What You Should Know About Radon

• Radon is an invisible odorless gas. It comes from the breakdown of uranium in soil, rock, and water.
• Radon gas is found all over the world, and in every state in the U.S.
• It is present here in Tompkins County.
• Levels can vary widely, even from home to home in the same neighborhood.
• Radon gas becomes a health hazard when it accumulates indoors and is breathed in. The radioactive energy bursts can irritate the lung tissue and damage DNA.
• Radon exposure is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the U.S. after smoking.
• Radon levels can be lowered, and homes can be built radon-resistant.

  TESTING FOR RADON IS SIMPLE AND INEXPENSIVE!

For information on radon testing, click here.

How Radon Gets Into Your Home

    Air pressure inside your home is usually lower than pressure in the soil around your home's foundation. When radon gas is present in the soil, your house acts like a vacuum and draws radon in through cracks and other openings.                               

RADON GETS IN THROUGH:

1. Cracks in solid floors;
2. Construction joints;
3. Cracks in walls;
4. Gaps in suspended floors;
5. Gaps around service pipes;
6. Cavities inside walls;
7. The water supply.

If you are planning to build a new home , talk to your builder about radon-resistant construction.

Simple built-in features are much less expensive than fixing a radon problem later.

To see EPA plans for a passive radon system for new home construction, click here. The free EPA publication, Building Radon Out -A Step-by-Step Guide On How To Build Radon-Resistant Homes (2001), can be ordered from the EPA website or obtained locally from the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County Education Center at 615 Willow Avenue,  Ithaca, NY.

 

More information about radon can be found at these websites:

New York State Dept. of Health Radon Information

Healthy Indoor Air for America's Homes

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

                                        Cornell University : Cornell Cooperative Extension : Tompkins County : Programs : Radon

Last Updated: June 10, 2004
Contact: tompkins@cornell.edu