Radon Mitigation in Schools in Colorado

There has been a major push recently to protect our children at our public schools. After the recent school shooting in Newtown, community members, congress, activists, and anyone with a true passion for school safety has suggested possible ideas to help prevent this horrible tragedy from happening again. The loss of a child at what was thought to be a safe place is a serious tragedy that no one should have to suffer.

While we can make strong efforts in preventing guns from entering schools, arming staff, or restricting guns altogether, radon mitigation in schools is another precaution we must take. You may already know the dangers of radon gas and all of the dangers that it may cause. Killing 20,000 people each and every year by causing cancer, radon is one of the most deadliest gases known to mankind. Unfortunately, over 70,000 schools at least one classroom with above normal levels of radon gas.

Our children’s lives are still at stake from facing this deadly gas on a daily basis. There is action that can be done to remove this gas and make our public schools safe again. Radon mitigation in schools may reduce radon levels, and abate the unwanted radon. In order to get a true scope on the levels of radon gas in our schools, radon testing must be completed first. Radon is both odorless and colorless, so only a test will be able to truly determine the threat level at hand.

Recently, a congressman from Iowa has proposed a bill to help public schools reduce the radon gas in their schools. Radon mitigation in schools would be provided funded completely through grant money. Prior to radon mitigation in schools, a radon test would be provided through grant money as well to determine whether or not the radon mitigation was needed. This would ensure that all schools are safe without having to sacrifice a single penny out of the school board’s budget for education.

The Need for Radon Mitigation in Schools in Denver

Radon mitigation in schools in Denver, CO is needed in order to make certain that our kids are not breathing in this dangerous gas at high levels. One out of five schools has at least one classroom with above normal levels of radon gas, which means that our children will most likely attend a school with dangerous levels of radon gas.

Now is the time for you to help take action and provide schools with the funding for radon mitigation in schools in Denver, CO. We need to write our local politicians and school board members and present them with the facts. Once politicians are aware of the danger we put our Denver children in, they should show their own support by helping a bill pass to remove radon from schools. The need for radon mitigation in schools is evident, but we will only be able to get the funding for it if we fight. Act now and help us make public schools as safer place.

Radon Action Month is Coming up in Denver, CO

If you do not already know, January is radon action month, and so members of Denver, CO are preparing ways to appropriately take action within their home, and the community. You have probably heard of radon gas before, but you may not know of all of the dangers associated with it. Every single year, 20,000 people perish because of lung cancer caused by radon gas. There are also a number of other health problems that may take place because of radon gas.

In order to appropriately reduce your risk of lung cancer or death in Denver, CO, you need to take the necessary action. No matter what action you are going to take, it is important to at least educate yourself during the month of January so that you know more about the dangers of radon gas. Radon gas affects roughly one out of every 15 homes, meaning there is a good chance that your Denver home is under attack. S.W.A.T. Environmental is creating several plans of actions you may take during January to do your part in the fight against radon gas.

Denver Radon Action Month Plans

The first, and possibly most important, thing that you can do is have your Denver home tested for radon gas. The gas is both odorless and colorless, so you will not be able to know if it is present without testing. Testing allows you to quickly find out if you have a problem, or if your home is safe. This truly could be a life or death situation as it allows you to know if you are in need of further action for radon action month. If your levels are low, you can simply retest several years later.

If you already have your testing results, you can have a professional install a radon mitigation system in your Denver home. This will dramatically reduce the level of gas in your home, and in turn reduce your risk of lung cancer. If you are serious about your life, or the health of your family, and you have high levels of radon gas, then a mitigation system is a must this radon action month. Do not postpone getting a mitigation system any longer. It may be more affordable than you think, and S.W.A.T. Environmental always offers a free quote.

The last thing you may do is be an advocate during radon action month. Radon action month is a time when many are testing their Denver homes, and installing new mitigation systems, but there are many who are still not aware of the dangers of radon gas. This is an opportune time for you to start a conversation with your neighbor about radon gas. If your home had high levels of gas, there is a good chance that your neighbors’ home may be in the same danger. No matter what you do, be sure to do something this radon action month, and help us reduce the number of cases of lung cancer.

Radon Gas Mitigation in Denver, Colorado and Lung Cancer

Living in Denver, Colorado, we always enjoy the mountains and fresh air. Even though we are surrounded by beautiful scenery, and what we think is fresh air, there is still a large portion of the United States who die because of lung cancer. Although you are probably assuming that these people brought it on themselves by smoking cigarettes, you actually are quite far from the truth. More than one out of seven people diagnosed with lung cancer have never touched a cigarette, but rather inhaled radon gas.

