I"ve never heard of a law to require a detector in the house, but I know when we bought this house and the last one part of the process was having a radon inspection.

 

So, my question is, if this law passes, are there going to be people to come and make sure you have them installed?? Creepy and ridiculous.

 

So, my question is, if this law passes, are there going to be people to come and make sure you have them installed?? Creepy and ridiculous.

I'm not sure, and I don't know that I actually believe this is a law about to be passed. Though I certainly wouldn't have anticipated the Federal government forcing me to buy $50 light bulbs either, so it's not out of the question.

This friend of mine also believes Hillary Clinton is a reptilian alien shapeshifter from the Draco Constellation who consumes human blood for sustenance and is part of a vast conspiracy to breed humans for food.

Strangely enough, the evidence he has presented on that topic is compelling.

 

What do you know about radon? Is it really that big of a threat?

It's been around since our great-great grandparents time and before. How many of those died from lung cancer caused by radon? It's not as big of a risk as they are touting it to be IMO. I've had one person in the family die from lung cancer. She was a 3pk a day smoker. I don't think radon caused her demise.

 

You might want to bookmark this post, as it really is a meta-warning of what is to come if society continues down the same path that it has in the past forty years.

Radon is an absolutely fascinating study in how weak statistics, fear mongering, legislation, industry lobbyists and lack of oversight can result in an industry that effectively does NOTHING positive.

There is not one single documented case of death or illness from household radon. Let me repeat that in case it didn't sink in. There is not one single documented case of death or illness from radon. I've searched high and low. NO doctor is willing to give radon as a primary cause of death. NO oncologist has been willing or able to state and prove that a particular cancer was caused only by radon.

The very best that researchers have been able to come up with it that there is a weak statistical possibility of an increase in cancer rates, based on studies of completely different hazards. IIRC, during the digging I did a few years back on the subject, the numbers that were buried in original research papers were along the lines of eight additional cancer cases per year in the entire U.S. were possible.

In estimating the man hours in installing mitigation systems, the hazards involved in encapsulating crawl spaces and basements, the additional power required to run the constant-on fans - AND the emissions from coal fired power plants that must power them, the sad fact is that mitigation of radon in homes and industry results in MORE illness and death than if nothing had been done at all.

Fear, lobbyists, and bad legislation have created an entire industry that that not only acts as a drain on personal resources, but is actively detrimental to the general health and well-being.

Unless the public stands up and resists, it can only expect more and more bogus science and an eventual determination that life is not possible without the government.

 

It's worth reading up on.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radon

and

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radium_and_radon_in_the_environment#Radon_in_houses

There's a pretty fair part of Central Florida I wouldn't live in a home without one. Other parts not so much.

Radon is responsible for the majority of the public exposure to ionizing radiation. It is often the single largest contributor to an individual's background radiation dose, and is the most variable from location to location. Radon gas from natural sources can accumulate in buildings, especially in confined areas such as attics, and basements. It can also be found in some spring waters and hot springs.[2] Epidemiological evidence shows a clear link between breathing high concentrations of radon and incidence of lung cancer. Thus, radon is considered a significant contaminant that affects indoor air quality worldwide. According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, radon is the second most frequent cause of lung cancer, after cigarette smoking, causing 21,000 lung cancer deaths per year in the United States.[3]

 

Soooooo Bill was part of the breeding program.... that explains his actions...

 

What do you know about radon? Is it really that big of a threat? How can I cheaply check for its presence without one of those test kits (which all seem to be made BY the same people who sell detectors)? And do the actual detectors work? I can field test a smoke detector very easily (by baking) but I don't have a bag full of radon to try these out.

It isn't nearly the threat that many think it is, simply based on statistics. But I am concerned enough to use the test kits. I had an aunt who died from lung cancer at 60 years old; she never smoked or worked with asbestos (the other two big causes) or any other risk factors. They tested her house (where she lived for about 30 years) with test kits and meters and it had "above safe" levels of radon. Far from scientific proof, but enough of an anecdotal correlation for me to justify the minimal expense. I don't know of any way to test for it without the kits, but they're not particularly expensive. And I've read you should only need to test a few times over many years: once when the house is built, five years after that, and every 20 years after that. The idea being, it isn't very likely to start coming into your house if it hasn't been already. Also, if you live in an older home, the risk should be less even if radon is present because you have more fresh air ventilation through cracks and gaps.

