Buy the Best Radon Detector – Your Life Could Depend on It

The first thing to determine when considering buying a radon detector is to determine if you live in a high danger zone and this map from the EPA will give you a good idea. It is scary to see just how much of the country is in danger. Radon detectors are not expensive and when you consider what can happen, they are almost a necessity. Radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer, so detecting radon is of paramount importance and it is important to get the best detector you can. Check to see if the detector you are going to buy is approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, as well as the Radiation and Indoor Environments National Laboratory.

United Nuclear has one of the top radon detectors that sells for $155.00. You need to keep track of the Radon over a period of time because it is considered dangerous if the reading is high constantly for about a week. This one will give you the current reading and in addition an average radon reading over past 7 days and it up dates the reading every hour.

R.E. Williams has another radon detector for you to consider. This one costs $119. 95 and this one will function in temperatures from 32 degrees F to 104 degrees F, and gives you the current reading as well as the average over the past 7 days and the
long-term average from the time of last reset, within the last 5 years.

Radon detectors for commercial uses will cost much more, $3.000 and up. The radon detectors for the home are very easy to install and use. Radon is a odorless, tasteless gas released by the breakdown of uranium. So it is important to take action of your detector gives you an alarm. A normal reading is below 4 pico-Curies per liter. If it goes above 4 for an extended time, it is time to look into a radon reduction system. There are several different systems available and they are not that costly. If the radon level hits 100, it means mandatory evacuation, so taking care of the problem as fast as possible is important.

Radon gets into your home by ways of cracks in the foundation and other small opening and gets trapped in the house, causing the levels to rise. Radon can also be present in water, but it is not considered as dangerous as radon in the air and it can be fixed, either by your municipal water supplier, or if your water comes from a private well, by a device that works either at the place where the water enters the home, or at the point of use – but if you choose the second option, you would have to have one on every faucet and water tap in the house.

Radon is not something to be ignored. For a small price, you can buy the greatest thing there is – peace of mind.

Source: EPA