Tag Archives: Iowa

A Citizen’s Guide to Radon in Iowa

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Protecting Yourself and Your Family From Radon

Radon causes thousands of lung cancer deaths in the United States each year. The entire
Radon mitigation is Iowa by AmeriServ Radon Mitigationstate of Iowa is in the red zone which means that every county in Iowa is in the highest potential area of the United States for higher than average levels of radon. This is due to the fact that Iowa has uranium-rich soil. Radon is formed when the uranium and radium in rocks decays, filling the soil with radon.

You cannot see, smell or taste radon so you won’t know if your have a high radon level unless your home is tested. It causes thousands of deaths a year because when you breathe air that contains radon, it can cause lung cancer. Radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the United States, second only to smoking. If you smoke and your home has high radon level, you have an even higher risk of developing lung cancer. There are several ways that radon gets into your home. They are:

  • Cracks in floors
  • Cracks in walls
  • Construction joints
  • Gaps in suspended floors
  • Gaps around pipes
  • Water supply
  • Cavities inside walls

Once radon enters your home, it becomes trapped and builds up. A radon level of 4 picocuries per liter (pCi/L) or higher is cause for concern. Even radon levels less than 4 pCi/L poses a risk. It is important to get your Iowa home tested for radon. The experts at AmeriServ Radon Mitigation  can come and test your home and offer radon mitigation to keep your radon levels low.

Solutions For High Radon Levels in Iowa

AmeriServ Radon Mitigation can test your home using short-term testing of long-term testing.

  • Short-term testing: This testing remains in your home for 2 to 90 days, using either charcoal canisters, alpha track, electret iron chamber, continuous monitors and charcoal liquid scintillation detectors. This type of testing may not determine a year-round average. Many times, short-term testing is done for real estate transactions.
  • Long-term testing: This testing remains in your home for more than 90 days and give a more accurate year-round average of your radon levels. This testing includes alpha track and electret detectors.

If the testing finds that your home has elevated levels of radon, the AmeriServ team can install a radon mitigation system to remove the harmful radon from your home.

The first step in radon mitigation is to drill a hole in your foundation to provide a suction point. Next, we attach a PVC pipe to the hole to act as a vent then the pipe is connected to a fan. The fan allows the air to flow in the right direction, out of the home.

It is important to get your Iowa home tested for radon, and have a professional perform radon mitigation if the levels are high. Protect yourself and your family from health issues related to radon. Let the professionals at AmeriServ Radon Mitigation test your home.

The AmeriServ team is professionally trained by the State of Iowa and is certified by the Iowa Department of Public Health. Don’t hesitate to contact AmeriServ to get your home tested for radon and keep you and your family safe from this harmful gas.

 

Buying A Home, Real Estate and Radon

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Buying a Home with Radon in Iowa

Sold Home For Sale Sign in Front of New HouseWhat types of homes have radon? Radon can be present in all types of homes: old  homes, new homes, homes with a basement, homes without a basement, well-insulated homes, and drafty homes.  In fact, construction material and  the location are factors that can affect radon levels. Radon is not a problem in certain parts of the country. Homes with radon have been found in every state. Unfortunately, it is all around us. It comes from the natural breakdown of uranium and soil. It is invisible and  odorless. Buying a home, real estate and radon can be a concern for families. AmeriServ Radon Mitigation of Iowa, can make your home a healthy and safe place in Iowa.

If you are selling a home, test your home before you put in on the market. Make sure the test is done correctly. Save the test results and  follow the steps to fix the problems. This could be a selling advantage when trying to sell your home.

If you are buying a home, know if there is radon in your home before you decide to buy the home. Ask the seller for radon test results. If the home has not been tested, you should get the house tested.

What can you do as a real estate agent and radon? If you are a good real estate agent, knowing real estate and radon testing can be beneficial to your clients. Your  clients will trust you and be willing to share concerns about radon in  the home that they are buying. Real estate agents can start performing a radon test as prior to selling a home. Make sure the radon levels are lower  than  4 pCi/L. If the levels are higher, inform the client and recommend  installing a radon mitigation Iowa system. Educate your client the dangers of  radon gas. Radon causes lung cancer deaths each year. It is a natural  form of radiation that seeps into your home and becomes an indoor air  hazard that is dangerous for your family.

