What happens to sheetrock?

7/13/2020 (Permalink)

Water damage is a common reason for drywall replacement. Although sheetrock is a lowcost and versatile material, it is not water-resistant. Under certain circumstances, sheetrock can withstand limited amounts of water. If sheetrock needs to be replaced, it should be done by professionals. Replacing sheetrock in a house does not affect the structure of the home and can be done without any consequences. Some examples of different possible scenarios are:

-Minor incidents, which would be if an appliance has a small leak that you noticed quickly. This means the water did not get absorbed into the sheetrock and was wiped dry with absorbent towels. It is important to point a fan at the affected area and run it for at least 24 hours to ensure dryness.

-Heavy soaking, which would be if a room floods and the water has moved into other rooms. In a case like this, the sheetrock would have absorbed a significant amount of water and will likely need to be replaced. Once sheetrock has been penetrated by water and is then dried, the gypsum core loses its ability to be totally solid and will crumble easily. It will be evident that the sheetrock needs to be replaced by signs of sagging, bulging, collapsing, or any other form of warping.

-Mold contamination is occasionally noticeable immediately. In many other cases, mold will not be detectable until a portion of the sheetrock is cut out and examined on both sides. It takes mold 36 to 48 hours to grow and typically appears as dark spotting or blotches on the exterior or interior of the sheetrock. We use Benefect to decontaminate mold if it is only on the surface of the sheetrock. However, once mold has penetrated below the surface into the porous gypsum material, replacement of part or all of the affected panel is usually the most practical recourse.