ENSURE YOUR LOVED ONES' HEALTH WITH A RADON TEST

This Valentine's Day or Love Month, go beyond traditional gifts and show your love by ensuring the safety and health of your family with a radon test. Radon, an invisible, tasteless, and odorless gas, poses a serious threat to indoor air quality and can be found in homes across the country. Testing for radon is crucial to protect your loved ones from potential health risks.

Despite the lack of physical signs, certain factors like unsealed cracks in the foundation of a home or building can increase radon exposure. While the EPA’s map of radon zones provides a guideline, radon testing is imperative regardless of your home's location, age, or sealant status.

Show care for your loved ones by scheduling a radon test with your local National Radon Defense dealer. Our dealers use quality radon monitors for immediate and accurate results, followed by a thorough analysis and discussion of findings. If high radon levels are detected, they’ll work with you as soon as possible to implement a mitigation solution tailored to your home's needs and structure.

WHY NOT MITIGATE FIRST THEN TEST?

Mitigating radon first before testing may not be the best approach for several reasons:

1.    Accuracy: Testing for radon levels before mitigation provides a baseline measurement of radon concentrations in your home. This baseline helps assess the effectiveness of any mitigation efforts undertaken afterward.
2.    Cost-Efficiency: Mitigation systems can be costly to install and maintain. Testing first allows you to determine if mitigation is necessary, saving you money if radon levels are within safe limits.
3.    Effectiveness: Mitigation systems are designed to reduce radon levels, but their effectiveness can vary depending on factors such as home construction and soil composition. Testing before mitigation ensures that the chosen system adequately addresses the radon issue.
4.    Regulatory Compliance: In some areas, testing for radon before mitigation may be required by local regulations or as part of real estate transactions. It's essential to follow these guidelines to ensure compliance and protect occupants' health.
Testing for radon first before mitigation allows for a more informed, practical decision-making process and ensures that mitigation efforts are targeted and effective in reducing radon levels to safe levels.

IS YOUR HOME SAFE FROM HIGH RADON EXPOSURE LEVELS?

Radon testing is the only way of knowing whether there are dangerous levels of radon in your home that could be affecting the health of you and your loved ones. In fact, one out of every 15 homes in the US tests positive for dangerous levels of radon. 

Don’t say a hard ‘yes’ if you’re not even sure or haven’t tested at all.

THE OBVIOUS SIGNS YOU’RE LIVING WITH HIGH RADON LEVELS:

There are certain factors that could increase your exposure and levels - such as where you live and unsealed cracks in or around the foundation. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) developed this Map of Radon Zones to identify areas in the U.S. for high indoor radon levels. It’s used to predict the radon potential for a specific area. Check out your state here.

To name a few:

1.    Health Symptoms: Persistent respiratory issues such as coughing, wheezing, or shortness of breath, particularly in non-smokers, could indicate radon exposure.
2.    Visible Cracks: Noticeable cracks in the walls or floors, especially in the basement or lower levels of the home, may suggest radon intrusion from the ground.
3.    Musty Odors: While radon itself is odorless, its decay products can emit a musty smell. If you detect an unusual odor, it's worth investigating further.
4.    Condensation: Excessive moisture buildup on windows, walls, or other surfaces, especially in poorly ventilated areas, may be a sign of radon infiltration.
5.    Unexplained Illnesses: If multiple occupants in the home experience unexplained illnesses or respiratory issues, radon exposure could be a contributing factor.

If you notice any of these signs, it's essential to test your home for radon to ensure the safety of you and your family.

Although the radon map is a good guideline to show where high levels of radon exposure may be, it truly doesn’t matter where your home is located, if it’s new or old, or unsealed or sealed- you could still have high radon levels in your home, which is why radon testing is imperative.

HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF AND LOVED ONES FROM RADON?

1.    Contact your local National Radon Defense dealer to schedule two quick meetings.
o    First meeting- set up the Continuous Radon Monitor (5 minutes), which is the most accurate short term device. A precise reading will be given in about 48 hours.
o    Second meeting- analyze reading of the monitor and discuss results (10-15 minutes) from the radon mitigation test.
2.    NRD Radon Specialist sets monitor in your home in the appropriate location for accurate results.
o    A specialist will explain proper testing procedures to ensure accurate results and answer any questions you may have about radon.
3.    Discussion of Results
o    Radon Measurement Specialist returns for the second meeting after a minimum of 48 hours after setting the monitor.
o    A specialist will show you the results and determine if your home is safe from radon or not.
4.    Come up with a permanent solution!
o    Hire a radon mitigation contractor if the home has a high level of radon. Although DIY tests are a good option, they are not always 100% reliable. Your safest choice is to contact a radon mitigation specialist who can ensure your test will be more accurate.
o    If your home is radon free, come up with a plan to test for radon every 2 years (as recommended by EPA) or because of these other factors: during alternate seasons, moving into a lower floor of your home, after major home renovations, or when purchasing a new home. We can help set up that plan to keep you and your family safe by radon mitigation.

Take note, working from home is common now and is continuously increasing not only in the U.S. but worldwide! Increased time spent at home is a solid reason to check for radon lingering indoors.

PROTECT YOUR LOVED ONES – DO A RADON TEST!

Always remember that chocolates and flowers are great on any occasion, but the gift of a healthy home is a gift that keeps on giving. It’s a lifetime investment and it’s your health that comes first! Choose National Radon Defense dealers as your trusted radon contractors. They commit to their tagline – Clearing Air, Saving Lives!