RI Radon Levels Shift after Maine Earthquake

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RI Radon Levels Shift after Maine Earthquake

 

 Radon levels in water and air are tested in a home as part of a home inspection process.  It is a standard recommended

RI Radon Levels Shift after Maine Earthquake in RI real estate

Kent and Washington counties shower higher radon levels

course of action by real estate agents since radon is an invisible and hazardous gas emitted from the ground.  Unfortunately, it does make its way into a home depending upon where your Rhode Island home is located and the amount of rock underneath your home.  Washington and Kent counties in RI have the highest levels of known radon in the state.

The EPA standard is 4.0 pci/L or greater for air quality radon mitigation when tested over a number of days.

We have no standards in RI for radon in water but usually go with MA radon levels although this can be argued but it is wise to check the water also.

Interestingly enough we had a small Northeast earthquake in October 2012 with the epicenter being in Maine.  However, it was definitely felt in RI by many homeowners including me.  No damage but it did make some changes to our environment that many of my RI real estate clients are sharing with me now.

See the bedrock in Rhode Island is shallow I am told by geologists and we are known for having a presence of radon in many RI towns.  I can say that at least 75% of the homes I sell have a level of radon over the 4 pico curie standard set by EPA.

 

And the scientists will definitely debate whether radon is as unhealthy for our health ( like smoking packs of cigarettes).  I tend to err on the side of caution and since it takes about $900- $1100 for a radon system to mitigate the impact to a homeowners home, I say do it.  An easy corrective fix.

A few of my Exeter and North Kingstown homeowners retested their homes recently after the October Maine earthquake and found that their home radon levels increased!  By at least 20% from before the earthquake and that could make a huge difference as the plates in the earth shift to cause the release of these radon gases.  Not something I would have thought of until I decided to do some research on radon and earthquakes.
I am not telling my clients to go out and universally re-test for radon.  However, it may be a good idea if you were on the borderline of needing a radon mitigation system before October.  Anyway, it is wise to re-test for radon levels every couple of years so put this on a to do list.  Breathing good healthy clean air is always on my real estate agenda!  Radon Levels Shift after Maine Earthquake.
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Ginny Lacey Gorman is your go to waterfront Rhode Island agent for real estate in South County RI and beyond…knowing the geographic area, schools, happenings and important tidbits of local information.  Email her at RiByTheBay@gmail.com to make an appointment to find the home of your dreams too!

Waterfront, oceanfront, luxury and coastal Rhode Island real estate are my specialty but all of RI is my backyard.   When you are in need of a true real estate professional for your buying, selling or relocating needs and an internet savvy marketer who sells RI houses in this real estate market call Ginny at 401.529.7849.

Comments

  1. Chris says

    I googled this blog up as I noticed my radon level went from ~2-3 pci/L to 8 pci/L after the Maine earthquake. I live north of Portland in a radon belt (one of my neighbors was tested at 1200pci/L!. We were 20-30pci/L pre remediation). I didn’t associate the connection until a couple of weeks later as the higher level stayed on my mind. We had been having a lot of rain- so I thought that may have been the cause. But I had never seen the level jump up that quick and high. Eventually the realization that it was from the earthquake hit me. I have one of those electronic radon reader (it’s like a smoke alarm) which constantly reads the short/long term levels, and rings an alarm if the level goes above 4 pci/L. It took about 3-4 weeks for the level to return to pre quake readings. Anyways- wanted to share.

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