Should you Test for Radon? Testing is the only way to know if you and your family are at risk from radon. EPA and the Surgeon General recommend testing all homes below the third floor for radon. EPA also recommends testing in schools.
Testing is inexpensive and easy - it should only take a few minutes of your time. Millions of Americans have already tested their homes, schools and work places for radon. A radon problem can be fixed. Radon reduction systems work and they are not costly. Some radon reduction systems can reduce radon levels in your home by up to 99%. Every house, even those with very high levels can be reduced to acceptable levels. New homes can be built with Radon-resistant construction techniques can be effective in preventing radon entry. When installed properly and completely, these simple and inexpensive techniques can help reduce indoor radon levels in homes. Every new home should be tested after occupancy, even if it was built radon-resistant. If radon levels are still in excess of 4 pCi/L, the passive system should be activated by having a qualified mitigator install a vent fan.
Radon is a radioactive gas. It comes from the natural decay of uranium that is found in nearly all soils. It typically moves up through the ground to the air above and into your home through cracks and other holes in the foundation. Your home traps radon inside, where it can build up. How does Radon get into your home? Any home may have a radon problem. This means new and old homes, well-sealed and drafty homes, and homes with or without basements. Concrete cures by passing moisture to the surfaces creating a network of capillaries (pores). Almost half of the water used in poured concrete mix is surplus and has to evaporate. The pores allow a passage way for radon gases, water vapor, and liquid water to enter the basement. Sealing alone will not permanently solve a radon problem.
If you've tested the air in your home and found a radon problem, and your water comes from a well, have your water tested. There are two main sources for the radon in your home's indoor air, the soil and the water supply. Compared to radon entering the home through water, radon entering your home through the soil is usually a much larger risk. The radon in your water supply poses an inhalation risk and an ingestion risk. Research has shown that your risk of lung cancer from breathing radon in air is much larger than your risk of stomach cancer from swallowing water with radon in it. Most of your risk from radon in water comes from radon released into the air when water is used for showering and other household purposes. Radon in your home's water is not usually a problem when its source is surface water. A radon in water problem is more likely when its source is ground water, e.g. a private well or a public water supply system that uses ground water. If you are concerned that radon may be entering your home through the water and your water comes from a public water supply, contact your water supplier. If you've tested your private well and have a radon in water problem, it can be fixed. Your home's water supply can be treated in two ways. Point-of-entry treatment can effectively remove radon from the water before it enters your home. Point-of-use treatment devices remove radon from your water at the tap, but only treat a small portion of the water you use and are not effective in reducing the risk from breathing radon released into the air from all water used in the home. Can high levels of Radon be reduced? A certified or licensed contractor can easily and affordably reduce elevated radon levels. Most techniques prevent radon from entering your home by drawing the radon from below the house and venting it through a pipe to the air above the house where it quickly dilutes. Mitigation can also decrease moisture and other soil gases entering the home, reducing mold, mildew, methane, pesticide gases and other air quality problems. How Does Radon Induce Lung Cancer? If inhaled, airborne radon decay products become deeply lodged or trapped in the lungs, where the alphas radiate and penetrate the cells of the mucous membranes, bronchi, and other pulmonary tissues. The ionizing radiation energy affecting the bronchial epithelial cells is believed to initiate the process of the carcinogenesis. Although, radon-related lung cancers are mainly seen in the upper airways, radon increases the incidence of all histological types of lung cancer, including small cell carcinoma, adenocarcinoma, and squamous cell carcinoma. More is known about the health risk of radon exposure than almost any other human carcinogen. In fact, the University of Iowa College of Public Health recently compiled a bibliography of radon epidemiology research that took 192 pages just to list! These include extensive studies of thousands of underground miners, carried out over more than 50 years worldwide, that have consistently shown an increase in lung cancer occurrence with exposure to radon progeny. Miner studies have produced some interesting findings. For example, at equal cumulative exposures, low exposures in the range of EPA's 4 pCi/L Action Level over longer periods produced greater lung cancer risk that high exposures over short periods. Non-smoking miners were observed to have a significant increased risk, even after controlling for, or in the absence of other mine exposures such as asbestos, silica, diesel fumes, arsenic, chromium, nickel, and ore dust. An added synergic effect between radon exposure and cigarette smoking was also found. The NAS has repeatedly concluded that it is reasonable to extrapolate from the miner data to a residential situation and in doing so, consider that the effective doses per unit of exposure for people in homes is approximately 30% less than for the miners. Residential studies have yielded similar findings. The Iowa Residential Radon Study completed in May of 2000 determined that even at the EPA Action Level of 4 pCi/L, an approximate 50 percent excess lung cancer risk was found among the women in the study after correcting for the impact of smoking. A 2002 residential study conducted in northeast Spain yielded similar results. Even at concentrations far below official guideline levels, the Spanish study found that radon might lead to a 2.5-fold rise in the risk of lung cancer. Exposures of animals further confirm that radon and its progeny cause lung cancer. Health effects observed in animals exposed to radon include lung carcinomas, pulmonary fibrosis, emphysema, and a shortening of life span. The incidence of respiratory tract tumors increased with an increase in cumulative exposure. Exposure to ore dust and diesel fumes simultaneously with radon did not increase the incidence of lung tumors above that produced by radon progeny exposures alone. In a study of rats exposed to radon progeny, it was observed that the risk of lung cancer was elevated at exposure levels similar to those found in homes. How much does a Radon Test Cost?
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