Roof leak, should I replace drywall

[rekabm]

I havd a small roof leak thru the main level into the basement (only noticed during extreme down pours). I am not worried about the basement because the water seemed to only be exiting through a non used, but wired electrical box. so it seems it was just following a wire down. I have since had a new roof installed and the leak is resolved. However, on the main level below where the leak was is a closet in the foyer. There are some paint cracks and bubbled paint there that indicates that some water came through there. I took up the baseborad in the closet, and cut out a small chunk of drywall, and did not notice anything significant. Should I replace the drywall knowing that it got saturated at some point, or would it be OK to just sand it down and re-paint?

Thanks,

[George E. Cawthon]

If all that happened is that it is stained, just prime and paint. The only reason you would replace is for appearance, e.g., a bowed surface being the most common.

[rekabm]

I guess I'm concerned that if the wall got saturated enough to peel/bubble/crack paint, then their might be a good possibility that mold could occur.

[<aemeijers]

If this was an exterior wall, I&#39;d be more concerned about the insulation getting wet/ineffective, and creating a cold spot where condensation is likely to form.

You did the proper thing, fixing the leak first. I&#39;d try the cheapest solution first- scrape, check for mushy spots with an icepick, repair those with mud, paint with Kilz or similar, and monitor it for a few months. If you don&#39;t get any visible bloom, and no cold or mushy spots when you poke at it with your fingers, I wouldn&#39;t worry about it. If it stays dry, any mold that is there will likely stay dormant. And all the scary stories aside, unless you have allergy sufferers in the house, typical household molds (that are present in almost all houses, BTW) are almost never dangerous or even noticed.

aem sends...

[Joseph Meehan]

Once it is dry and you don&#39;t see mold, don&#39;t worry.

[scott21230]

What happens if you push on the wall (not hard) at that point? I mean is the drywall soft?

[rekabm]

No the drywall is not soft at all, but probably was at 1 point when the leak existed as a hook (with weight on it) pulled out of the wall.