|
Business & Labor
A Growing Problem
Mold, water damage and accompanying litigation hamper building industry
(northwest.construction.com - September 2004 issue)
By Melody
Finnemore
... mold won't grow on plaster. Drywall,
which has a paper backing, is a perfect food source for mold."
Evans said particle board and similar
insulation and sheathing are among the materials that provide
a feast for mold.
"Mold also likes to grow on some
of the new eco-type materials, such as bamboo or cork, because
they are porous and retain water," she added.
Other factors in mold growth are incompatibility
among building materials and the improper installation of
products.
"In order to keep costs down, for
example, the windows may be bid out and the flashing may not
be compatible with the building's exterior," Evans said.
"I have seen, in many cases, instances where the windows
were installed backwards so the flashing is directing water
into the walls instead of away from them."
Sometimes Mother Nature causes the problem.
"There are so many things that
can go wrong during construction that can lead to these types
of problems," Evans said. "Materials may be exposed
to the elements and get wet along the way, from the end of
manufacturing through transportation and delivery to the site.
If they aren't allowed to dry out before they are used, that
moisture gets trapped inside the building,"
Hospitals are particularly vulnerable
because a mold infection can cause serious problems for patients
with lowered immune systems.
Lower Umpqua Hospital in Reedsport,
Ore. spent $1.5 million to repair mold damage to a two-story,
15,000-sq.-ft. medical building.
"We removed the stucco and the
dry rot was pretty extensive," Townsend said. "The
damage was so extensive that it looked like there had been
a fire even though there hadn't been. It doesn't take very
long for the damage to occur. That building was only 5 or
6 years old."
To be sure, the financial impacts are
widespread, particularly when it comes to litigation.
"Darien Loiselle, a construction
litigator and shareholder at Portland's Schwabe Williamson
& Wyatt, said he is seeing more and more mold cases.
"I've handled everything from small
residential structures to large buildings and $10,000 claims
to $10 million claims, so it's a problem that spans a broad
spectrum," he said. "In Oregon we have a lot of
condo developments, so it's going to continue to be an issue
here. I do defense, and I think a lot of this is being cooked
up because we have aggressive claims counselors out there
who are involved in these cases."
Loiselle said, the cost of construction
would continue to rise as more people sue because of mold
and water damage. "It's going to be a big strain on everyone,"
he added. "If you buy a house, you're going to pay more
because the contractor can't get insurance to cover mold and
water damage. And the builder can't get subcontractors because
they can't get coverage."
In fact, insurance coverage that once
cost a contractor $10,000 or $15,000 now costs $150,000 or
$200,000 and doesn't include coverage for mold or water damage,
he added.
"There are a lot of architects,
engineers and contractors who are out there bare," Loiselle
said. "They've said, 'We'll build it for you, but we
don't have insurance.'''
Efforts to improve the quality of construction
practices and building materials will help ease the financial
impacts, as will legislation that limits the litigation of
such cases. However, those measures will solve only part of
the problem.
"That still won't solve the insurance
issue," Loiselle said. "We're going to be dealing
with that for many years to come."
|