 

I am a Illinois licenesed radon mitigator. I am not aware of any new law that requires a radon detector in your home. But detectors are cheap to buy and easy to use. If after testing you have a higher level than is considered safe[ above 4pcl] you can insall a system yourself for a nominal cost. Info can be found on the net and material gotten at Menards or goggle radon mitgation supplies.As for you that think radon gas is BS, the college training I received as a requirement to take the state test says otherwise. I'm not smart enough to debate the PHD's, perhaps you are. For a few bucks you can find out if you have a radon issue and if so take steps to protect your loved ones.If I can answer any of your questions email me at nailbanger49@yahoo.com and I'll give you my phone number.

 

As for you that think radon gas is BS, the college training I received as a requirement to take the state test says otherwise. I'm not smart enough to debate the PHD's, perhaps you are.

Well, it's certainly not a settled issue in the scientific/medical field. The risks have been greatly exaggerated, at least as far as the statistics go. I can debate the Ph.D.s just fine with my M.D. You do realize those Ph.D.s support themselves mainly on government grants to study this stuff, right? If their studies say it's not a big risk, they lose their funding. But I agree on getting your place tested, since it isn't all that expensive and it could possibly save you or a family member from a horrible death.

 

I know someone in this business in Mass...while he sells his clients expensive remedial stuff to abate the gas....his home has a $10 wally fan that is faced to the outside through a cellar window....says people won't believe the problem is that simple to fix,so he makes the bucks they want to spend.........remember ALAR hysteria??

 

I'm guessing this law is brought to you by the same mindset that brought you global warming and the necessity for $40 light bulbs. Be better off requiring bull carp detectors at all statehouses, debates and pretty much anywhere else with a public microphone. Your hardware store sounds like our general store.

 

My D.W. is a PhD. I debate with her all the time.

Let me put the whole issue in perspective. I am much more likely to die from an overdose of bureaucratic BS than I am from Radon. The 20,000 figure is an extrapolation. Give me ONE document where a doctor can DEFINITIVELY say that a homeowner died from Radon. JUST ONE (along with access to the backup documentation). Extraordinary claims demand extraordinary proof.

 

As to the possibility of requiring detectors, let me give you an example. Smoke detectors are required by code in NY. I had to have one on each level of my mother's house to sell it. Plus, recent law requires a carbon monoxide detector. ALL homes are required to get them We do not have a need for one as we have an outside boiler. No sources of heat, other than a small electric heater in the bathroom. I don't mind the smoke detectors, the carbon monoxide is irritating. Radon detectors are highly touted and will probably be next. Enforcement is being forced in new building, remodeling and selling. Course, they do need batterie.

 

Better get a detector for the bunker Ernie. Just to be safe.

 

This is from the Colorado State University Extension website. http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/consumer/09953.html

"Radon is a colorless, odorless, radioactive gas emitted from uranium, a naturally occurring mineral in rocks and soil. Normally, radon rises up through the soil and dissipates in the air outside. Radon becomes a concern, however, when it seeps through openings such as cracks, loose fitting pipes, sump pits, dirt floors, slab joints or block walls and accumulates in the home.

Air pressure inside the home is usually lower than pressure in the soil around the house’s foundation. Because of this difference, the house acts like a vacuum, drawing radon in through foundation cracks and other openings.

Radon has been identified as a risk factor in developing lung cancer because it decays into radioactive particles that can get trapped in the lungs. These particles release bursts of energy that damages lung tissue. It is estimated that radon may be associated with about 21,000 lung cancer deaths per year in the United States, second only to smoking.

The chances of getting lung cancer from radon depend on how much radon is in the home, the amount of time spent in the home and whether a person smokes."

The only state regulation concerning it (that I'm aware of) is that schools must test and keep records of the tests, and labs and mitigation businesses have to be certified. There is also a program for low income homeowners to get helping with the costs of mitigation if they need it.

 

We have a small village a few towns west of here, in a heavy mining area, that is known for radon. People accept it as a fact of life, and accept that it will kill you if you are not conscious of it.

