The Only Way to Find Out if You Have a Radon Problem is to Test

Fairbanks, Alaska - This is Radon Action Month. Each January, professionals who work with indoor air and naturally occurring radiation raise awareness of the need to test, measure, and mitigate radon. They reach out to residents through social media posts, TV, radio ads, videos and by distributing door hangers.

In Alaska’s effort, we tell folks about resource guides that can be accessed for do-it-yourself  mitigation actions at https://dggs.alaska.gov/webpubs/dggs/ic/text/ic090.pdf. As a part of this outreach, residents can order a free test kit that includes a return envelope and postage attached from the Alaska Department of Natural Resource’s Division of Geophysical and Geological Surveys. 

Who should investigate whether their home is above the EPA’s action level of 4 or more picocuries per liter of room air? Everyone, because Alaska has pockets of subsurface uranium that break down into radon gas. Though it is tasteless, odorless, invisible and doesn’t lead to immediate symptoms, Alaskans should know what radon concentrations are present in home, office or workshop settings.

If the amount of radon in a home is above the action level, it doesn’t mean the home needs immediate mitigation before people can continue to live there. But the EPA suggests creating a plan to seal cracks in concrete slabs, cover dirt crawlspaces with a vapor barrier, and fill voids in basement cinderbrick walls that are sub-terrain outside.

After retesting to see if the high concentrations still exist, there is the invasive option of sub-slab depressurization. The latter often involves cutting the basement slab, pulling out some of the fill underneath and installing a tube chimney, often with an embedded fan. Then assess the radon levels again.

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Sound like it takes a lot of effort or technical knowledge? Not really. The guide we provide at the link above walks through the steps to reduce the radon level in your home. And though some effort is involved, knowing that you and your family are free from breathing in radioactive gases, which can cause cancer, may well be worth it. Radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer, next to tobacco smoke. Though it is the heaviest of the noble gases, it rises into buildings where there are cracks or imperfections in the foundation.

Radon can also exist in water. While the concentration levels of concern are more extreme than those in the air, the radon can separate from water when run through faucets, adding to the overall concentration level.

Art Nash is the UAF Cooperative Extension Energy Specialist and has helped people with radon issues for close to two decades. If you have any questions, contact him on the Alaska Radon Hotline at 1-800-478-TEST or email alnashjr@alaska.edu.