r/radon

Location : Ohio

48 hour test had average of 6.4

Partially finished basement with crawlspace that has builder’s moisture barrier

We have gotten 2 different quotes so far of $3300 and $3100 each with 3 extraction points. We are a little sticker shocked because all our research said it was about 1-2k.

Both companies said the price is high because of the sub-membrane they have to install to create the suction (the pump is 1500 and the membrane is about 1500).

Is this accurate? Should we continue to get more quotes?

Our inspector pushed the radon test hard. We said ok but then the results came back high and now we need a mitigation system. I’m wondering if they just wanted extra money or if it’s legit. The test device looked kinda cheap too.

Edit: I did the math, since it's something I'm reasonably good at, and it's far more clear than 'probably fine', 'not the worst', and other subjective summaries. Based on the lifetime risk matrix, which shows about a 0.1% chance for non-smokers to get lung cancer over a lifetime exposure of 70 years at 6 pCi/L, that translates to about 0.0014% added chance per -year- of exposure. A few weeks is something like 0.0001%

SE Wisconsin. We've been getting utterly dumped on with rain and the ground is super saturated. The area under my slab got way more saturated than it ever has before due to a pump not getting power for a day or so, and even caused some small puddles under my carpet (terrible idea by former owner) that are now dry. The unfinished part of the slab is very slowly drying out, even with two dehumidifiers running (finished + unfinished space).

My pCi/L which has stayed very consistently between 0.3 and 1.0 in the basement for 99.99% of the last few years but is currently reading about 6.0 on the first floor for the last few days. Opening windows for a couple hours gets the pCi down to safer levels and then it creeps back up over night when they're closed. My radon system is currently reading about 2 on the manometer when its normally closer to 1.

I know this should go back to normal once it can finally dry out... but it's April. Does anyone have any experience in how long to expect this to take? The technician in this post said late summer, but I don't trust that perspective coming from someone trying to make a sale.

Furthermore, I also see posts (again, from someone trying to make a sale, i think) talking about groundwater being able to permanently change the geology under your slab so that re-mitigation is necessary... I have little kids, and I don't want them breathing in toxic air for months while I 'wait it out' to see.

I can call the company that did the mitigation years ago, but I expect them to use fear tactics to make a sale as well.

Will be sleeping in basement bedroom in new house. Even though 48h readings came back around 1.8, still want to be safe and see if it’s a real concern with a longer term test.

We will mitigate if we have to but I’m wondering if for anyone with an open sump pump hole in the basement - did sealing that reduce levels on its own? I think our basement level is around 8 (redoing tests now with a longer term one) and upstairs around 4 (lower when windows are open).

I’d feel better if it were under 2 upstairs with windows closed. Up to 4 in basement. With those goals is it reasonable a seal job could do the trick? Anyone have experience? Ty!

My non-smoker mom just got diagnosed with lung cancer, so of course I went into Google hell spiral and now I’m here. My partner and I just moved into a home a little a year and a half ago and don’t plan for this to be a forever home. We tentatively plan to move in about 4 years. Would it be worth it to invest in a radon mitigation system or should we save that for a longer-term home? We haven’t tested the levels yet, so is there a certain level where this is a no-brainer? Is it a no-brainer in general? I live in Las Vegas, if that changes anything.

It’s been years since I’ve lived with in my parents’ house, but we moved into that house when I was a teen and I lived there for 6 years before moving out, so I had been exposed to whatever amount that was potentially in that house for that long (I’m 30 now so that was a long time ago). Idk if this is something that builds up and just stays in your body even after you move away? (But who knows how much I’ve been exposed to in all the places I’ve lived since then.)

I also know that it’s probably not ~super~ expensive to do this, but it would still cost a bit of a chunk, and all the little updates/projects that we’ve been doing for our small, temporary home add up.

I figured that any lessened risk, even temporarily, can be worth it? But I also don’t want to jump the gun because of a Google spiral.

Thanks in advance for any wisdom/advice!

My Airconditioning and ductwork’s work runs through my crawl space that is dirt floor. We do have radon present. Could the AC be pumping it directly through the vents?

I recently professionally encapsulated my crawlspace and later installed a Radon system (RadonAway RP145) for radon and terrible crawlspace soil gas odor post-encapsulation. It’s helped significantly, but I still have an odor in the room furthest from the fan. My radon levels are low (usually under 0.5), but the smell correlates with the minor spikes in that room (0.6 to 1+).

The house is a two story colonial with hard clay soil. The fan pulls from the garage slab and the crawlspace. I think the garage slab is "stealing" all the suction, leaving no vacuum for the far end of the house where the smell is. My manometer shows 0.5”.

I want to DIY swap the RP145 for a more powerful RP265 to avoid having contractors back inside the house (immunosuppressed family member).

What should I be worried about besides backdrafting? I know how to test the gas water heater in the garage for backdrafting with a smoke pen, but are there other risks to "over-fanning" a house? The garage water heater shares a chimney with a gas furnace there. The other gas furnace is on the attic. No other gas appliances.

Does a fan upgrade actually work for localized odors, or is a second suction point from my original fan to the further location the only real cure?