Swollen Drywall Las Vegas
Drywall that is visibly swollen, soft to the touch, or showing surface deterioration has been fully saturated. Drywall consists of a gypsum core between two paper faces. When gypsum becomes fully saturated with water, the core softens and the paper faces lose their bond. Swollen drywall has lost structural integrity and cannot be dried in place. It needs to come out.
The visual indicators of fully saturated drywall include surface rippling or bubbling of the paper face, a soft or spongy feel when pressed, visible swelling at joints where adjacent panels have expanded against each other, and visible separation of the paper face from the gypsum core at damaged areas. Any of these means the material has been wet long enough that drying it in place is not a viable option. The practical purpose of removing it is to dry the framing and insulation behind it and assess whether mold has established in those materials.
What Is Behind Swollen Drywall
Drywall that has been saturated long enough to swell is almost certainly hosting mold on its paper face and on the paper face of the next drywall panel in the assembly. The insulation behind it is wet. The framing may have surface mold depending on how long the moisture has been present. We assess all of these after removal and provide a scope for remediation of what is found.
What We Do
We remove swollen drywall, assess the framing and insulation, dry everything to IICRC S500 target moisture content, and coordinate reconstruction. We document for insurance. Read more about our water damage restoration service. Call (702) 442-1126.