If your home is being built, ask if radon-resistant construction were  used. These techniques may help lower moisture levels and soil gases.  Building radon-resistant features during construction are cheaper than  fixing a radon problem. Also, your home will be more energy efficient.  Radon-resistant features can vary because of different foundation and  site requirements, like using plastic sheeting seams and caulking. Find  out if the builder is using Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recommendations.

If your home has not been tested yet, get it immediately. Test it in the  lowest level of the home that is used on a regular basis. The radon test  is very essential because some states require radon measurements that  testers have to follow. Radon levels can vary from one home to the next. The best way for you to know is to schedule an appointment to test your home. Call  AmeriServ Radon Mitigation of Iowa, if you are buying a home with radon so you can protect your family in Iowa.

Radon Gas in Iowa

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Radon Gas in Iowa: a Serious Problem

Iowa is known for its safety. Most Iowans feel safe in their towns and homes, free from the worries and dangers that come with large cities. But there is one type of danger that is extremely present in Iowa. A silent killer that sneaks into homes and attacks without any notice. That danger is radon gas, and it is nothing to be ignored in Iowa. We are here to help with your radon gas in Iowa. At AmeriServ, we can be your radon mitigation Iowa service provider.

Iowa has some of the highest levels of radon in the country. The national average level of radon is 1.3 pCi/L. The EPA declares 4.0 pCi/L as the dangerous level of radon requiring action. Iowa’s average radon level is 8.5 pCi/L. If those numbers don’t show you just how dangerous Iowa’s radon is, maybe these will: five out of seven homes in Iowa have dangerous levels of radon. Over 400 Iowans die every year because of exposure to radon. Radon in Iowa is a serious problem, and because of the high risk, every home in the state should be tested for radon.

Radon in Iowa

If you don’t take care of a radon problem, you and your family could be in serious danger. Radon is the leading environmental carcinogen. According to the Iowa Department of Radon Gas in IowaPublic Health, exposure to radon is the leading cause of lung cancer in non-smokers. For smokers, it is the second leading cause of lung cancer. It is so easy to avoid such an effect. Simply give us a call to have your home tested. We can perform either a short-term or long-term test. Both are accurate so we’ll help you decide which is best for your home. If we find high levels, we will install a Iowa radon mitigation system. This system will suck the radon from beneath your home, run it through a pipe system with a fan, and dispose of it outside of your home. Contact us to help keep you safe from radon gas in Iowa today! We are your radon mitigation Iowa service provider.

Why Iowa Has Radon Problems

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Why Iowa has radon problems is often a question people will ask when it comes time to purchase a home in Iowa. Radon is a gas that is produced in soils surrounding your home or building and enters through the dirt floors or cracks in the foundation, through pipes or even openings in your floor drains.  Basements usually have the most concentrated levels of radon, but homes without basements can also be affected.

In Iowa, the radon levels have a tendency to be higher due to the soils in the Midwest having  a lot of uranium and radium in it. When these minerals break down they release the radon gas. Once the radon has entered the home, it goes through the air that you breath daily. In the winter months this gas gets trapped in the soil and cannot filter out into the air. Making this a more dangerous time for radon to enter your home.  This odorless gas is very harmful if not detected immediately and you usually you will not even realize that you have been exposed to the gas until you begin noticing signs of lung cancer starting to develop.

All homes, new or old should be tested for radon either by using an at-home test or by having a professional contractor come in to perform it. Getting accurate results is important so that you will know what you need to do address the problem.

Call AmeriServ Radon Mitigation Iowa for services provided in many Iowa cities including Des Moines, Carroll, Sioux City, and Fort Dodge. Checking your home frequently and having a radon detector is a good idea to help protect you and your family from this deadly cancer causing gas.