Chinese Drywall Update 1/19/2015 Kross Inspectors is called upon every week in order to provide second opinions as to whether a home is positive for containing Chinese Drywall! These assignments are often due to one of two reasons. The first being an inexperienced Inspector erring on the side of caution as he/she sees symptoms they think "could" be from Chinese Drywall. The second reason we are called upon to provide the final answer is that some Inspectors are using technology proven to be unreliable when testing for Chinese Drywall. This entails the use of XRF (X-Ray Fluorescence) devices. Here is a brief breakdown on why Kross Inspectors and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) DO NOT recommend to use XRF devices to make a decision whether a home is positive or negative for containing Problem Drywall: 1. XRF CANNOT detect the known marker of Chinese Drywall, "Orthorhombic Sulfur". XRF devices measure "Strontium", not Orthorhombic Sulfur. 2. In January of 2010, the CPSC issued guidance for identifying homes affected by Problem Drywall. This document suggested the use of XRF as they suspected elevated levels of Strontium may have been the culprit. However, in March 2011, the CPSC retracted this statement as their laboratory studies found that all drywall contains Strontium and the levels do not have an adverse affect or cause the problems associated with Problem Drywall. This final study found that Orthorhombic Sulfur is the element which creates the gases when subjected to higher temperatures and humidity. 3. As the CPSC outlines in the document issued on 3/18/2011, XRF devices often provide "False Positives", therefore creating a panic in home owners or potential buyers. Many homes have been remediated after being falsely identified as being positive! With the average cost to remediate a home being around $50 per square foot, that is a very expensive mistake! 4. The ONLY scientific method recommended by the CPSC and the Joint Federal Task force is gas chamber testing in a laboratory setting. This involves removing a core sample of drywall for shipping to a qualified laboratory. There is NOT any portable device capable of providing instant analysis of drywall for containing orthorhombic sulfur. Kross Inspectors has used this method in order to document false positives provided by XRF Testing. Over 90% of the time, the laboratory test found that the XRF Inspector falsely identified the home as containing Problem Drywall! As the FIRST company to ever perform Chinese Drywall Inspections in late 2008, and having performed over 22,000 of these Inspections since then, Kross Inspectors is the trusted source when it comes to Drywall Inspections! Using an inexperienced Inspector, or even worse, one that uses outdated technology can be costly. As experts in the field, we recommend to ask the following of your Inspector prior to contracting for an Inspection on a home built from 2001 through 2010: 1. Ask which revision of guidance issued by the CPSC the Inspector uses as a basis for his/her Drywall Inspection. If a date quoted earlier than 3/18/2011 is used, the Inspector is not current on public studies issued by the CPSC. 2. Ask if the Inspector uses XRF technology to test the drywall. If he/she does, then rest assured you may be paying for a second Inspection in order to confirm the results of the first. 3. Inquire about the Inspector's experience in Chinese Drywall Inspections. If the Inspector has not performed at least 500 of these Inspections, you may run into the risk of their not being able to determine the difference between homes affected by Problem Drywall vs homes showing visual

symptoms of natural gases circulating in the home (which often look similar, but experience and special equipment can make a final determination). Finally, don't overpay for Inspections! A Chinese Drywall Inspection should cost much less than a typical Home Inspection! Kross Inspectors includes a Chinese Drywall Inspection for FREE with ALL of our Home/Condo Inspections on properties built from 2001 through 2010! Unfortunately, all of our second opinion Inspections behind other Inspectors has caused those Clients to pay double for Inspections!