Officials push for home radon testing with more cold weather in tow

“In the winter, our homes are sealed up. We keep our doors and windows closed. We run our furnaces,” said Clark County Combined Health District Director of Environmental Health Larry Shaffer. “The hot air wants to pull the radon gas up out of the ground and that’s when it accumulates in our homes.”

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The gas is potentially deadly and is the second-leading cause of lung cancer in the country — followed by smoking.

Radon is measured in picoCuries per Liter (pCi/L), and the number to keep in mind is 4 pCi/L. The risk of cancer at that level for someone who’s never smoked is the same as the risk of dying in a car crash. The risk is compounded if someone is a smoker and is also exposed to elevated levels of radon.

“About half the results I’ve seen from homes in Clark County and around the area test higher than that — not always drastically higher but sometimes slightly higher,” he said.

Data from the Ohio Department of Health shows that Clark County, as well as Champaign, Greene, Madison and other surrounding counties, have higher indoor concentrations of the gas compared to other parts of the state.

Shaffer said the key to protecting your home and family is to test for radon.

Test kits are available at local hardware stores, and free or discounted tests can be found online at https://drhomeair.com/oh.

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Health agencies recommend contacting a radon mitigator to possibly install a radon mitigation system if the test registers at 4 pCi/L or higher.

Tina Bleything, a Realtor with Roost Real Estate, said in her experience a lot of people in the county don’t already have the systems in place.

Installing a new mitigation system when a house is being built may cost someone about $300, but once there is a problem the system can cost between $800-$1000 to put in.

“It really is a good thing to have,” Bleything said. “It’s about getting tested no matter where you are or what house you are buying.”