Radon is the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers and the second leading cause of lung cancer overall, behind only smoking. And yet, many homeowners still don’t recognize the devastating effects that radon gas could have on their health. Even so, homeowners can take steps to mitigate their risk of developing lung cancer from this environmental hazard, starting with proactively monitoring radon levels in their homes.
Radon is an odorless, colorless, radioactive gas produced from the decay of uranium and radium in rocks and soils. While this gas occurs naturally in the atmosphere at trace levels, it becomes particularly dangerous when it accumulates in homes and other buildings.
“Radon can be drawn through cracks in a building’s foundation and get trapped indoors, creating one of the most unsafe environmental hazards that the human eye cannot detect,” explains Insoo Park, CEO of Ecosense, the premier radon detection technology company.
Very little was known about the dangers of radon in residential settings until the past century, but since then, it has become a primary concern of homeowners. Radon is responsible for around 21,000 lung cancer deaths yearly, of which about 2,900 are non-smokers. For current or former smokers, radon should be even more of a concern.
How to detect radon gas
Since radon gas cannot be detected with a person’s sense of sight or smell, testing is the only way to determine the radon level in one’s home or building. Testing can be conducted by a professional, but there are also several at-home testing electronic devices available to consumers. These technologies allow them to determine the level of radon in their homes before consulting a professional, should mitigating actions need to be taken.
However, a single test of radon levels in a home or other building is not enough for the occupants to determine their risk from radon exposure. Levels tend to fluctuate seasonally due to conditions such as weather, temperature, and atmospheric pressure. While an initial reading may be low, there is no way to know whether or not the actual level of radon to which the occupants are being exposed is higher overall due to a period of environmental conditions keeping levels low.
Innovations in radon testing technology
Ecosense’s new product, EcoBlu, is an affordable, innovative new system integrating the latest patented technology to protect the health and safety of homeowners and reduce the chance of lung cancer among non-smokers. One of the main advantages of EcoBlu over competing radon testing devices is its ability to deliver fast and accurate results in real-time, meaning that consumers can have their first radon reading in minutes, rather than days.
Although, unlike many devices that provide fast results, EcoBlu is suitable for both short-term and long-term monitoring. Most devices can only offer one or the other — an accurate instantaneous reading or reliable results over months. The technology that Ecosense put into EcoBlu is immediately accurate and remains dependable with continuous use.
For consumers, there is no guesswork in understanding the results given to you by EcoBlu. A built-in LED display provides easy-to-read real-time radon result ,as well as daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly average reading. As a result, homeowners and other building owners can stay on top of their radon levels, being proactive and taking action when the machine issues an alert that the radon levels are nearing a point where mitigation must be pursued immediately.
All of these features allow consumers to ensure safety against radon in their homes without hurting their finances. “Everyone deserves to live free of fear from the danger of invisible threats like radon lurking in their homes,” asserts Dallas Jones, Vice President of Ecosense. “By making this groundbreaking technology available to consumers on a wider scale at a price they can afford, we hope we are making homes safer for everyone.”
Mitigating risk from radon exposure
The EPA generally recommends that radon mitigation steps be taken when levels reach or exceed 2 pCi/L, as it is difficult to reduce levels below this point. However, when levels exceed 4 pCi/L, mitigation becomes even more urgent due to the increased risk for occupants to develop lung cancer. Testing devices, such as EcoBlu, can alert consumers when levels reach points where action must be taken.
When indoor radon levels reach this “danger zone,” the best action for homeowners to take is to consult a radon professional. These professionals know how to best mitigate these levels. Soil suction, for example, prevents radon from entering the home by drawing the radon from below the home and venting it through a pipe, or pipes, to the air above the home where it is quickly diluted.. With these mitigation measures, homeowners can almost always reduce their radon exposure before any consequences to their health occur.
