This post is in regards to the question of if you need to do a radon test in your home. Many clients are given mixed opinions about testing for radon and this is to help answer some of those questions.
So, to start… what is radon and why should I care?
The EPA is the authority on radon and I will refer to them several times in this post. Here is how they describe what it is and the risks of it. “Radon Is a Cancer‑Causing, Radioactive Gas. You cannot see, smell, or taste radon. But it still may be a problem in your home. When you breathe air containing radon, you increase your risk of getting lung cancer. In fact, the Surgeon General of the United States has warned that radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the United States today. If you smoke and your home has high radon levels, your risk of lung cancer is especially high.” I think this information makes it clear we need to understand what level of radon is present in our homes.
About one in fifteen homes has elevated radon, and the predictive levels are expected to be elevated in our area, according to the EPA. If you have tested before, the EPA suggests testing every two years. Testing is the ONLY way to tell if you have elevated radon and the EPA states ALL homes should be tested if below the third floor.
In many cases you may be told your circumstances are different but there is a lot of misinformation out there…so lets discuss some of them specifically:
If your home has and old foundation, is built on ledge or has some other similar characteristics you may be told you probably DO have radon. The only way to confirm this is to test! You may be told if you have no basement, such as a crawlspace or slab on grade or a first floor condo unit that you DON’T have elevated radon. The only way to confirm this is to test! You may have been told a house has a radon system present that is working or has been tested in the past and that you DON’T have elevated radon. The only way to confirm this is to test! In conclusion the only way to confirm if your home has an elevated radon level, is to test!
We recommend testing every home and would love to chat more about radon. Contact us anytime to talk more about radon, testing for radon and related topics.