Canadian Association of Radon Scientists and Technologists Helping Canadians Reduce Radon Risk |
So your Home has High Radon Levels…… now what?
No matter how high your radon level is, your home can be mitigated and the radon levels in your home can be reduced.
A Healthy Home is a Mitigated Home!
Radon mitigation can take different forms, depending on a variety of factors. That’s why it’s so important to consult a C-NRPP accredited professional to help with your radon mitigation. These professionals have the training and experience required to ensure that your home is mitigated safely and effectively. It is important to understand that in certain cases, depending on what systems are present in your home, a mitigation system that is not properly installed can lead to other health hazards, such as carbon monoxide poisoning. This is just one of the reasons to always consult a C-NRPP professional.
The most common type of mitigation system is called Active Soil Depressurization (ASD). This system works by sucking air (and therefore the radon) from beneath the foundation of a home and exhausting it outside. Installation of an ASD system generally consists of drilling a hole through the concrete basement floor, and then attaching a pipe so that air can be sucked from the gravel and soil beneath the home. This air is pulled by a fan, and ducted out of the home through more pipe. The entire system is sealed, so that there is no communication between the system and the inside of the home.
With air being constantly pulled from beneath the foundation, the pressure is lowered in the soil immediately beneath and around the home. Any radon gas that is present in the soil will be sucked through the pipe and exhausted outdoors, instead of finding its way into the home.
Once installed, the radon fan will run constantly. Many radon fans are very quiet, and don’t make a noticeable amount of noise in the home. Some fans make more noise, but a C-NRPP certified mitigation professional will help you understand the design considerations and help you to find a solution that works for your home.
After mitigation, many homes have radon levels that are comparable to radon levels in outdoor air. Additional benefits may also be reaped, such as less humidity in the basement, and lower levels of other soil gasses in the home.
Components of an ASD Radon Mitigation System
ASD (active soil depressurization) systems may consist of the following components:
Radon rough-ins are required by the building code in Alberta, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, New Brunswick, the Yukon, Nova Scotia and some areas of Prince Edward Island. The recommendation for a radon rough-in came about in 2011, and was gradually adopted by these provinces. The purpose of including this pipe at the time of construction is to make it easier (and less expensive) for a radon mitigation system to be installed in the home if ever it is required.
Radon Rough-in: Depending on the age of your home and where you are located, there may be a radon rough-in in your basement. The radon rough-in is a section of pipe that sticks up from the basement floor slab, generally with a pipe cap on top.