How to Perform Radon Tests when Buying a Home
Radon is a colorless, odorless, tasteless radioactive gas that's formed during the natural breakdown of uranium in soil, rock, and water. Radon exits the ground and can seep into your home through cracks and holes in the foundation. Radon gas can also contaminate well water.
Health officials have determined that radon gas is a carcinogen that can cause lung cancer. Studies show that radon is more of a risk to smokers, but nonsmokers have a slightly elevated chance of developing lung cancer, too. The only way to find out if your house contains radon gas is to perform radon tests.
EPA Radon Studies
The EPA offers a look at what they believe to be the risks of radon at different concentrations for 1,000 people who smoked and were consistently exposed to a certain level of radon during their lifetimes.
Radon Risks for Smokers
With exposure to 10 pCi/L, about 71 would get cancer, equal to 100 times the risk of dying in a home fire.
With exposure to 4 pCi/L, about 29 would get cancer, equal to 100 times the risk of dying in a plane crash.
Radon Risks for Non-Smokers
With exposure to 8 pCi/L, about 3 would get cancer, equal to 10 times the risk of dying in a plane crash.
With exposure to 4 pCi/L, about 2 would get cancer, equal to the risk of drowning.
Acceptable Radon Levels
The Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, recommends you install a system to reduce radon gas in your home if the level of gas is 4 picocuries of radon per liter (pCi/L) or higher.
Facts About Radon Gas
- There are no average radon levels for a specific city, state, or
region.
- Houses without basements are as much at risk of radon
contamination as houses with basements.
- It doesn't matter if your neighbor's radon test was low or high, results for your home may be completely different.
There are two basic types of radon gas testing devices, passive and active.
You can order a radon test kit and set it up yourself or you can hire a professional to perform the test.
Passive Radon Testing Devices
- Do not need power to function.
- Include charcoal canisters, alpha-track detectors, and charcoal liquid scintillation devices that are exposed to the air in your home for a specific amount of time and are then sent to a laboratory for analysis.
- Require power to function.
- Continuously measure and record radon in the air, making radon
spikes and dips more apparent.
- Include continuous working level monitors and continuous radon
monitors.
- May include anti-interference features that reveal if the unit
is moved during testing.
- Generally considered to be more reliable than passive radon
devices.
- Normally used only by home inspectors and air quality professionals.
Long term radon tests take more than 90 days, but provide an accurate picture of the average amount of radon in your home. Since time is an issue, home buyers usually perform short term radon with either an active or passive testing device. Most short term radon tests are completed in 48 to 96 hours.
How To Test for Radon
The EPA recommends that you perform radon tests on the lowest level of the home that could be used for living space without doing renovations.
- Choose a room that is used regularly, but do not use the
kitchen, bathroom, laundry room or a hallway.
- Sometimes two devices are used simultaneously or two 48-hour
tests are done back-to-back to help establish average radon levels
and to verify that devices are working properly.
- Keep windows and doors in the tested room shut except for normal
entry and exit. For tests lasting less than four days, make sure
windows and outside doors are closed for at least 12 hours before
beginning.
- Do not do short term radon tests during times of high humidity,
severe storms, or when winds are high.
- Place the testing device at least 20 inches above the floor so
that it is out of drafts and high humidity and will not be
disturbed.
- Follow the manufacturer's instructions to record starting and ending times. Reseal the tester package and return it to the lab for analysis.
If you use an active device, the tester
will give you instructions about what you should and should not do
during the test.
If Radon Levels Are Too High
About 0.4 pCi/L of radon is found in the outside air and the average
indoor radon level is about 1.3 pCi/L. The EPA recommends you use
mitigation techniques to reduce indoor radon if levels in your home
are above 4 pCi/L (or 0.02 working levels [WL] if your lab uses that
reporting method.)
Buyer's Guide
Tips for First Time Buyers
Buyer Frequently Asked Questions
10 Things Buyers Should Avoid
What To Do First: Buy or Sell?
Making an Offer
Inspections
Simplify the Home Buying Process
Relieving the Stress of Packing
Land Buying Advice
Real Estate Glossary
Facts About Easements
Facts about Radon & Radon Testing
Lead Based Paint Facts & Disclosures
Mold in the Home
Saying "I Do" to First Homes
What is a CMA and Why Do You Need One?
How to Negotiate with Sellers
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