Radon in CO homes?

[mousegun87]

The home is in Mead.

[Richard K]

When we sold our last house the buyer's inspector tested for and found a higher than normal level of radon (around 8 as near as I can recall). I had a mitigation system installed. The drilled a 6" hole in the basement floor and into the french drain. They installed PVC pipe, an inline fan and exhausted the air out through the garage. The next reading was 0. We lived in that house for 18 years before selling and had no health problems. I'm told that acceptable levels in Canada are 2 to 3 times higher than in the US.

[Zundfolge]

RADON is a junk science scam.

Seriously, unless you're a Uranium Miner you are NEVER going to be exposed to enough Radon to harm you.

As Richard K said, "acceptable levels" in Canada are 2 to 3 times higher than the US and "acceptable levels" in Sweden (a nation known for falling for all sorts of junk science BS) is something like 10 times the US.

The "acceptable level" rating by the EPA is a number that they pulled out of a hat and has zero connection to any sort of science, reason or facts.

The downside is that enough people buy this BS so if you're selling a house and someone wants a Radon test you'll have to get one ... and if the levels are too high you'll be forced to put it on the property condition report and spend the money on mitigation (which I understand runs in the $2000-$2500 range).

Seriously, phrenology has more scientific reasoning behind it than effing Radon.

Hell, the mold that exists in most homes in humid Missouri is more of a health hazard than effing Radon.

[Hoosier]

I had radon issues in my house. It was a new build, and the readings were 11x higher than EPA recommended, both with a small unit I purchased and slightly higher reads from an overnight test by a professional.

There was some free local government grant service that sends someone out who tells you what to install to fix it.

My house had a perimeter drain system around the foundation, so I attached the blower to it. It was about two weekends worth of work to plumb in the large PVC pipe and attach the blower to the outside of the house. My readings now are 1.6pC/L which is about half the EPA number.

I work from home in my basement, so I figure it's better to sort it out now than have to sort it out before I sell the house. I wouldn't be concerned about it if the mitigation works and the readings are low you're fine.

H.

[XDMan]

The last two houses we've been in have had mitigation systems. The last one was new construction purchased a year ago. Inspection showed higher than EPA acceptable levels and the builder put in the system. Very common and expected in Colorado. And because of varying rock and soil conditions you may "need" one and your neighbor won't. It's pretty much luck of the draw...

Having the mitigation system certainly doesn't hurt anything and will make selling the house much easier.

Leo

[Zundfolge]

Having the mitigation system certainly doesn't hurt anything...

Having is probably nice, but BUYING one when you sell is going to be a deal breaker for me (especially when the Obamacare 3.8% sales tax on home sales goes in next year).

[Zombie Steve]

The 3.8% sales tax (as you put it) is only on monies over the capital gains threshold. I'm not a fan of it at all, but it's not as much as some make it out to be.

You know anyone pulling in capital gains in this market?

[Zombie Steve]

RADON is a junk science scam.

Seriously, unless you're a Uranium Miner you are NEVER going to be exposed to enough Radon to harm you.

As Richard K said, "acceptable levels" in Canada are 2 to 3 times higher than the US and "acceptable levels" in Sweden (a nation known for falling for all sorts of junk science BS) is something like 10 times the US.

The "acceptable level" rating by the EPA is a number that they pulled out of a hat and has zero connection to any sort of science, reason or facts.

The downside is that enough people buy this BS so if you're selling a house and someone wants a Radon test you'll have to get one ... and if the levels are too high you'll be forced to put it on the property condition report and spend the money on mitigation (which I understand runs in the $2000-$2500 range).

Seriously, phrenology has more scientific reasoning behind it than effing Radon.

Hell, the mold that exists in most homes in humid Missouri is more of a health hazard than effing Radon.

You pretty much summed it up.

Unfortunately, the more a buyer reads, the more freaked out they get. I've had people threaten to walk on a deal for 4.5. Really.

Some systems can be had for as little as $600. Most wind up being around a thousand.

[Not_A_Llama]

The EPA threshold levels are very very conservative. In addition, if you live in your house to any extent, you're diluting the levels significantly.

Use it to your advantage to leverage out concessions, but I wouldn't personally be concerned.

[SideShow Bob]

The home is a new build. No crack on the foundation or basement floor. It is located in Weld county. I read that radon is fairly common findings in homes in the Denver area. So it looks like northern CO seems to have more of this than the southern part of the state.

I just scanned the other posts, so sorry if someone already covered this.
If your home is a new build or less than 10 years, you shouldn't have a higher than allowed EPA limits. Either have the seller fix this to EPA regs or turn down the house.
My house is 5 years old and is built with a crawl space under the basement floor and is power ventilated to remove RADON build up and excess humidity.
If your new build does not meet the EPA standards, there is a problem.