasota counties for more than 20 years. At least one home in East Manatee’s Country Meadows neighborhood, and two in the Bobcat Trail neighborhood in North Port were built with Knauf drywall. Other developments where Medallion built homes include River Plantation, University Groves, Foxbrook Estates and Gamble Creek Estates, Herald-Tribune.com said.
The owners of the Country Meadows home told Herald-Tribune.com that they started experiencing problems linked to Chinese drywall in 2006, when an air conditioning unit failed. The unit was fixed, but this summer, one family member began suffering health problems, including a sinus infection, bronchitis and pneumonia, which did not resolve even though the victim took prescription drugs for the ailments. After a second air conditioning unit failed, a technician suggested the homeowners have an inspection for Chinese drywall. That inspection turned up the Knauf-made wallboard.
After contacting Medallion via a letter, the homeowners said they were eventually told that the firm would not be taking any action to fix the home, Herald-Tribune.com said. It was then that the family retained a lawyer.
Of the more than 2,700 complaints regarding Chinese drywall made to the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC), most – 1,615 – have come from Florida. Gases emitted from Chinese drywall are being blamed for significant property damage, including damage to HVAC systems, smoke detectors, electrical wiring, metal plumbing components, and other household appliances. These gases also produce a sulfurous odor that permeates homes, and cause metals, including air conditioning coils and even jewelry, to corrode. People living with Chinese drywall have also suffered eye, respiratory and sinus problems that may be linked to the gases.