Radon gas is probably not the answer you were looking for. You would think that maybe coal, or some material which industry specific professionals were exposed to for extended periods of time would be the reason for lung cancer, but no. Radon gas is a household item that enters your home essentially at its own will. Without proper protection or mitigation, your whole entire home may quickly build up levels that are beyond dangerous.

To put it in perspective, 20,000 people perish each year from radon gas in the form of lung cancer. This is more annual deaths than drunk driving. One out of every fifteen homes has elevated levels of radon gas, meaning that chances are more than a handful of people in your neighborhood, or even street, may be at risk of being diagnosed with lung cancer.

Radon Gas Mitigation in Denver, CO

As a resident of Denver, you need to know how this gas is formed, and how it affects you. Radon gas forms from breaking down uranium in your soil. This is a natural process, so it isn’t something that you should plan on avoiding if uranium is present. Even if uranium is not present, there is still a possibility that it is formed near your water supply. Radon can easily form and enter your water supply, and thus enter your home through water. Water-borne is a serious threat to Denver, CO homeowners.

As radon forms in your soil, it may enter through the foundation or basement. As radon is a gas, it can surely enter through the smallest of all spaces. Because radon is odorless, and colorless, the only way you will be able to know whether or not your Denver home is at risk is through radon testing. Once you have your testing results, it will be an easier decision as to whether or not radon gas mitigation is needed.

If your levels are above normal, radon gas mitigation is necessary, and you should call an expert immediately. If your levels are not above normal, you may still want to consider installing a radon gas mitigation system as uranium may break down, and radon may enter your home in the near future. Calling a company that has decades of experience, and is local to Denver, such as S.W.A.T. Environmental, is a good decision. Call us today, and receive a free quote on radon gas mitigation.

Air quality in Denver is a serious concern for residents. Did you know that every year, over three million people perish because of poor air quality? The health effects and risks are something that no Denver resident should put their family in front of. The EPA has found a link to radon gas and lung cancer, meaning that if not found early enough, permanent damage may affect you and your family. Radon gas is found seeping into your home through the foundation of your Denver home as it forms in the soil beneath. The soil beneath your home may contain uranium which breaks down to form this deadly gas naturally. Air quality can be improved by radon mitigation techniques and systems from a local professional.

Adding sixty five employees over the past three years, Denver’s S.W.A.T. Environmental has been growing at an extremely rapid rate. S.W.A.T. Environmental’s growth has been recognized by INC as one of the fastest growing companies in the United States. S.W.A.T. Environmental is actually the first radon mitigation company to make the INC’s list. With the large death toll each year from radon gas, S.W.A.T. Environmental prides itself on reducing radon levels in homes throughout the Denver area. Your health and safety is on the line, and over time, the public has recognized S.W.A.T.

Radon Testing for Denver Residents

Radon testing in Denver, CO may be the difference between whether or not your family is safe, or in danger of a serious condition. The EPA has deemed radon gas as the reason for lung cancer, and the reason that around 21,000 people die every year. This gas cannot be smelt, or seen, making radon testing the only way to figure out whether or not your home is in danger.

Like most Colorado residents, you may think that this gas only affects northeastern residents, but the reality is that it affects nearly all of the United States. Areas of Denver have shown high rates of radon gas meaning there is a good chance that your Denver, CO home is at a high risk of radon exposure. Roughly one out of every fifteen homes in the U.S. have above the allowable limits of this gas. Radon testing can quickly get rid of any fear or questions you may have if your home is affected. While you may feel that your Denver home is well insulated and incapable of being affected, this is not how radon enters your home. Radon often enters through your foundation, water supply, or even building materials, making it extremely difficult to safeguard your home properly.

Types of Radon Testing in Denver, CO

Now that you have decided to make the smart decision and have radon testing completed on your Denver home, it is important that you choose the right company to do it. Often people assume radon testing is a simple process, but this could not be further from the truth. There are two types of radon tests; long term and short term. The long term radon testing may take as long as 90 days to be completed, but boasts the most accurate results. Short term radon testing will only take 2-7 days to be completed, and offers fairly accurate results. It is important to consult with your radon testing company which method will be best for your home and situation.

Hiring a Denver, CO Radon Mitigation Company

When you receive your radon testing results, there is a good chance that you have above the normal levels of radon gas. 4 pCi/L is considered the limit for a safe home. If your home has near, or above 4 pCi/L of radon gas, then installing a mitigation is a necessary step for you and your family’s safety.

Once you have seen that your levels are above the allowable amount, you need to call a local and reputable mitigation company to handle your safety. Do not leave your health, or your children’s health up to a general contractor who claims to know a little bit about radon gas. S.W.A.T. Environmental is the nation’s leading radon mitigation company, and is located in Denver, CO to best serve you. With all the certifications and years of experience necessary, S.W.A.T. Environmental will reduce your radon levels in no time.

