Information about Radon:

Introduction
What Is Radon?
A Short History of Radon
What Does Radon Look Like And Where Is It Found?
The Radioactive Series and Different Types of Radiation
How Does Radon Enter A Building?
How Does Radon Enter the Body?
Why Is Radon Dangerous?
Do Legal Limits Exist?
Who Is Most At Risk?
When Should I Be Most Concerned About Radon?
What Factors Can Affect Test Results?
A Brief Explanation of the Units of Measurement
What Should I Do If Radon Is In My Home?
What Can I Do Myself?
Some Facts About the Radon Abatement Industry
Recent Controversies About Radon
Types of Radiation
Is Gamma Radiation Dangerous?
What Should I Do If There Are Radionuclides Which Emit Gamma Radiation In My Home?

HOW WE TEST FOR RADON

Introduction
Test screening performed by Home Safety Inspections will help you determine whether the air in your home contains radon, a radioactive gas normally produced in nature. Since radon is an EPA listed “Group A” carcinogen, proven to cause cancer in humans, and believed to be the second-leading cause of lung cancer in America today, it is important for you to understand the substance you are dealing with: how it can enter your home, how it can be measured, what levels are considered unhealthy, and who is most at risk from exposure. This guide also discusses other subjects which may be of interest, such as various methods used to abate and mitigate (eliminate or reduce) radon levels in schools and homes, and how to find organizations to which you might want to turn if you have additional questions or concerns.



What Is Radon?
Radon is a radioactive gas. It is invisible, tasteless, odorless and chemically inert. Radon is produced during the breakdown (radioactive decay) of radium, which can be found in some soils, rocks and bedrocks. The breakdown of radium, and subsequent release of radon and radon decay products such as bismuth, polonium and lead, is an example of “natural” radioactivity. (Artificial radioactivity occurs when products are released and elements changed into other elements because they are being bombarded with electrons, protons, or neutrons.) Radon gas may be found in indoor or outdoor air, and in drinking water or other water. According to the EPA, radon may be in as many as one in five American homes, Since the biological effects caused by radon can be the same as the biological effects caused by other forms of radiation, such as the radiation from nuclear power plants, it is important to understand and limit your exposure. However, since radon gas is so prevalent in certain areas, limiting ones exposure can be difficult. According to “The Harvard Health Letter” of January 1991, as much as 55% of the total human exposure of ionizing radiation may come from radon. Exposure to airborne radon and its decay products is known to cause lung cancer in humans. Exposure to radon in drinking water has been accused of increasing the incidence of gastrointestinal diseases, including stomach and other cancers. Radon may enter a home's air supply from the ground below, or may enter a home's air supply from the home's water. According to radon scientists such as W.A. Mills, up to 5,000 deaths a year can be attributed to radon in drinking water from private wells. And, according to a report presented at the EPA international radon symposium held in Atlanta, Georgia in February 1990, (Schmidt A, et al "EPA's approach to assessment of radon risk” ), there are between 21,000 and 40,000 deaths a year that can be attributed to radon. The Federal Register (Volume 56 No.138; July 18,1991) indicates that radon in homes account for (as many as) 40,000 lung cancer deaths annually. That's almost one person every 20 minutes. Based on these figures: · Radon kills more Americans each year than handguns (handgun deaths = 17,000 according to Porter Consultants, Inc., of Ardmor, Pa.) · Radon kills more Americans each year than drunk driving (drunk driving related deaths = 25,000 in 1989 according to the Mothers Against Drunk Driving). · Radon killed more Americans than AIDS. (Aids related deaths in 1989 = 19,161 according to the Center of Disease Control (CDC), Atlanta, Ga.)

What can Radon do to you?

Radon gas contains radioactive particles which get trapped in your lungs every time you take a breath. As these particles break down, they release bursts of radiation that damage or destroy lung tissue and cause lung cancer, and long-term exposure may even cause death.

Do you have any of the following in your home?

• Cinder-block, brick or rock wall
• Exposed soil in the basement or foundation
• Cracks in the basement wall or foundation
• An open sump pump hole or floor drain
• Spaces between walls and floors
• Exposed pipes or loose pipe fittings

If you answered YES to any of the above questions, then you could be breathing in this deadly radioactive gas.



What Are The Risks?

It is estimated that radon kills between 5,000 and 30,000 people each year. Nearly 1 in 15 homes are estimated to have elevated levels of radon. Radon gas is the #1 cause of lung cancer in non-smokers. Radon can show up in any home or office. You may have radon in your home or office even if your neighbor does not. The risk of developing lung cancer from Radon exposure can increase depending on:
1.       the level of radon in your home or office;
2.       the amount of time you have spent exposed to radon;
3.       whether you are a smoker or have ever been exposed to tobacco smoke.Smokers Beware!

Cigarette smokers who have radon concentrations of 10pCi/L or higher increase their chance of developing lung cancer by as much as 18 times or 1800%.

How Does Radon Get Into A Home Or Office?

The greatest concentration of radon is usually found in the lowest level of homes or offices. This is because radon is found in the soil and rocks beneath the foundation. If you have dirt floors in the basement, cracks in the foundation, or openings from a sump pump hole or drain, radon is likely to build up quicker and in higher concentrations. Radon can also enter your home or office through your water supply (i.e. shower, dishwasher, washing machine, etc.). If your home or office uses well water, we suggest testing.



Protection...Testing Is The First Line Of Defense!

To find out if radon gas is a problem in a home or office, a radon test conducted!  Our Radon Gas Testing is accurate and reliable for checking the level of radon gas in a home or office. Our test employs side-by-side testing in order to get the most accurate and reliable results.

