Somewhat OT radon mitigation?

Re: Somewhat OT radon mitigation?

mark nowicki

Of course they advise treatment,

there is money to be made.

Re: Somewhat OT radon mitigation?

William Duffield

I have a very old, very leaky house. My shop is in an old, even leakier garage. The only practical way I could improve my situation would be to move away from New Jersey.

Re: Somewhat OT radon mitigation?

John in NM

Ventilate. You can do that yourself, though your heating bill may suffer.

Before you do anything else, do some research. Get independent information on safe exposure levels and how one does a truly scientific test. I would imagine that a legitimate contractor would need to take many samples before giving you a figure and a recommendation.

Re: Somewhat OT radon mitigation?

Barry Irby

Finally, something I know something about. As a Home Inspector, I took training in this and did the testing for a number of years. My training is out dated, but I don't think it's useless.

What level did they say you have?

How old are you and the other occupants.?

How much time do you spend in the area with the Radon?

I start with the statement that I am something of a skeptic.

Generally, the solution is to install a sub-slab suction system for Radon Mitigation.

Basically, that's a pipe that terminates under your slab as an open or perforated pipe and then extends outdoors where it dumps the exhaust air, hopefully including the radon. Most systems include a fan that runs 24/7 to create air flow. The piping is usually 3" PVC. Can be pretty simple.

In new construction they sometimes run the piping from under the slab through the roof without a fan. This may do some good by being a simple relief and may benefit from the "stack effect". Then, if a problem arises you can add a fan to increase the effectiveness.

Hit me up on e-mail if you prefer.

Re: Somewhat OT radon mitigation?

Walter Ahlgrim

How many pCi/L?

How long did the test last?

Is there gravel under you slab?

There is a school of thought that if no smoker or X smokers live in the home the EPA numbers are very conservative.

Walta

Re: Somewhat OT radon mitigation?

Lee Schierer in McKean, PA

This is exactly what was done to my son's house. If Radon has been detected you are obligated by law to disclose it if you go to sell your house. Most informed buyers in radon prone areas will insist on having a radon test done before they will agree to purchase a house.

Lee

Re: Somewhat OT radon mitigation?

Ed Wozniak

The readings in my basement are more than 10 times the recommended level. I plan on putting in a system to fix in on my own. I got two estimates to have it done professionally. $850 and $1200 dollars. Both contractors guaranteed that the levels would meet the recommended levels. The $850 guy was going to put a system in with one hole in the basement floor. If the levels were still too high he would more holes until the proper results were obtained. The $1200 guy was going to start out with two holes and was going to seal around some places where there are protrusions through the basement floor.

From what I have read about radon I get the impression that the recommended levels are pretty arbitrary. Radon is everywhere. If it gets in your lungs under the right circumstances it can cause lung cancer. The lower the level of radon the less likely it is to happen. I live in the Buffalo, NY area. We have clusters of very high radon levels as well as clusters of very high cancer rates. The cancer rates have often been blamed on the terrible industrial pollution that occurred in the past. I've always wondered how much the cancer rates are influenced by the radon levels.

Re: Somewhat OT radon mitigation?

Walter Ahlgrim

40pCi would be a scary number or are they making up their own “recommendation”.

If you are going to install your own system you may be interested in a monitor like this one.

https://www.amazon.com/RD200-Monitor-Detector-Testing-SmartPhone/dp/B01IH7SGCQ/ref=sr_1_7?crid=37WJYP5HECO0&keywords=radon+monitor&qid=1582306347&sprefix=radon+%2Caps%2C226&sr=8-7

Walta

Re: Somewhat OT radon mitigation?

Ed Wozniak

The 40 number was the results I got from using one of the test kits available from Home Depot. The actual reading was 37.6 pCi/L, so I exaggerated a little when I said over 10 times, but it is still right up there. NYS tabulates radon readings in every town in NY. The highest reading in my town is 372.

I took a quick look at the radon monitor you suggested. It looks interesting. I am definitely going to look into it more. If I do go ahead with putting a system in on my own it would be worth having. Thanks for the tip.

Re: Somewhat OT radon mitigation?

Walter Ahlgrim

Before you get to excited how long was the test?

If it was a 3 or 7 day test had you been having heavy rains? They can make the reading spike.

Walta

Re: Somewhat OT radon mitigation?

Ed Wozniak

That was a 5 day test in February 2019 in the basement. In April of 2014 I did a 5 day test on the first floor. That results of that test was 10.5 pCi/L. I don't remember the weather for either of those tests. Before this winter I would have said that it wasn't raining in February, but not any more after this winter. I'm hardly in panic mode since I first started thinking about it in 2014, but I have put it on my list of things to do sometime this year. I think getting some type of measuring device is a good idea though. The one you pointed out looks to be the best performer in the $200 and less price range.

Re: Somewhat OT radon mitigation?

justin_nj

I had a radon issue in my basement where my shop is located. Numbers were high, jumping between 14-16 pCi/L over the course of a 2 week test an electronic radon meter. Other neighbors were getting high levels as well.

The safe level is <4.0 pCi/L. My neighbors who had high levels were dishing out about $1200-$1400 or so to have a power-vent installed. As others stated, this vent goes below the slab into the gravel sub-base and vents out above the roof-line. It helps provide an escape route for the radon. I did my own install and between the equipment and the township permit, my cost was somewhere around $325 or so (16 years ago).

If the OP has low levels (<4.0 pCI/L) you need to make the choice if you want to put in a system. Anything above that, it's recommended you do it and if/when you go to sell your house, it will be one less thing to deal with if they do a radon test.