Anyone with expertise mitigating radon gas?

[Corbet]

This is the monitor I recently purchased. I've seen levels as high as 10 now. It fluctuates. Bridger's bedroom and our family room are in the basement. I don't worry much about summer with windows open and a constant fresh air. But winter is different. The sliding patio door gets used to let the dog out and split firewood but that doesn't do much to exchange any volume of air.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FGD7FCCF?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title&th=1

 

[On the RX]

Curious what a high level is.

The U.S. EPA's recommended action level for radon is 4 picocuries per liter (pCi/L); levels at or above this require mitigation to reduce risk, though there's no known safe level, so lower readings (like 2-4 pCi/L) also warrant action, and homeowners should always aim for the lowest possible levels to reduce lung cancer risk. The average U.S. home is around 1.3 pCi/L, but levels vary and can spike, so testing is crucial.

 

[On the RX]

I just had a estimate yesterday to get a mitigation system installed.

 

[LARGEONE]

I just had a radon system installed in one of my rental properties that had a finished basement. But it did have a crawl space which is a huge source. The radon company was able to install in the crawl space and now the radon level is nearly undetectable. Radon is legit (one of the few things they tell you to be scared of, that actually is scary).

Also...for those of you who have systems, please check your fans to ensure they are still pulling vac. My fan quit and I bet it was toast for a year before I noticed it wasn't running any more.

 

[rover67]

My experience:

The fans also fill with silt/leaves/junk and become unbalanced, noisy, and inefficient. Quick maintenance does a lot. I use an Airthings sensor and by DIY'ing a setup in our mtn house it went from 8pCi/L (7 day average, worst case, closed up during a vacation) to undetectable. We had decomposed granite as the base there which was pretty porous so a low pressure (vacuum) system moved a lot of air and did well. All I did was pop a hole in the slab and dig out a few buckets worth of backfill and plumb it to a fan. When we did the addition I laid a french drain pipe under the slab perimeter (inside the footer) in the gravel base/backfill before the slab was poured and pulled a vacuum on that. Our new house has a crawl space and the Previous Professional Homeowner laid down a vapor barrier and plumbed it to pull air from under that. Were getting long term averages in the 2-5 range in the basement so I'll likely need to patch up all the leaks they left in the vapor barrier to improve that and make myself feel better about it. They did do a pretty shoddy job.

It seems like sealing the space between the house and the dirt then pulling a vacuum on that seems to have worked for me so far. I've also had pretty porous soils under the two places so far so moving air is easy. Put a manometer on the plumbing in a place where you'll see it and can check often.... Ours is near the washer drier so it's easy to do a quick check since were around it a lot.

Corbet, I'd seal it up like Mike is saying, bond some heavy plastic down and seal the space so your radon fan can pull the air from the soil and doesn't get fresh air from the hole that was made... assuming you have a fan somewhere already?

 

[Inukshuk]

A friend and neighbor, Jeff Plous, who is a real estate broker just sent this out in his email list. I guess I’ll be testing my house.

***************


Radon might not sound like the most interesting topic for my blurb – but it’s pretty important and proof I learn something new all the time.

When I bought my house, like most of you, I tested for radon. The level came back at around 2.8pCi/L – so I was good. That was back in 2018. Since then I’ve heard that your radon levels can actually change based on the seasons, weather conditions etc. Well, that’s news to me. So, I did a home test the other day. Guess what? My radon level now came back as an average of around 7.7pCi/L – that is WITH a radon mitigation system running. Uh oh.

My favorite radon specialist, Aaron Woodfield with Radon Free Colorado, came over and put some different tests in place to figure out exactly where the radon was coming from. Some areas of my basement tested as high as 17pCi/L. Double uh oh.

He told me that really people should be testing their system every 2 years to make sure it is still operating properly. Shifts in the foundation, basement slab, crawl space vapor barrier, etc can cause radon levels to shift over time. In my case, the original 1950s foundation of my house likely has shifted and I know the crawlspace section in the addition to my house has been messed with. We are hopeful that a few small changes will get my house back to a safe level.

In the United States, the EPA recommends a radon mitigation system be installed whenever the tested level is 4.0pCi/L or higher. It doesn’t stop there though. The more recent language also says that a system should be CONSIDERED if the radon level is over 2.0pCi/L.

How does that compare to other countries though? The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends a reference level of 2.7 and nothing exceeding 8.1. Canada recommends a system above 5.4.

Radon should definitely be taken seriously. It is considered a group 1 cancer risk by the EPA, WHO and IARC. It is the second leading cause of lung cancer overall – just below smoking.

I know, nothing humorous here this week. But I thought a radon system was a radon system and once it tests low you are good for life. Nope. Like everything else in a home, it’s just another system that needs to be maintained properly.

Ahhhh the joys of homeownership

 

[Crash]

What type of testing units are folks using? I used a test kit proved for free by the state that was sent to a Texas lab for results. Since then I’ve seen various hand held units online for not too much moolah. I’m sure some are better than others.

