Air Intruders: How Radon Sneaks into Your Home and Why Radon Testing Matters?

As you might imagine, radon testing and mitigation is very important not only to me but also to my clients. Radon is an odorless, colorless, and tasteless radioactive gas that can accumulate in homes. While you won’t notice radon right away, it poses a long-term danger in the form of lung damage, including lung cancer.

In this article, I want to tackle the three reasons on why radon testing is important:

Radon can happen anywhere
Radon testing is vital to a healthy home
Radon testing has health and financial benefits

If you’re interested in learning more about radon testing and mitigation, keep reading!

Radon is an issue in every state and in homes of every type and every age. It’s a common issue in Connecticut. The EPA has developed a map showing that the southern half of the state is more likely to be impacted by radon. However, this doesn’t mean that those in northern Connecticut or those in other states aren’t at risk; radon can happen anywhere.

Radon generally enters a home through cracks in the foundation. These don’t necessarily come from aging homes or those in poor condition; gaps letting in radon can include construction joints, the spaces around pipes and utility lines, or even sump pumps.

In some cases, water can be a source of radon. This is often the case when there’s a private well on the property, as the groundwater comes in through the faucet and then is released into the air from showering, washing dishes, and other activities involving hot water.

As I mentioned earlier, radon gas is undetectable by the human eyes and nose. You wouldn’t have any idea that you have high radon levels in your home without having radon testing done. Unfortunately, the risk of developing lung cancer is too great to ignore the threat of radon.

There are three types of radon testing that can outline your risk:

Short-term testing provides a snapshot of radon levels over a period of a few days, in most cases. This is good for an initial test to see whether you need more comprehensive testing.
Long-term testing can be done if your levels were borderline. This usually lasts a few weeks or months, and it offers a more accurate estimate of radon levels because it can span different seasons.
Continuous radon monitoring can be done if you want regular feedback on the radon levels in the home. If the levels spike during certain weather conditions, such as on a rainy day, this might be something you would want to explore.

Any of these, when looked at by a radon specialist, can help you determine whether you need radon mitigation.

The Environmental Protection Agency recommends having a radon test repeated every two years. This is important to ensure the system is still functioning as it’s supposed to. It can also serve as an early detection of mild malfunctions; if your radon levels are slowly going up, this would require some detective work to find out what the problem is.

Even more important, though, is that checking the radon levels in a home, whether or not there is a radon mitigation system in place, is an important safeguard for you and your family. Cumulative effects of radon exposure can lead to serious health effects, including lung cancer. The peace of mind knowing your system is working correctly and keeping your family safe is invaluable.

If you do have moderate to high radon levels, which are defined as 2 pCi/L to 4 pCi/L or higher, it’s in your best interest to have radon mitigation performed. There are a few different systems that I or a member of my team can explain to you, depending on the specifics of your home. The most common way to solve the problem is to create a vacuum that will prevent radon from entering your home. The system will also work to help vent radon gas that does enter the home.

Aside from protecting you and your family from future health problems, radon mitigation can also offer a financial benefit. If you’re planning to sell your home in the future, having a radon mitigation system can help avoid challenges. Most homebuyers, particularly those in our area, do want a radon test done, and if there’s already a system keeping the radon under control, that can help sell the home more quickly.