I don't need no gov't agency telling me it's true or scientists "verifying" it, I'll trust the old timers who can reel off a list of folks they believed to have died young from it.
That's enough warning for me. I'm along the lakeshore now (where it's considered safe and I don't have a usable basement) but if I ever buy inland, you can bet I'll have several radon detectors in my house.

However, that would be my CHOICE.

 

WOW its been a long night Ernie typed RADON DETECTOR and me thinking he was making a funny read RACOON DETECTOR glad this shift is bout over LOL

 

I don't know if they're required here, but I think in MN one in three homes have it. Highest in the nation? Yes, radon is a serious health problem. Up here I'd never build a house with a basement.

 

Ohio has no law about Radon other than advising homeowners to test for it and then make some type of remediation if levels are higher than the recommended exposure. I do know that if you are selling a house here, you better have an answer on Radon - either "testing revealed no issue with concentrations and here is the paperwork on it" or "remediation system installed". You'd never get through closing without having either thing done. Buyers are looking for every excuse to get a reduction on the price of the home and Radon has become a bargaining chip.
As for the health effects, the SW part of Ohio rates very high on lung cancer rates. It is continually high despite reduced tobacco consumption. This area is also a hot spot for it, and if it could be an issue in the home I own, I deal with it as I don't want to think that I'm exposing myself to another burden of a carcinogen that "could" give me cancer. All those exposures add up to cancer.
And just because you don't have a basement doesn't make you safe. Slabs crack, Radon comes up through those cracks from the ground, unless you seal every crack you are going to have an exposure to it.

 

"It is estimated that radon may be associated with about 21,000 lung cancer deaths per year in the United States, second only to smoking."

Again, repetition of another website or pamphlet from the EPA. Go back to the original research papers like I did. They are more tentative and much less ----ing.

I am used to this type of stuff. For over forty years I was telling people that I could SEE that some people showed the genetic traits of the Neanderthals and that I was convinced that there was interbreeding before the Neanderthals died out. I had science teachers, professors, and smart people from every walk of life tell me that not only was I wrong, but that I was nuts. Recent genetic marker testing has conclusively proven that I was correct.

I say again. Extreme claims demand extreme proof. SHOW ME ONE documented case of where a homeowner died from the effects of radon in their home, and have the proof to back up that claim. It cannot be done. Miners? Quarry workers? Those involved in professions where radon is extremely common? Absolutely. I have no problem that they would have increased risks of cancer of the lungs. I could stretch that to people who intentionally life in caves.

I would also like to point out that EVERYONE eventually dies. One of the current games seems to be to take the numbers of deaths and claim major health threats. If you have a 90 year old person that dies of lung cancer, almost all of the time that person will have multiple issues and could as easily die from other causes. I forget the exact number, but in dissecting cadavers, one medical book I read instructed that if the student doesn't discover at least (I think the number was 8) life endangering problems in the subject cadaver, that he or she had not done a good dissection.

Radon abatement is a manufactured industry.

 

In the early 80's, we were forced by our town in NJ to re-seal the basement floor with cement, after the town did house-by-house radon inspections. The radon numbers went way down, after the new floor was there, and we used a fan for the basement level, too. ldc

 

Years ago a friend expressed interest in going to one of these spa caves for a dose of radon to try improve his health. Most of the sites on the net then are no longer listed but apparently people deliberately exposed themselves to the radon in years gone by.


Free Enterprise Radon Health Mine •
www.radonmine.com •

The Free Enterprise Radon Health Mine is a healing retreat for the purpose of radon inhalation therapy: a proven modality for persons seeking a complement or alternative to current methods of disease symptom management of immune system disorders - to ease or eliminate chronic pain and to break reliance on pharmaceuticals.

 

I've heard lots of good stuff about radon with those short exposure times. That's pretty cool and I would consider it for myself. But long term exposure is where the potential risk is. Just like so many other things in the world, it may be good for you in small doses and deadly in large doses.

 

I've heard lots of good stuff about radon with those short exposure times. That's pretty cool and I would consider it for myself. But long term exposure is where the potential risk is. Just like so many other things in the world, it may be good for you in small doses and deadly in large doses.

Agreed. A steak is good. A side of beef will kill you.