You can’t see, smell or taste it, but it could be a dangerous presence inside your home.
Radon is the leading cause of lung cancer deaths among nonsmokers in the United States, claiming the lives of about 20,000 Americans each year, according to the EPA. In fact, this federal organization and the U.S. Surgeon General urge all Americans to protect their health by testing their homes, schools, and other buildings for radon.
In Missouri, the Department of Health and Senior Services estimates that one in five Missouri homes has an elevated level of radon.
Radon is naturally occurring in the environment, coming from soil and sometimes well water, says Jacqueline Lapine, communications director, Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.
To mitigate this problem, some radon reduction techniques include sealing, home or room pressurization, heat recover ventilation and natural ventilation.
“It typically moves up through the ground to the air above and into your home through cracks and other holes in the foundation,” she says. “Radon can come through cracks in solid floors, cracks in walls, gaps in suspended floors and gaps around service pipes.
“No homes are immune from radon so it is important that people living in new homes, old homes, well-sealed and drafty homes, and homes with or without basements test for radon.”
The EPA recommends homeowners test their homes. Testing is easy and inexpensive. The Department of Health and Senior Services provides free radon test kits that are simple to use. (You can request one by visiting this site: dhss.mo.gov/living/environment/radon/testkit.php.)
The average indoor radon level is estimated to be about 1.3 pCi/L. Experts recommend taking action to decrease the radon level in your home if your first and second tests show a level of 4pCi/L or higher.
During the test, the department recommends the following four steps:
1. Maintain closed-house conditions during the entire time of a short-term test, especially for tests shorter than one week in length.
2. Operate the home's heating and cooling systems normally during the test. For tests lasting less than one week, only operate air conditioning units that re-circulate interior air.
3. Do not disturb the test device at any time during the test.
4. If a radon reduction system is in place, make sure the system is working properly and will be in operation during the entire radon test.
If you don’t trust yourself, feel free to hire someone to test the home. Lapine recommends that they be involved with the National Environmental Health Association National Radon Proficiency Program.
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