Some people were diagnosed with lung cancer, although they never smoked, no one in the family smoked and there was no contact with asbestos. However, after further examination, it was found that their house have abnormal levels of radon, sufficient to trigger the lung cancer. In the United States, radon is the second most common cause of lung cancer. In fact, about seventy percent of houses in Iowa have problems with radon. In the state, radon-induced lung cancer caused 400 deaths each year.
Survivors of lung cancers have taken action to fight radon-induced cancer and urge homeowners to get their houses tested for radon. Obviously, addressing radon problem is much cheaper and easier than treating lung cancer.
According to professional, state-certified radon testers; they can usually fix problems with radon at houses for less than $1,500. But before they fix problem, homeowners should first check whether they do have a problem. They can get radon kits for less than $10 from various hardware stores.
It’s recommended to place these kits above crawl spaces, rooms above the basement and cement slab foundations. The charcoal piece inside the kit collected traces of radon inside the house. After the collection period ends, homeowners can send the kit to a lab for further examination. Results should be available within a few days.
Scientists usually measure radon levels in pCi/L (picoCuries per liter). A home is considered safe if radon levels are below 4 pCi.L and the test should be repeated every two years. If the levels are higher than 4 pCi/L, subsequent short- or long-term tests could be needed. If these tests on average indicate levels higher than 4 pCi/L, it is recommended to perform the mitigation process immediately.
Homeowners shouldn’t stop performing the test even after their homes are indicated to have low levels of radon. They should also share the potential dangers of living in an environment with high levels of radon.
Radon is a dangerous, invisible and odorless radioactive gas that may be emitted by rock and soil under many homes. State-certified radon mitigation services should be able to remove radon out of any house. They typically install a ventilation system that removes the harmful gas out of the interior. After homeowners have their houses mitigated, they always need to make the air constantly moves inside the house. They may run low-powered fans on the wall that blow the air from the bedrooms out of the house.