Environmental Hazards

Our job as your professional home inspector choice is to alert you to the extent possible to unknown problems and potential environmental hazards in your current or potential house. Just because some of these hazards are invisible doesn’t mean they call for less vigilance on your part. Ours is a non-invasive visual inspection of your property. While we may be able to alert you to possible problems, our basic inspections are no substitutes for specialized contaminant testing. Ask us to explain our radon inspection services, including referrals, in more detail.

RADON

Radon is a radioactive gaseous element produced in the disintegration of radium, a radioactive metallic element. It cannot be detected by the senses and can be confirmed only by sophisticated instruments and laboratory tests. The gas enters a house through pores and cracks in the concrete or through floorboards of poorly ventilated crawlspaces, especially when wet ground allows the gas to escape easily through the soil and disperse in the atmosphere. Radon is a lung carcinogen: the National Academy of Sciences estimates radon causes some 15,000 to 22,000 lung cancer deaths annually. The U.S. Surgeon General and the EPA recommend all houses be tested for radon. Houses with high radon levels can be easily reduced. [excerpts from U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, “Indoor Radon.”]

Frequently Asked Questions About Radon:

How can radon affect people’s health?

Almost all risk from radon comes from breathing air with radon and its decay products. Radon decay products cause lung cancer. There is no safe level of radon — any exposure poses some risk of cancer. In two 1999 reports, the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) concluded after an exhaustive review that radon in indoor air is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the U.S. after cigarette smoking. The NAS estimated that 15,000-22,000 Americans die every year from radon-related lung cancer.

How do I know if there is radon in my home?

You cannot see, feel, smell, or taste radon. Testing your home is the only way to know if you and your family are at risk from radon. EPA and the Surgeon General recommend testing for radon in all rooms below the third floor. Radon testing is inexpensive and easy-The minimum test with a continous monitor is 48 hours. Millions of Americans have already tested their homes for radon. Various low-cost, do-it-yourself test kits are available through the mail and in hardware stores and other retail outlets. You can also hire a trained contractor to do the testing for you.

What can I do to protect myself and my family from radon?

The first step is to test your home for radon, and have it mitigated if it is at or above EPA’s Action Level of 4 picocuries per liter. You may want to take action if the levels are in the range of 2-4 picocuries per liter. Generally, levels can be brought below 2 pCi/l fairly simply. The best method for reducing radon in your home will depend on how radon enters your home and the design of your home. For example, sealing cracks in floors and walls may help to reduce radon. There are also systems that remove radon from the crawl space or from beneath the concrete floor or basement slab that are effective at keeping radon from entering your home. These systems are simple and don’t require major changes to your home. Other methods may be necessary.

For more information, read the EPA’s A Citizen’s Guide to Radon and How to Find a Qualified Radon Service Professional in Your Area

The above information is provided as a public service by the Environmental Protection Agency for educational purposes.