Why Test for Radon Gas?

Do you know what pCi/L stands for?

Answer: picoCuries per liter or pCi/L which is the measure used to determing the level of radiation in homes and buildings and is the measurement used by The Environmental Protection Agency and the Centers for Disease Control to determine safe levels of radon gas in a home or building.

It is recommended that buildings with an indoor radon level at 4 pCi/L or higher be “fixed” meaning that radon abatement measures (or radon mitigation) be undertaken. The only way to know the level of radon in your home or office is to buy a radon test kit and use it to test your home or office.

Short Term and Long Term Radon Tests

There are two ways to test the air in your home for the level of radon gas — short term and long term.

Short-term radon testing is done over a couple days, and the long term radon test is performed from 91 days up to a year. With either, you can do the radon tests yourself or you can employ a certified radon tester.

A good starting point is to buy a short term radon test kit today and to test your home. From this test you will obtain an initial reading of the radon levels. This will tell you if the level of radon you and your family are exposed to is above or below the recommended 4 pCi/L.

Radon Testing — Simple, Easy and Cheap

Find out if your family is at risk or if your indoor air quality is within the recommended limits set forth by The Environmental Protection Agency. The do-it-yourself radon testing method is easy and inexpensive. You purchase a short term radon test kit, use it according to directions, and then mail the exposed samples to a lab. The lab analyzes your samples and sends you the results.

Like I stated earlier, get informed and get your radon test kit today! It’s quick, easy and cheap and so you have no excused not to protect the health and well-being of you and your family.

Remember any radon test that results in a reading above 4 pCi/L puts you and your family at risk!  Get informed and buy a radon test kit today! If your results from your radon test are higher than this 4pCi/L, we highly recommend that you employ the services of a radon mitigation expert in your community.

Radon and Lung Cancer

Radon is estimated to cause about 21,000 lung cancer deaths per year, according to the EPA’s 2003 Assessment of Risks from Radon in Homes. This assessment reinforces EPA’s recommendations on radon that homeowners should still test and fix their homes for radon.

Death by lung cancer from radon exposure exceeds the number of deaths per year due to drunk driving, falls in the home, drownings and home fires!

Radon and Lung Cancer Stories from CanSAR.org

The purpose of the website Cansor.org is to put a face on radon, empowering sufferers of an apparent radon-induced lung cancer (and their families) with a voice.

Here’s just one of the heart-wrenching stories from this informative site:

Joe Linnertz
On Nov. 2, 2005, my husband, Joe had a blood test that showed his liver enzymes where elevated. After more tests on Dec 27, we found that he had lung cancer that had spread to his liver and bones. We asked the doctor what causes lung cancer and he said smoking and radon gas. We didn’t know what radon was and Joe hadn’t smoked for 27 years. Joe died on February 8, 2006

I checked the Internet and saw I could buy a radon test kit at the hardware store. Our home tested 11.2 pCi/L, and we have lived in this house for 18 years. The house has now been mitigated and tests at 1.1 pCi/L.

If we had just known about this silent killer and if someone had told us of its deadly power and how easy it is to test and mitigate, we would have done it. Only a test can determine if you are living in a high level radon environment, and-often-only a test can determine if you are living with early stage cancer.

Joe was a gentle, brave, faithful and courageous man and decided he didn’t want the chemotherapy and would let God take him when He was ready. Joe was my light and my strength.

About 2 or 3 weeks after Joe died, I prayed to God to give me a purpose for my life. I got my answer very quickly. I will dedicate the rest of my life to radon reform and education.

…Gloria Linnertz

Read more stories and explore this valuable site at Cansar.org.

How can people know if they have an elevated level of radon in their homes?

Testing is the only way to know if a person’s home has elevated radon levels. Indoor radon levels are affected by the soil composition under and around the house, and the ease with which radon enters the house. Homes that are next door to each other can have different indoor radon levels, making a neighbor’s test result a poor predictor of radon risk. In addition, precipitation, barometric pressure, and other influences can cause radon levels to vary from month to month or day to day, which is why both short- and long-term tests are available.

Buy your home radon test kit today!

Time and again we are astounded at the significant affect radon gas has on the health of our nation, and yet most people are decidedly unaware of this issue or unwilling to take the simple steps to determine if their home or office has elevated levels of radon gas.

A simple, easy and cheap radon test is the first step to accessing yours and your family’s risk for radon gas exposure.

Radon Gas Facts — Did you know?

If you’re still unsure about the harmful effects of radon gas on you and your family hopefully these radon facts will get your attention and light a fire under you to test your home and office for radon gas.

Radon Facts

• Breathing home indoor radon causes nearly one hundred times more deaths each year than carbon monoxide poisoning.
  
• Radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer behind smoking.
  
• Some 20,000 people will die this year due to breathing too much radon without even knowing it.

What is Radon?

Radon is an invisible radioactive gas that seeps into homes undetected through foundation cracks, and can reach harmful levels if trapped indoors. It travels up from underground sources of uranium in the earth’s crust. EPA estimates that one in 15 homes will have a radon level of four PicoCuries per liter (pCi/L) of air or more, a level the agency considers high.

How to Prevent Radon Related Health Issues

The radon threat is preventable with some simple steps. In existing homes, families can begin protecting themselves by buying an easy-to-use radon test kit to determine if a high level exists.

A high level of radon gas can be lowered simply with a straight-forward radon venting system installed by a contractor. In new homes, builders can easily and economically include radon-resistant features during construction, and home buyers should ask for these.

EPA also recommends that home buyers ask their builder to test for radon gas before they move in.

Effects of Radon Prevention

Radon preventive actions have saved an estimated 6,000 lives in the last 20 years. EPA has a goal to double that number, to 12,000 lives saved, in the next five years. All Americans can contribute to saving someones life by testing and reducing high levels in existing homes or testing and building radon-resistant new homes

Test your home for radon gas!

Radon comes from the natural (radioactive) breakdown of uranium in soil, rock and water and gets into the air you breathe. Therefore radon gas is found in the earth and in buildings and is present everywhere in the world.

“Radon poses an easily reducible health risk to populations all over the world, but has not up to now received widespread attention,” said Dr Mike Repacholi, coordinator of WHO’s Radiation and Environmental Health Unit. “Radon is all around us. Radon in our homes is the main source of exposure to ionizing radiation, and accounts for 50% of the public’s exposure to naturally-occurring sources of radiation in many countries.” ~ World Health Organization

Radon can get into any type of building structure - homes, offices, and schools. When this occurs it results in a high radon level, which is detrimental to your health. People are most likely to get their greatest exposure to radon at home, because this is where they spend most of their time.

How Do I Know if Radon Exists in My Home?

Radon is an odorless, colorless and tasteless and the only way to determine if its present in your home, office or school is to test for it. Testing for radon gas is simple, quick and easy. There are two options for testing your home:

1.  Short-term Testing

2.  Long-Term Testing

To determine the radon levels in your home perform a short-term radon test. Simply purchase a radon test kit, following the instructions, and get your radon test results. Radon testing is truly that simple!

EPA Radon Testing Recommendations

The EPA recommends the following testing steps:

Step 1. Take a short-term test. If your radon test result is 4 pCi/L or higher, then

Step 2 - Take a long-term test. If your result is 4 pCi/L or higher, you should

Step 3 - Take immediate action to lower the radon levels in your home.

To learn more about how to lower the radon levels in your home, please reference these free documents available from the EPA:

• Consumer’s Guide to Radon Reduction
• A Citizen’s Guide to Radon

Radon Tests and Radon Mitigation

Please know that radon mitigation costs (the procedure to reduce radon in a home is called radon mitigation) are about the same as a minor home renovation. Your first step, however, is to perform a short term radon test to determine the level of radon in your home, office or school

Order a short-term radon test today! Radon testing is cheap, easy and effective. Remember, radon gas is the 2nd leading cause of lung cancer so take action to ensure that your home, office or schools are free from high levels of radon gas and are environmentally safe.

Radon is estimated to cause about 21,000 lung cancer deaths per year, according to the EPA’s 2003 Assessment of Risks from Radon in Homes. This assessment reinforces EPA’s recommendations on radon that homeowners should still test and fix their homes for radon.

Death by lung cancer from radon exposure exceeds the number of deaths per year from drunk driving, falls in the home, drownings and home fires!

 Lung Cancer in the US Facts

• Approximately 215,000 people are diagnosed with lung cancer in the U.S. each year – over 100,000 women and nearly 115,000 men. This means an American is diagnosed with lung cancer every 2.5 minutes.¹
• Lung cancer kills more than 160,000 people annually – more people than breast, colon and prostate cancers combined.¹
• Lung cancer is responsible for more than 29% of all cancer-related deaths every year

~ Excerpted from Lung Cancer Facts

Radon Health Risks and Lung Cancer

Radon has been classified as a know human carcinogenand has been recognized as a significant health problem by groups such as the Centers for Disease Control, The American Lung Association, the American Medical Association, and the American Public Health Association. Furthermore, risks from in-home radon exposure have been a major concern for the EPT. Read the entire health risk assesment about radon and lung cancer.

Radon Health Risk Solutions

Radon testing is the only way to know if you and your family are at risk from radon. The EPA and the Surgeon General recommend testing all homes below the third floor for radon. The EPA also recommends testing in schools.

