Campaign urges Canadians to check radon levels in homes
Long-term exposure to gas is leading cause of lung cancer in non-smokers
November is Take Action on Radon Month, a very important campaign especially on the Canadian prairies where some of highest concentrations of radon gas are found. When glaciers covered Western Canada, rocks and soil ripe with uranium were deposited. Ongoing soil decay produces this carcinogenic gas.
There is no odour and no hissing sound as it seeps into your home. It doesn’t affect your health right away like carbon monoxide can, but long-term exposure can be deadly. Radon is the No. 1 cause of lung cancer in non-smokers in Canada with an estimated 3,200 deaths every year, compared to 50 deaths annually from carbon monoxide.
Because of our uranium-rich soil and the fact that our homes are sealed tight during the colder months, one in eight Calgary homes has radon levels that exceed the acceptable limit, according to a 2017 research report out of the University of Calgary’s Cumming School of Medicine.
The new home construction industry recognized the threat of radon and in Alberta, the building code was changed in 2014 so that all new homes have a roughed-in radon mitigation pipe in the basement.
“Basically, it’s a PVC tube that goes below the slab in the basement. It stands about three feet high (above the basement floor),” says Jeff Wright, indoor air environmental consultant with D.F. Technical Consulting Services, an Alberta company that does radon testing. Owners of new homes must then take the step to have a radon ventilation unit added to the PVC tube that extends above the basement floor.
Wright says the acceptable level as set by Health Canada is 200 becquerels per cubic metre. A becquerel is used to measure activity as radioactive material breaks down.
“We install an electrical device and the radon gas from the pipe runs over it. We run it for about 30 days because radon gas produces itself every 3.8 days. So, you can’t go in with a hand-held device,” says Wright, explaining that the testing unit must then be analyzed in a lab.
A score less than 200 becquerels is safe. Readings of between 200 and 600 becquerels are a concern, he says.
“We then suggestion mitigation options. Part of that is to put a fan on the pipe and extend it out through the roof or to an outside wall like a dryer vent,” Wright says.
D.F. Technical charges $500 and uses two devices, using one as a control in case of voltage interference. Should radon be detected, mitigation can run anywhere from $1,000 to $7,000.
If the homeowner has an unfinished basement, the radon mitigation can be as easy as sealing cracks in the foundation or around service pipes, support posts, window casings and around floor joists where they meet the concrete. This would reduce the seepage but not eliminate it, Wright says.
The radon ventilation system itself is around $2,500 plus the cost of installing the pipes to the home’s exterior. If the home was built before 2014, a homeowner needs to add the cost of cutting a hole in the foundation to get under the slab.
Wright suggests testing every two to three years as soil conditions change frequently.
The Lung Association recommends that every homeowner test for radon especially during the winter months when levels can be concentrated. If levels register between 200 and 600 becquerels, the association recommends mitigation within two years; anything above 600 requires action within a year.
Do-it-yourself radon test kits
We install an electrical device and the radon gas from the pipe runs over it. We run it for about 30 days because radon gas produces itself every 3.8 days.
can be purchased through the Lung Association, priced from a basic $29.99 kit that takes between three and 12 months to complete. They can also be purchased a local hardware stores or online.
If a homeowner uses a test kit, the directions must be followed very carefully to ensure accurate measurements.
Visit ab.lung.ca/radon or look for information on the federal government’s website at Canada.ca.