January is Radon Awareness Month and if you do not know the radon level inside your home, now is the best time of year to test your home's level. Reason being, windows and doors are closed during these cold weather months and that is the best way to have a test performed to check the radon levels inside your home.
What is radon you may ask?
It is an invisible gas that comes out of the ground and if it does so under your home, the radon levels can become high inside your home, which in turn, over time can cause lung cancer.
The EPA has guidelines stating what is safe and unsafe. If a test reveals a level that is high, it is strongly advised that an extraction unit be placed in the lowest level of a house to help remove radon and ensure the living space is safe.
But the first step is the most important....testing your home for radon.
Test kits can be purchased at hardware stores like Lowe's and Home Depot.
The test takes 2 to 4 days, with the results being returned in a few weeks.
Or you can hire a radon tester, and as a Realtor, we can recommend a few professional testers.
In this scenario, a professional tester will set up their equipment in your home, leave it there for 2 days, come back and pick up the device and give you results usually that same day.
If you find out your house radon levels are higher than the EPA (environmental protection agency) guidelines, radon mitigation is the next step, which is installing a radon extraction unit in your basement.
Here are a few links to find out more: EPA/Radon, SE PA Radon Measurement Specialist, Map for Radon Concentrations, PA Depart on Radon
The most important thing now is, to take the first step and find out the health of your home in regards to radon.
(Thank you Nina Hollander for this info about January being Radon Awareness Month)
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