Image by Eric Schmuttenmaer
Testing your home for radon is extremely important, it doesn’t matter whether your home is new or old. Since radon is a naturally ocurring gas it can exist anywhere, and it can be a problem in any residence, business or building. We recommend testing at least twice a year, once in the summer and another time in the winter. This is because the radon concentration inside a structure can vary depending on certain elements, one of which has to do with the local climate and season.
While we have established that radon testing is important and why it is, we have not discussed the best places to find radon testing equipment. To be perfectly honest, you’re better off hiring a radon mitigation contractor to handle testing and installation of a mitigation system – where it is necessary. However, you can do it all yourself if you’d rather do it that way.
Where to Buy Radon Testing Equipment
The best place to buy radon testing kits is actually online. There are several manufacturers that sell and ship their equipment at a low cost to the consumer. Just a simple web search will turn up plenty of results, but if you’re looking for a more mainstream distributor you can visit Amazon – there are tons available on the platform.
If you’d like to see the different radon testing kits that are available take a look at the comparison chart.
Of course, the next point to keep in mind is that you want to start with a short term test. Short term tests are generally conducted from a period of 7-90 days, where the testing kit is left to sit for that long in order to collect an air sample. If the test results returned from the lab show elevated levels of radon in your home, then you should conduct a follow-up test using a long term kit. Long term kits are left for a period of longer than 90 days and give an accurate reading of the average radon levels in your home. Because the concentration of radon can fluctuate the average is a more pertinent reading of the levels in your home. If the long term results also show elevated radon levels, then you need to take action and have a mitigation system installed as soon as possible.
State Radon Testing Programs
Most states – but not all – have a radon program, and the ones that do sometimes offer free testing kits to homeowners. To find out if there’s a radon program in your state take a look at the National Radon Directory.
If your state does offer free radon testing kits that is the best way to get your hands on one. Generally, there’s no cost to the homeowner and the kits will be shipped to you. You may or may not have to pay shipping to send the test samples into a remote lab, but it is inexpensive.
