• RamRabbit@lemmy.world
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    3 days ago

    Yeah, this is standard practice everywhere for home buyers.

    If you rent, you should still get a Radon test done in your residence. You can do it yourself, no reason to wait for your landlord (I personally have an AirThings meter but you can also get single-use tests that a cheaper). Anything above 2 pCi/L is concerning and is remediated by regularly refreshing the air in your home; above 4 is cause for installation of a radon mitigation system.

    Basements are particularly vulnerable, as well as first-floor rooms.

    • Dave@lemmy.nz
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      3 days ago

      Yeah, this is standard practice everywhere for home buyers.

      Everywhere? The risk varies significantly by where you are in the world. Where I live, I’ve never heard of anyone getting a radon test. I was aware this was a thing in some countries, but our soils have very little compared to some countries. Our average radon in homes is around 23 Bq/m3 which is around half the average in the US (50Bq/m3), and the EPA suggests action if in the 75-150 range. (Which is quite a range!).

      • jqubed@lemmy.world
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        3 days ago

        Even in my state I don’t think it’s required everywhere. In the mountains and the Piedmont there is a risk although it’s not common, but I think in the coastal plain on the sandy soil it’s uncommon. IIRC for our state the more granite in the ground the higher the risk. Having a crawlspace foundation is also better than a basement or a slab foundation because it gives a space that can easily be ventilated before the gas enters the living space of the home.

        I think I saw a study once that granite countertops may offgas some radon. Maybe there’s not enough granite in the average home to cause concern.

        • Dave@lemmy.nz
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          3 days ago

          Interestingly, the NZ average data rose from 16 to 23 between the 80s and 2016, I wonder if it’s related to the rise in concrete slab houses where raised houses on piles with a crawlspace were previously the primary way houses were built. Granite countertops possibly play a part too.

          • AA5B@lemmy.world
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            1 day ago

            Could easily be better weatherproofing

            One of the reasons I never worried about radon is I live in an older house that leaks lots of air.

    • Tar_Alcaran@sh.itjust.works
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      3 days ago

      Its really only relevant if you live on radon producing rock, like granite.

      2 pCi/L

      Wut? That’s such a weird combination of units for an American system.

    • Tollana1234567@lemmy.today
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      2 days ago

      I had a cousin that had lung cancer’07, found in both lungs, he never smoked, dont have a basement, but hes pratically a WFH/stay at home person all the time, i always suspected it was either the chemicals they used to clean, and radon in that house, but never confirmed it, since there isnt a BASEMENT to begin with and i dont live close to them to ask.

    • hector@lemmy.today
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      3 days ago

      Also, granite countertops and such can leak radon. As there is Uranium in some granite, which is a mix of stone and aluminum and silica and other stuff like uranium.