Drywall or gypsum is the most common building material
in the US today and is used to build interior walls
and ceilings in both houses and commercial buildings.
Drywall is composed of a gypsum core sandwiched between
two paper-based sheets on both sides. Drywall is easy
to build with but looses it's strength when wet. It
goes soft and can be damaged easily, but as long as
it's not kept wet for extended lengths of time it will
normally return to it's prior hardness and strength
prior to being wet. Water damaged drywall needs
to be dried as soon as possible in order to prevent
mold growth.
Most times drywall can be saved but there a various
factors which need to be considered when determining
whether to remove water damaged drywall or dry it in
place.
Wet drywall ceilings that are sagging should always
be removed in order to speed up the drying time of the
materials above it since sagging ceilings can trap excessive
moisture and prevent drying of important structural
members. Even if the sagging drywall ceiling can be
dried efficiently and cost effectively it won’t return
back to a pre-loss condition and will need to be replaced
later anyway. Wet ceiling drywall can also pose a significant
safety issue as it could fall down at any moment, the
best course of action is to remove it as soon as possible.
Insulation found in exterior walls can also be an influencing
factor on whether to remove the water damage drywall
or not. Most times, insulation saturated with water
can take a long time to dry and sometimes it’s more
cost effective to cut out the drywall and remove the
wet insulation. Sometimes the insulation and walls can
be dried with a wall cavity drying system that blows
hot dry air into the wall cavity through small drilled
holes and dries
the wall out from the inside. This should only be
considered in a category one water loss situation and
not in a category two or category three scenario.
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