U.S. company accused of selling tainted drywall

NEW YORK (CNN) -- It was supposed to be a dream home for the Swidlers of Clermont, Fla., but it turned out to be a nightmare.

Jill Swidler recalls the string of mishaps that eventually became the clue that something was wrong. "The AC went out, the appliances went out, we had jewelry tarnishing and the plumbing fixtures tarnishing, but none of that seemed to be related," she recalls.

The Swidlers had built their home themselves. Michael Swidler, a construction foreman by trade had overseen the building of more than 500 homes in Florida. For his own home, he bought 289 sheets of Toughrock brand drywall, made by Georgia Pacific, at a nearby lumberyard.

In the months after they moved in, however, the couple's air conditioning broke down, and other appliances also faltered. Metal faucets corroded. The fire alarm would go off randomly, copper wires turned black and soot blanketed fixtures. The house smelled of sulfur.

The Swidlers knew about complaints regarding tainted Chinese drywall, which had posed similar problems for homeowners in many states. But their walls were lined with a product made by an American company.

Brian Warwick, who represents the Swidlers in their lawsuit against Georgia Pacific, says the problem with the drywall used in their home, a Georgia Pacific brand called Toughrock, is that its key ingredient is synthetic gypsum -- which contains chemical material scrubbed from the exhaust of coal-fired power plants.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission has an investigation into drywall, with a focus on electrical and fire safety issues in homes and consumer reports of health symptoms. CPSC staff has collected samples of both imported and domestically manufactured drywall and is testing that drywall. The commissioner said in a statement that no conclusions have been reached. A report is expected in the coming weeks.

The Florida Department of Health and the Department of Environmental Protection says the Swidler's home "appears to have the same symptoms as homes containing Chinese drywall" in which state and federal studies have found sulfur.

Georgia Pacific declined to comment on the Swidler's suit. However, the company released this statement: "We are disappointed that they elected to pursue a lawsuit without first informing us of their concerns, ..We stand behind the quality of our products and take customer complaints seriously."

For now, the Swidlers have moved out of their home and into a rental home nearby. They are afraid for the health of their family.