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Handout: Asbestos and Radon
Asbestos
Asbestos is a mineral fiber. It can be
found in roofing shingles, stucco, plaster, sheetrock, baseboard,
linoleum, piping insulation, knob and tube wiring, and other
building materials made before 1981.
Regular home inspections do not usually
include inspection for asbestos. Asbestos can be dangerous.
When materials using asbestos are cut or sanded, the fibers
are released into the air and people can breathe them in.
They are bad for the lungs. If your home contains asbestos
and the material is not damaged, leave it alone and do not
disturb or touch it. Check it every so often to make sure
it is still not damaged. If you need to replace anything
containing asbestos, do not do it yourself. Find a professional,
certified asbestos remover to do it safely.
If you plan to make any changes in your
home such as ripping up linoleum or knocking a wall down,
get those areas inspected for asbestos before you do the
work, so you will know if there is asbestos in the materials.
Radon
Radon is a naturally occurring gas produced
by the breakdown of uranium in soil, rock, and water. Air
pressure inside your home is usually lower than pressure
in the soil around your home’s foundation. Because
of this difference in pressure, your house acts like a vacuum,
drawing radon in through foundation cracks and other openings.
Radon may also be present in well water and can be released
into the air in your home when water is used for showering
and other household tasks. In most cases, radon entering
the home through water is a small risk compared with radon
entering your home from the soil. In a small number of homes,
the building materials can give off radon, although building
materials rarely cause radon problems by themselves.
Radon is estimated to cause many thousands
of lung cancer deaths each year. In fact, the Surgeon General
has warned that radon is the second leading cause of lung
cancer in the United States. Only smoking causes more lung
cancer deaths. If you smoke and your home has high radon
levels, your risk of lung cancer is especially high.
Radon test kits that meet Environmental
Protection Agency guidelines can be obtained from a radon
testing company or laboratory. Get a listing from your state
radon office or local health department. They are available
at local hardware stores and home improvement stores. Many
are priced under $25. Testing your home for radon is as
simple as opening a package, placing a radon detector in
a designated area, and, after the prescribed number of days,
sealing the detector back in the package and mailing it
to a lab. Information on testing your home for radon is
also available by calling (800) SOS-RADON.
A variety of methods can be used to reduce
radon in homes: seals on cracks and other openings in the
foundation, house pressurization, natural ventilation, and
heat recovery ventilation. Most of these methods are considered
to be either temporary solutions or partial solutions to
be used in combination with other measures. For high levels
of radon, the Environmental Protection Agency recommends
that you have a qualified contractor fix your home because
lowering high radon levels requires specific technical knowledge
and special skills. Without the proper equipment or technical
knowledge, you could actually increase your radon level
or create other potential hazards.
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