Owning your own home can be an exciting and challenging time. You’ve finally achieved the American dream that you’ve been working for your entire life. However, along with now owning your own home comes the not so fun task of having to make sure that everything in your home is up to date and going to keep you safe and healthy. One of those problems that could be sneaking up within your home without you even knowing is a radon problem. If you have radon in your home you could have a serious problem that is going to put you at risk for many health problems.
What is radon?
Radon is a radioactive gas that is odorless and colorless. It is produced by decaying uranium and is usually present in very small quantities of the air that we breathe in every day. When radon is in large quantities however, that is when it gets dangerous and can put you and your family at risk for many health problems.
Why is radon a problem?
High exposure to radon has been linked to several cases of lung cancer. When this substance enters your home and gets trapped you end up breathing for too much of it to keep you healthy. In fact it is by 16% that your chance for lung cancer increases if your home has a radon problem.
How does it enter your home?
Radon can enter your home through any cracks in your foundation or any of the surrounding soil being moved around. Since radon is trapped within your walls and found in soil near your home, there are unfortunately many ways to acquire a radon problem within the walls of your home. This is why radon testing is imperative.
What is radon testing?
Radon testing and inspection can be conducted easily. With one simple phone call you can have your home looked at and fixed without too much of a hassle. Local radon testing needs to be conducted so that you can start preparation if any problems arise so that you and your family do not find yourself in the crosshairs of sickness due to something that could have been easily fixed.
There are two different types of radon testing.
Sort term testing
Short-term detectors measure the levels from anywhere between two to 90 days. It simply depends on the device that is used within your home placed there by by professionals who do this for a living and know exactly what they are doing and measuring for.
Long term radon testing
Long-term tests are measured anywhere from 90 days to a full year. These are based on particle tracking to get you the closest and most detailed studying of your home in order to get the best reading. This is usually done when there is suspicious of a large problem being at hand.
How to prepare for a radon test
In order to prepare for a radon test you will need to shut all doors and windows and do your best not to disturb any part of your home prior to the test being conducted so that a clear and concise reading can be taken of the percentage of possible radon in your home. This may even mean leaving your home untouched for a certain amount of time prior to the testing taking place.
Having your home tested for radon is a beneficial matter to you and your family. It is estimated that about 1 in 15 homes within the United States have radon problems that are above EPA standards. In order to protect your family and yourself from any dangers that could come from a radon problem lurking within your home and your walls have your home tested to confirm that there is in fact no problem and you are not putting yourself in the serious danger that could come along with radon testing. If you do find yourself with a problem after radon testing then your next steps should be to follow all directions and get the problem out as quickly as possible to insure that you and your family are safe from harm.