 

[rover67]

I have an older Airthings unit. A few others were recommended above. I like it because I can move it around and get readings from different areas and rooms to get a picture of what’s happening. Not only that but as mentioned previously in the thread time of year, weather, and stuff like doors and windows opening all affect it so having a device that you can monitor is convenient and paints a better picture than the test kits that take an average of a few days in one location. In our old place it was handy for confirmation or the fix. At the new place I’m still understanding the exposure… been checking different rooms and getting long term averages to get a truer picture. Started in daughters room which is upstairs and it has high ish numbers which may seem counterintuitive give it’s elevation. Basement kinda bad (adjacent to crawl), dungeon (slab on grade, pic below) worst so far.

Corbet, was reading your post and see you have a vent. throwing a blower on it might dramatically change things. Use a manometer to see what vacuum you're pulling also.

 

[On the RX]

The system that is getting installed next week will have a monometer plus an alarm if the fan quits with a 2hr delay incase it is just a short power outage. I plan to check the monometer monthly and will be setting a reminder since our teens are occupying the basement.

 

[Corbet]

I’ve been working all week and have not worked on this. Plan to get in there this weekend and take a closer look. It would appear the drain plug on the tub needs to be fixed/replaced. Noticed that the other day as well. You’d think your child would tell you but no. So I might be opening up the plumbing first before sealing this hole back up.

Right now spray foam is my plan. Given my minimal access this seems like the easiest solution. Then I’ll see what that does to my overall reading. I’ll have someone come out to look at some mitigation plans. I have no fan at this time. Just some PVC vent piping the previous owner had installed.

 

[On the RX]

I would consider a flowable fill type material which usually consists of sand, water, and cement. It is similar to mortar or grout and is easier to break into vs concrete and I would assume has a lower porosity than the foam. Maybe not if it produces a closed cell structure. I dont know much about the can o' foam other than it seems easy to use until you put too much in then have to clean it up.
As far as the flowable fill, this is something you could mix up right there then slop it and let it cure.

 

[rover67]

might be hard to get a an of foam sprayed in there all sealed up like but maybe your skills are better than mine.. always seems like that crap wants to pull away from dirty concrete and come out like baby snakes and a big heap of the crap sometimes has a hard time curing. it's nasty getting back into it when it's like that.

 

[Corbet]

Foam seems to be a pretty common solution according to the interwebs. But yah it can be difficult at times and I can't figure out the variable. Sometimes it flows real nice and sometimes is a can of sticky super glue snakes.

 

[Corbet]

Had a Radon guy here today. He will be back in two weeks to seal the hole, sounds like spray foam is the plan after some backfill and prep then install a vent and fan.

 

[DanInDenver]

I finally purchased an Ecosense ecocube and having been monitoring for a few weeks.
The app will do a radon analysis mapping temp, humidity, wind and pressure.
Even though it’s warming here I am starting to get some spikes on levels, though still safe. Appears to coincide with a rise in humidity.

 

[Crash]

I finally purchased an Ecosense ecocube and having been monitoring for a few weeks.
The app will do a radon analysis mapping temp, humidity, wind and pressure.
Even though it’s warming here I am starting to get some spikes on levels, though still safe. Appears to coincide with a rise in humidity.

Makes the single level reading I got with the state supplied test kit seem rather inadequate. At least it was free but now I’m thinking a unit like the Ecosense makes, uh, sense.

 

[Inukshuk]

I ordered and received the Ecosense EQ100 EcoQube, Digital Radon Detector yesterday.
Setup was easy. I wonder now how much China is monitoring my house and internet traffic.
First overnight average is 1.5. The highest individual reading was 1.4. Lowest was 0.7.

 

[Crash]

I ordered and received the Ecosense EQ100 EcoQube, Digital Radon Detector yesterday.
Setup was easy. I wonder now how much China is monitoring my house and internet traffic.
First overnight average is 1.5. The highest individual reading was 1.4. Lowest was 0.7.

Valid questions regarding Chinese monitoring.

 

[On the RX]

For anyone interested, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) has a grant for a free test kit per year per household and may offer some discounts for a mitigation system install or upgrade to low income families with readings exceeding a certain threshold.

Financial assistance to reduce radon in your home | Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment https://share.google/A8JTlCWjurzmbHGOM

Feel free to reach out if you need any assistance interpreting the technical jargon.

 

[Crash]

For anyone interested, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) has a grant for a free test kit per year per household and may offer some discounts for a mitigation system install or upgrade to low income families with readings exceeding a certain threshold.

Financial assistance to reduce radon in your home | Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment https://share.google/A8JTlCWjurzmbHGOM

Feel free to reach out if you need any assistance interpreting the technical jargon.

This is what I did for my initial test. Turn around time was about ten days and the results were a single level number. Now I’d like to do a more thorough test with a box like the one @Inukshuk pictured. Daniel, will you rent yours out when you have a good fix on your levels?