Testing for radon is inexpensive and easy - it should only take a few minutes of your time. Millions of Americans have already tested their homes for radon gas levels.

Radon gas comes from the natural, radionactive breaakdown of uranium in the soil. Radon is a cancer-causing, radioactive gas that you can’t see, smell or taste.

What is Uranium

Uranium Ore is more common that gold, silver or mercury

Uranium is a very dense, radioactive metallic element, naturally occurring in most rocks, soil, and even in the ocean! It is not at all rare, and in fact occurs more commonly than gold, silver or mercury.

Where is Radon Found 

Radon can be found all over the US. It can get into any type of building — homes, offices, and schools — and result in a high indoor radon level. Testing radon levels is easy and if your radon level is 4 picocuries per liter (pCi/L) or higher the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) suggest that you take immediate action to mitigate the presence of radon in your home, office or school.

How Does Radon Get into Buildings

There are 5 possible sources of radon and they are the:

1. Ground underneath the structure

2. Building Materials

3. Water Supply

4. Gas Supply, and

5. Outside Air

The most common source of elevated radon levels inside a building are due to the ground underneath the structure. The amount of radon that enters a building from the ground is influenced by four factors including the radon concentration in the soil, permeability of the ground, entry routes into homes and under-pressure of homes. (Excerpted from Radon Guide)

Causes of High Radon Concentration inside a Stucture

High levels of radon occur when the rate of entry of radon into a building exceeds the rate at which the radon is removed or ventilated. Increases ventilation alone does not always decrease the radon levels present in a home. The relationship between the underpressure of a home and the ventilation rate is essential to effective radon mitigation.

Radon was discovered by a German chemist named Friedrich Ernst Dorn in 1900 while studying radium’s decay chain. Originally named niton after the Latin word for shining, “nitens” it has been known as radon since 1923.

Where does Radon Gas Come From?

Radon is produced by the natural disintegration of radium, which is a lustrous, white radioactive element produced by the decay of uranium, and sometimes found in rock or bedrock. 

Effects of Radon

The effects of Radon have been with us for a long time, dating back to the middle ages. Also, Radon has been present in the earth’s crust for billions of years. During that time, however, relatively little was know about Radon or its effects other than that miners were know to die at unusually young ages.

The Study of Radon

It was not until the beginning of the 19th century in the United States that epidemiological studies conclusively demonstrated an unusual incidence of lung cancer among uranium miners. From these finding occupation limits were established for radon concentrations in uranium mines.

The danger of radon exposure in dwellings was discovered in 1984 by Stanley Watras, an employee at the Limerick nuclear power plant in Pennsylvania. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania began testing homes for radon and found elevated levels of radon in them as well.

Radon Regulation

Regulations set by the Environmental Protection Agency state that the amount of radon in the air is measured in “picocuries of radon per liter of air,” or “pCi/L.” Sometimes test results are expressed in Working Levels, “WL,” rather than picocuries per liter of air. A level of 0.016 WL is usually equal to about 4 pCi/L in a typical home.

The U.S. Congress has set a long-term goal that indoor radon levels be no more than outdoor levels; about 0.4 pCi/L of radon is normally found in the outside air. EPA recommends fixing your home if the results one long-term test or the average of two short-term tests show radon levels of 4 pCi/L (or 0.016 WL) or higher. With today’s technology, radon levels in most homes can be reduced to 2 pCi/L or below. You may also want to consider fixing if the level is between 2 and 4 pCi/L.

An estimated one out of every 15 homes in the United States has radon levels above 4pci/L. To determine if your home has elevated levels of radon gas all you need to do is peform a simple test for radon. If the test shows that your home has a radon gas level at or above the 4pci/L the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency recommends you take steps to clear radon gas from your home.

Radon Gas Fact #2 Indoor Air Pollution as High as FIVE Times Worse that Outdoor Air

Johns Hopkins` Bloomberg School of Public Health found that in many cases, the level of indoor pollution was twice that of outdoor (some studies claim as much as 5 times higher) and that the presence of these elevated levels of pollution significantly increased asthma symptoms in the children being studied. Elevated levels of radon are a major factor in poor indoor air quality. Test your home for radon.

Radon Gas Fact #3 Unlike Outdoor Air Quality, Indoor Air Quality is Not Regulated

It is alarming that radon is the cause of more deaths annual than drunk drivers, yet no regulations currently exist for indoor air quality, not even in schools or day care facilities!

Radon Gas Fact #4 Improving Indoor Air Quality is Simple

The good news is that indoor air pollution is infinitely more controllable than outdoor air pollution. Radon testing is the only way to know if you and your family are at risk from radon. Testing for radon is inexpensive and easy - it should only take a few minutes of your time.