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Most people find it difficult to understand what Radon is, where it comes from, and how it can affect the air quality in your home. It is a colorless, odorless, inert gas that comes from the natural radioactive decay of radium and uranium found in the soil beneath your house. The amount of Radon in the soil depends on complex soil chemistry that can vary from house to house. Radon is measured in Pico curies (pCi/L) and is everywhere. Even the outside air we breathe has small levels of Radon, about 0.35 pCi/L. Radon levels in the soil can range from a few hundred to several thousands pCi/L. The amount of Radon that escapes from the soil into your house depends on the weather, how porous the soil is, its moisture content, and the air pressure inside your home.
Current scientific thinking believes that Radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer after cigarette smoking. Radon can enter your home through:
- Building materials, including some rocks
- Cracks in concrete slabs
- Exposed crawl spaces
- Floor-wall joists
- Loose fitting pipe penetrations
- Mortar joints
- Open tops of block walls
- Pores and cracks in concrete blocks
- Spaces behind brick veneer walls that rest on uncapped hollow-brick foundation
- Well water from some wells
Let us help you. Have a HomeAdvice™ indoor air quality test done today in your home – it’s simple, easy, and is typically offered at low or no cost to you, the homeowner.
AirAdvice Indoor Air Quality Tips:
You might think caulking the cracks and the openings in the basement floor will stop the radon from entering the house. In reality, it only takes a pin-size hole in the caulking to let all the radon in. It is unlikely that caulking the accessible cracks and joints will permanently seal the openings radon uses to enter your home. But to minimize Radon build-up by sealing cracks in basements and crawl spaces to limit Radon's ability to infiltrate the home.
Find an IAQ expert in your area. They will be able to determine if the your heating and cooling systems are properly sized and functioning at optimum levels.
Interested in what people in your area have experienced with AirAdvice? Learn about people who have had an air quality test and how the results led to improvements in the environment in their homes.