HOME SAFETY: Testing for radon

Free kits enable homeowners to breathe easier

special to viewFree radon test kits are available to residents at the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension Office at 8050 S. Maryland Parkway.

The second-leading cause of lung cancer may be in your home right now, and a simple test can reveal it.

That's the goal behind the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension's campaign to provide free radon-testing kits to residents while supplies last. The kits are available at the university's office at 8050 S. Maryland Parkway, No. 100. When the free kits are gone, tests will remain available for $25 each.

February is an ideal month to test for radon, an odorless, colorless, invisible gas that has been linked to causing cancer, because it comes on the heels of the Environmental Protection Agency and Governor Gibbons' Radon Action Month, celebrated in January.

Timing is also perfect because the cold weather of February means that many homeowners shut down their homes for the winter.

Because radon is a chemical that is released by the natural decay of uranium in the soil, it can seep in to a home through cracks and natural holes in the foundation. Accumulated radon gets trapped and can reach harmful levels if not detected.

"When all of the windows are sealed, the gas becomes trapped in the home with no natural ventilation to move it outside," said Megan Long, assistant radon coordinator at the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension. "If you complete the test with the home sealed, it will give you a worst-case radon reading."

"There are no immediate symptoms (of Radon poisoning,)" Long said. However, based on the 2003 Assessment of Risk for Radon in Homes study by the EPA, radon in indoor air is estimated to cause about 21,000 lung cancer deaths each year in the United States.

"Because it is naturally occurring, one home in Las Vegas could have a problem, while its next-door neighbor does not, based on what is deep in the soil under a home," Long said.

So, Long stresses, don't have faith in your neighbor's negative test or the fact that you don't feel like you have radon poisoning. If for no other reason, it's safe to get your home tested.

Each test kit includes an information brochure with instructions on how to conduct the sample collection.

The kit includes a vial of activated charcoal that is placed on the lowest living level of a home for several days. After exposure, the vial is sealed and sent to a lab for analysis.

Terry Browning at the Extension office used one of the radon test kits at her home.

"It was very simple. I just left it there for three days," she said. "You never know about these things, so I'm definitely anxious to get the results."

According to the EPA, "Radon is measured in Pico curies per liter of air (pCi/L), a measurement of radioactivity. EPA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend that homes with radon levels at 4 pCi/L or higher should be fixed."

If your home is found to have radon, it can be fixed for the price of most simple home repairs, but it must be done by a professional.

For more information on radon or how to get a free test kit, call 222-3130.