Have you ever wondered what goes on inside your house when the lights are turned off, when you are out of town, or even when you are sitting down at the kitchen table? This is not referring to the comings and goings of your family, or the latest escapades of your new dog, it is referring to your home being invaded. If you own a home you are at risk for invasion, not by aliens or ants or even cockroaches. Aliens, ants and cockroaches should be the least of your worries if you have never had your home tested for radon. That’s right, radon.

Radon is a colorless and odorless gas that manages to sneak into all buildings including houses, schools and office buildings through cracks in the building foundation, floors, and walls. Sorry folks, but there is no way to predict what the level of radon in your house will be. Radon does not discriminate, it affects mostly everyone whether or not you know it at the time.

The chemistry class at Northern University High received a grant, thanks to the efforts of Dr. Jody Stone, to test homes throughout the Cedar Valley for radon. Students were given questionnaires to all people who were having their home tested for radon, then once the questionnaires were returned each student was given radon test kits to place in the basement or lowest level in the home.

The students collected different types of data, including: foundation type, the year the home was built, the depth of the basement, and how many cracks there were on the walls and floors. The students tested 113 people in the first wave of testing, to get an average radon level of 7.11. 7.11 is higher than the recommended level of radon in a home, which is four. The homes tested in the Cedar Valley are also way above the national average level for radon, which is 1.3.

There is no way to predict the levels of radon in buildings. If you are in a neighborhood and your next door neighbor has a radon level of 3.6 you can’t be assured of a level around 3.6. radon does not selectively pick houses to invade, radon is found in all houses, with varying levels of it.

The year the house was built did not have much of a correlation with how much radon was present. 44 of the houses tested were built before 1950, and had an average radon level of 7.35. 42 of the houses tested were built after 1950, and had an average radon level of 8.45. It was stated earlier that 113 houses were tested, so if you were wondering why only 86 of the houses were included in the data of the average radon level it was because not everyone filled in the year the house was constructed.

The foundation type of a house really had no effect on levels of radon. The 19 houses with a poured concrete foundation had an average radon level of 7.46. The average radon level of the 55 homes with block foundation was 7.76. The last type of foundation with the average found was native rock. Eight homes had a native rock foundation totaling an 8.67 average radon level.

The amount of cracks in floors or walls was a surprisingly big factor in the average radon level. The 36 homes with no cracks in the walls had an average radon level of 8.14. The 13 homes with many cracks in the walls had an average radon level of 5.4, which is significantly lower than the 8.14. If you have a home with many cracks in the walls, do not think that you are automatically going to have less radon than everyone else does, because most likely that will not be true.

The above factors were all things that may or may not have an effect on the levels of radon in your home. You cannot use the samplings above to predict or to tell where your radon level may fall. The only way you can know for sure what radon level your home has is to test.

To get your home tested for radon, you can contact The National Environmental Health Association (NEHA), in care of the National Radon Proficiency Program or the National Radon Safety Board (NRSB). The contact information of these places will be provided at the conclusion of this article.

If you have tested your home, and the results come back at over four, the first step is to correct the problem is to retest your home. If the results come back less than four, or significantly lower than they were the first time it probably means you had a fluke test the first time. If the results are still higher than what you would like them to be you should look into mitigation.

Mitigation is the process used to remove radon gas from a building. There are several ways to go about this, with the most common being Active Soil Depressurization. That is a process where a small hole is cut into your floor and some PVC tubing is inserted. You need a professional to do this, and any other form of mitigation with one exception. The exception is the use of the radon sealant that works similar to a deck sealant. To have your home mitigated you can contact the NEHA or the NRSB to find the location of the mitigation professional nearest to you.

One might ask why testing for radon is so important. The answer to that is a simple one. Radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the world, second only to smoking. Radon can also be detrimental to your health, in other ways besides being a key cause of lung cancer.

Radon should be a top priority on your list. You must remember that there is no way to predict the levels of radon in your house. There is no certain foundation type, and no certain year the house was built that radon affects more than any other. If you forget everything else in here, just remember this: radon doesn’t discriminate, it hates everyone.

The National Radon Safety Board (NRSB)

P.O. Box 703

Athens, TX 75751

Toll Free: (866) 329-3474

Fax: (903) 675-3748

http://www.nrsb.org_exitepa.htm.exitepa.htm

email: info@NRSB.org

The National Environmental Health Association (NEHA)

National Radon Proficiency Program

Administrative Office

P.O. Box 2109

24 Cardinal Ridge Road

Fletcher, NC 28732

Toll Free: (800) 269-4174 or (828) 890-4117

Fax: (828) 890-4161

http://www.radongas.org/_exitepa.htm_exitepa.htm

email: angel@radon.com