Radon Is Measured In Picocuries Per Liter (pCi/L)
An acceptable level of radon is 4(pCi/L) or less. If the average of your last test results were higher than 4(pCi/L) it would be recommended that you take some action to reduce the radon level in your home or office.

We recommend that you conduct a radon test every year. Annual testing is the best way to determine whether or not your home or office has the potential for a radon problem.

If Test Results Are High?
Unfortunately, if the initial test results are very high, costs to control your Radon probel could run between $500-$2,500 depending on the seriousness of your problem. We recommend that you start by doing the following:

• Seal or caulk areas of entry such as cracks, holes and openings;
• Keep vents to crawl spaces open;
• Minimize time spent in low areas such as your basement;
• Increase the circulation of outside air into your home or office;
• Discourage cigarette smoking in your home or office.
  
  
  
  

Radon Level	Smokers likely to get lung cancer out of 1,000 exposed to radon over a lifetime	Non-smokers likely to get lung cancer out of 1,000 exposed to radon over a lifetime
20 pCl/L	135	8
10 pCl/L	71	4
8 pCl/L	57	3
4 pCl/L	29	2
2 pCl/L	15	1
1.3 pCl/L	9	less than 1
0.4 pCl/L	3	less than 1

 

In the News
The U.S. Surgeon General, Richard Carmona, Issues New National Health Advisory on Radon On January 13, 2005 the Surgeon General of the United States issued a Health Advisory warning Americans about the health risk from exposure to radon in indoor air.

The Nation’s Chief Physician urged Americans to test their homes to find out how much radon they might be breathing. Dr. Carmona also stressed the need to remedy the problem as soon as possible when the radon level is 4 pCi/L or more. Dr. Carmona noted that more than 20,000 Americans die of radon-related lung cancer each year. You can view the EPA news release and the Surgeon General's press release here.

What the Consumer Federation
Of America says about Radon

A Short History Of Radon
Radon has been present in the earth's crust for billions of years. It is produced by the natural disintegration of radium, which is a lustrous, white radioactive element produced by the decay of uranium, and sometimes found in rock or bedrock. Before radon was discovered to be hazardous to human health, homes in the American West were sometimes built with materials contaminated by the radium from uranium mines. In some rare cases, homes elsewhere were also built from radioactive materials. For example, some homes built in the 1920s in Pennsylvania were found to contain radon-contaminated sand in their plaster, stucco and concrete, The contaminated sand had been furnished free to contractors by a factory which extracted radium 226 from ore in order to treat cancer patients. Clock faces have also sometimes been painted with radium so that people could see the numbers glow in the dark. Radium is still sometimes used to treat cancer, and it is also still occasionally used in luminous paints and varnishes. Radon gas was discovered to be a product of radium in 1902. Marie Curie won the Nobel Prize in 1911 for her research isolating metallic radium. According to Parade Magazine, November 4, 1990, a famous story about radon concerns a house in Boyertown. PA lived in, in 1984, by the Stanley Watras family. At that time, Mr. Watras was working as a construction engineer at the Limerick Nuclear Power Generating Station in Pottstown, Pa. One day he visited the plant's radiation-detection section, and when he stepped into it, his radiation levels were so high he blew out the monitor. A survey showed that every part of his body was contaminated by radiation. This was shocking, especially as he didn't work directly with radiation. He began to wonder whether he'd been exposed to radiation at home. When it became clear that his home was, in fact, contaminated by radon gas, the family moved to a motel, and then rented another house for almost a year. Meanwhile, the Watras house was found to have 4,400 picocuries of radon per liter (pCi/L) of air in the cellar, 3,200 pCi/L in the living room, and about 1,800 pCi/L in each bedroom. (To put these numbers into context, having 4 picocuries of radon per liter of your indoor air is roughly equivalent to receiving 200 chest x-rays per year.) According to Parade Magazine, November 4, 1990, the Philadelphia Electric Co. took on the house as an experiment. Contractors sealed and caulked cracks in the basement, and laid air pipes under the concrete foundation of the house, and on top of the soil, to draw radon off. Then they used fans to further reduce levels of radon gas. These measures reduced the average radon level in the house to 4 picocuries. Stanley Watras began working in the radon mitigation field, and he and his family returned to their original home.



What Does Radon Look Like And Where Is It Found?
You can't see, smell or taste radon, whether in water or air. In outdoor air, radon is generally diluted until it is not much of a threat. Inside, radon can accumulate to unhealthy levels. The amount of radon that accumulates depends on the amount of radon being released by materials below the building, the kind of construction materials and ventilation systems used in the building, as well as the temperature: a heated building in a cold climate may draw in more radon than a building in a warm climate. Since most radon enters the air from soil or rock, the lower rooms in a building are usually at more risk than the rooms higher up. It is also possible for one home to be exposed to high levels of radon while the home directly next door is not. Radon in Water: Some of the first research to measure radon in water was conducted by the Cambridge University water system in 1902. Today, research continues with groundwater in the U.S. In the granite and pegmatite (a type of rock) areas of Maine and New Hampshire, as much as 1,300,000 picocuries per liter of water has been measured, according to studies published in 1976 in the "Proceedings of the Health Physics Society". Usually, however, water contains less radon than this. Generally speaking, certain geographic regions contain higher levels of radon than others. Based upon EPA research (National Inorganics and Radionuclides Survey), there is a correlation between radon concentrations in drinking water (above 1,000 pCi/L) and the following geologic formations: New England mountain ranges, the Adirondack mountains, the Appalachians, the Ozark Plateau, the Black Hills, the Wasatch mountains, Edwards Plateau, the Sierra Nevada mountain range, the Salmon River mountains and Blue mountains.