Radon: What You Don’t Know ….

Sharing family features with its nasty and unpopular cousin, carbon monoxide, radon gas is also odorless, invisible and without taste. And can be deadly in high doses. Posing as a cancer threat, radon gas present in your home has been credited for an approximate 21,000 deaths due to lung cancer every year; second only behind cigarette smoking according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

Where carbon monoxide can build within an enclosed space and is created when using fuel-operating appliances like gas furnaces, stoves and other appliances, radon comes from the natural breakdown of uranium in soil rock and water. Radon is released into the air naturally but is easily dispersed in outdoor environments. Home basements can create an atmosphere where radon gas can accumulate to dangerous levels if proper radon-resistant features have not been implemented or within older homes. Moving up through the ground, radon gets into homes through cracks in basement floors and walls, gaps in suspended floors and around service pipes and through construction joints. Radon can even be carried into a home through the water supply.

The EPA estimates that nearly one out of every 15 homes in the United States is estimated to have elevated radon levels. Colorado’s unique atmosphere and environment has led to higher levels of radon here than elsewhere in the country, making its detection imperative for any homeowner. Because it is undetectable to the human senses, testing is of the utmost importance as it is the only way to know if dangerous levels of the gas exist in your home. Safe Investment Home Inspections’ home inspectors perform hundreds, even thousands of radon tests in Denver homes every year. Schedule your radon test now and breathe easier.