Image by SWAT Environmental
We’re constantly encouraging you to test your home and business for the presence of radon, and along with that we give plenty of reasons why. Radon exposure is, after all the second leading cause of lung cancer in the United States. It claims the lives of more than 20,000 each year, resulting directly in one of many fatal forms of lung cancer.
If you have explored our site, then you probably know all of this already. What you rarely get to see is an example of radon testing working out for the best. Since radon is odorless, and invisible the only way to detect its presence is to test the air specifically for it. Many folks do not want to deal with the associated hassle or cost incurred when it comes to radon testing and mitigation, and as such it can be difficult to make people like that see the error of their ways.
Robin Kolec, the owner of Robin’s Family Home Daycare in Chicago, attended a radon seminar through the Lake County Home Daycare Network. During the seminar, participants were educated on the dangers of radon and they were also brought up to speed on all of the latest radon regulations. The law actually requires daycare centers – or homes operating as one – to test for radon at least once every three years. Robin’s daycare actually ended up testing positive for elevated levels of radon, and as such she won mitigation support through the seminar.
Radon Can Enter Any Building
One thing most people don’t realize is that radon can seep into every building including businesses, schools, public areas and even homes. To reiterate, you can even find radon in daycare centers like it was discovered in Robin’s.
Robin spoke up about her experience, and had the following to share:
“Living in my house with my family, of course I was a little surprised and concerned to find that our levels were over the safe limit. I’d heard of radon, but I didn’t know how it could get into your house. I certainly did not know it was the second leading cause of lung cancer.”
Eileen Lowery, the senior director of programs at the Respiratory Health Association, says that mitigation – even after test results show elevated radon levels – is not required by law.
“To apply for new or to renew licenses, daycare providers are required to post the most recent measurable levels of radon for parents and caregivers to see, at this time they’re not required to mitigate. However, we still encourage daycare providers and home owners to contact a licensed professional mitigation [contractor] if tests show that there are unsafe levels of radon in a home. No child’s health should be put at risk when an oftentimes simple home improvement can protect them.”
Radon Mitigation Will Alleviate a Problem
There are many different types of mitigation available, but the right one to implement will depend on the layout of the affected home or structure. One of the most common forms of mitigation makes use of a pipe and fan system working in tandem. The pipe is extended from underneath the home to the outside, and a fan moves the deadly gas from below the home through the ventilation pipe and into the outside air. In addition, the pipe exit must be located above ground level so that others are not affected by concentrated radon that is being ventilated.
Testing and mitigation methods are not expensive, especially when you consider the health benefits of clean air in a residence. Exposure to elevated radon can be detrimental to one’s health, and that is a fact.
Long story short, spend some much needed time to test your residence or business for the presence of radon. Robin Kolec was grateful for the seminar itself and the mitigation help she received as a result.
“I learned a lot, and I know that the parents feel assured that I’m doing what’s necessary to take care of their children.”
