Communities With Chinese Drywall Share Stories of Relief

VERO BEACH, Fla., March 17 /PRNewswire/ -- Several residents in the Antilles community of Vero Beach, Florida, whose homes were built with contaminated drywall, have recently had their homes decontaminated using Sabre Environmental Services LLC's patented treatment process.

Homeowners, who have used this solution to permanently solve their Chinese drywall problem, opened their homes and welcomed neighbors, builders, real estate agents, and many others at an open house and technology demonstration held on Wednesday, March 10, 2010.

Sabre was invited to the open forum to answer all questions related to the science and technology used and homeowners had an opportunity to share their stories of relief.

K. Morgan, an Antilles homeowner, told the group:  "This was a big problem.  And this is a company that knows how to solve big problems with science.  My wife and I looked closely at the alternative of ripping it out.  We want our neighbors to know -- we want our community to know -- that there is a much better solution.  We are recently back in our home and this nightmare is behind us."

Families in Florida and Louisiana spent this past Christmas in a Sabre-treated home free from both the cause and symptoms of contaminated "Chinese Drywall".   Treatments were completed in less than ten days and required no deconstruction. 

Company Background

Sabre is the recognized world leader in the decontamination of structures, best known for the successful treatment on behalf of the US Government of every building contaminated by Anthrax in the 2001 attacks, including the Hart Senate Office Building, the two contaminated Post Office Distribution Centers and several other buildings.  In 2005, chlorine dioxide, as applied using Sabre's process, was determined to be "the standard for the decontamination of buildings" by the National Academy of Sciences.  After Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the Sabre process was used to completely eliminate pervasive mold contamination in hundreds of structures.  Now it is being applied to eliminate problems associated with Chinese Drywall.

"We are a science-based company and our technology has been used to solve critical problems, from anthrax to viruses to mold," said John Mason, Chairman of Sabre.  "Last year, we were asked to apply our technology to solve the Chinese drywall problem.  As is the case with mold, when we treat a building there is no need to destroy, remove and replace walls and fixtures.  Our work saves homes, as well as a significant amount of time and money."  

"Give Forward" Program Offers Hope

John went on to announce Sabre's program to Give Forward to communities affected by Chinese drywall, saying, "Sabre has a long history of 'giving forward' to both local communities and areas of need around the world.  While in New Orleans after the hurricanes, we donated our time, expertise and technology, which is under a US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-approved registration, to restoring churches, museums, fire stations and other structures contaminated with mold for not-for profit and community-focused organizations, significantly reducing the time and cost that would have been required with removal and replacement of drywall and other building materials.  By helping restore community buildings, we help accelerate the restoration of the community and offer hope.  Recognizing that the problems associated with Chinese drywall extend to these kinds of vital organizations, we are committed to donating the remediation of 10 community-oriented structures in 2010.  As we did after Katrina, we will focus on structures that can help accelerate the ability of communities to move past this devastating problem, such as community centers.  As a thank you to the Antilles community for their compassion and welcoming approach to members of our team, we will donate the treatment of the contaminated community center at Antilles."

The Science Behind the Solution

The Sabre Process

Sabre's gas technology was initially used in structures to eliminate anthrax contamination from the Hart Senate Office Building and many other buildings.  Since that time, Sabre has successfully treated hundreds of large structures for pervasive mold, pathogens, viruses and other conditions, including an 8 million cubic foot pharmaceutical manufacturing facility, and a 1760-room, 425,000 square foot hospital in southern California, which was repopulated with patients and staff a few days after the treatment.  Sabre has treated shopping centers, office buildings, restaurants, churches, condominiums and individual homes, providing a permanent solution to the critical problems plaguing those structures.  Sabre has never had to re-treat a structure -- when it solves the problem, it is solved and does not come back.

A Solution to Problem Drywall

In homes built with Chinese drywall and exposed to temperature and relative humidity conditions common in Florida, Louisiana and other areas in the southeastern US, the drywall has been identified as the source of problematic gases which give off a characteristic smell and cause blackening or tarnishing of copper and corrosion of air conditioning coils. The drywall releases a variety of reduced sulfur gases, in particular hydrogen sulfide, carbonyl sulfide and carbon disulfide.

Chlorine dioxide has been used for over fifty years to eliminate sulfur compounds and their causes in a variety of industries.  Chlorine dioxide is a gas that penetrates into building materials and wall cavities, reacting with reduced sulfur compounds instantaneously, converting them to safe, inert, non-odorous compounds.  During the process, the home is tented and chlorine dioxide is introduced using Sabre's technology and equipment.  Temperature, humidity and the concentrations of gas are adjusted and monitored, and held for a period of approximately 8 to 10 hours.  After treatment, the chlorine dioxide gas is completely removed from the home and leaves no residual toxicity.  All Chinese drywall has bacteria in the gypsum core.  Sabre tests the drywall before treatment to show the presence of the bacteria and uses it as a marker to demonstrate the penetration of chlorine dioxide into the drywall gypsum core.   After the treatment, Sabre takes samples again and shows that the marker bacteria are all dead within the drywall.  This confirms that chlorine dioxide penetrated completely through the material, destroying all of the pathways for Chinese drywall effects including chemical contaminants that could cause these effects.  

Sabre's process using chlorine dioxide permanently converts Chinese drywall to normal drywall.  This process allows residents to reoccupy their homes in approximately one week from start to finish.

About The Sabre Companies LLC

The Sabre Companies are technology and service companies specializing in solving problems and developing solutions related to biological and chemical contamination and pollution. The Companies' numerous patents on chlorine dioxide generation and process applications allow them to provide unique solutions to many industries.  For additional information, see www.thesabrecompanies.com.

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John Mason

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SOURCE Sabre