What Is Radon?
You cannot see smell or taste radon. But still may be a problem in your home. When you breathe air containing radon, you increase your risk of getting lung cancer. In fact Surgeon General of the United States has warned that radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the United States today. And if you smoke and your home has high radon levels, your risk of lung cancer is specially high.
National Academy Of Science Report On Radon
In February of 1998, the National Academy Of Science (NAS) released its report on radon and lung cancer. The Health Effects Of Exposure To Indoor Radon (the BEIR VI) report that NAS is an independent , non governmental, scientific organization estimates that the radon causes between 15,000 to 22,000 lung cancer deaths in the United States each year and that 12 percent of all lung cancers are linked to radon. the BEIR VI committee (Biological Effect Of Ionizing Radiation) concluded that after smoking, radon is the second leading cause of death due to lung cancer in the United States.
What To Do If Radon Levels Are High
EPA recommends that you take action to reduce your home's indoor radon levels if your radon test result is 4.0 pCi/L (pico-curies per liter) or higher. It is better to correct the radon problems before placing your home on the market because then you have more time to address radon problem. If elevated levels are found during the real estate transaction, the buyer and the seller should discuss the timing and the cost of radon reduction. The cost of making repairs (mitigation) to reduce radon levels depends on how your home was built and other factors. Most homes can be fixed for about the same cost as other common home repairs, like painting or having a new hot water heater installed. The average cost of such mitigation can range from $800.00 to $1500.00.
How To Get Reliable Radon Test Results
Attic to basement Radon Testers is a professional Tester. we are certified, licensed, bonded and insured by the State Of Illinois Emergency Management Agency IEMA. We use only Sun Nuclear Active Device, most modern, continuously upgraded and caliberated for most accurate results. This monitor is placed inside the lowest level of the house (basement). If house also has a crawl space one of these units units are placed in the room above the crawl space for the period of 48 hours. After these units are retrieved the licensed and qualified tester would explain the results in report form. If the result is below 4.0 pCi/L then no action is required but if the result is above 4.0 pCi/L then mitigation is highly recommended.