What is Waterborne Radon?

As radium decays, the gas known as radon seeps up from the ground and becomes diluted in the air. Normally, this dissolution happens on a regular basis and is not harmful to human beings since the exposure levels are extremely low. However, if the radon is unable to become diluted and instead begins to concentrate, it can reach deadly levels. Radon in water can cause several severe ailments, including lung cancer, and has been the cause of many deaths around the world. Unfortunately, it can be found in the water supplies of many homes in the Denver area.

The Health Impact of Radon in Water

Drinking the water is actually the least of your worries if your home’s water supply is contaminated with radon. However, whenever you use this water, the radon it contains is released into your home’s air. Inhaling this gas will cause most of the harm to your health from radon in water exposure. Tens of thousands of reports come in each year of lung cancer that is directly caused by inhaling radon gas. Without proper ventilation, the gas has nowhere to go but into your lungs. With more than 500,000 people in the Denver metro area alone, the potential for danger is significant, to say the least. Without proper testing, radon could be leaking out of your water and into your home without you having any knowledge of it. Even if the main water supply is unaffected, radon gas could still be affecting those who are supplied by private wells. Therefore, you should have your home tested regularly to ensure that you detect any radon contamination early.

What Can Be Done About Waterborne Radon

If your water is found to contain dangerous amounts of radon, you should contact SWAT Environmental to have the issue corrected. There are a few methods available for removing radon from water. The generally most effective units for this purpose are called aerators; they inject air into the water to release the radon. The deadly gas is then funneled into a pipe that usually leads up to your roof to safely dispose of it. Alternately, Granular Activated Carbon, or GAC, filtration units trap the radon molecules and prevent them from exiting the tap into the household until they eventually degrade. However, this option is generally not as widely used since it only removes the radon right before it exits the faucet, rather than before it gets into the house at all.

Regardless of the abatement method SWAT’s experts decide to use in your house, you should remember to have your home’s water tested for radon regularly. Doing so could potentially save you or members of your family from serious future health problems. As soon as a test returns a positive for waterborne radon in your home, do not put off dealing with the problem. You should have the radon in water removed before it becomes a serious health risk.

Removing Radon Gas from Your Denver Home Could Save Your Life

Radon gas is a clear and odorless substance that is formed from the breakdown of radioactive elements like thorium and uranium that can be naturally found in the soil. It can easily accumulate in enclosed spaces like office buildings and homes, and it can be extremely dangerous to people who regularly inhale it.

Radon gas poses a significant health risk when it becomes trapped indoors. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, radon ranks second only to cigarette smoking as the most common cause of lung cancer. Every year radon reportedly claims over 20,000 lives due to lung cancer in the United States. These grim statistics make radon gas abatement critical both for communities and individuals.

Why Passive Radon Abatement Methods are Ineffective by Themselves

Passive radon abatement methods, such as sealing foundational cracks and other openings to prevent radon gas from seeping into the interior of the home from the ground outside, are generally insufficient on their own to reduce excessively high interior radon levels. This is due to the nature of radon gas and how it reacts when under pressure. Although it is a heavy gas, it can be drawn up through various materials, such as expansion joints, concrete, utility units or drains. The only effective way to significantly reduce radon levels permanently is by actively collecting the gas from inside the building and releasing it safely outdoors in a way that prevents it from being able to regain future entry. However, passive abatement methods, when used in conjunction with active radon abatement, can help reduce the risk of additional problems in the future.

The Most Effective Methods of Radon Abatement

According to the EPA, when a building contains radon gas levels of 4.0 pCi/l or higher, the radon needs to be reduced as quickly as possible. SWAT Environmental handles this task in the Denver area, and they can use several different methods to do so. The most common method of radon gas abatement is known as active soil depressurization. This innovative technique uses a vacuum-like suction to pull the gas outside to the open air, where it dissipates and becomes harmless. During the setup of this type of system, a specialized electric suction fan must be attached to PVC piping that is run from below the foundation to above the roof. This method of radon reduction using suction fans has an effective rate of up to 99 percent, as radon gas levels will begin to decrease almost instantly.

Modern home building standards usually focus on making a home air tight to conserve energy. Unfortunately, this only makes it more likely that radon gas will become trapped within the home. If testing reveals that your Denver home contains excessively high levels of radon gas, an active radon abatement system from SWAT Environmental can reduce them safely and effectively.

Radon Levels a Concern in Denver, Colorado

Radon, an odorless and invisible gas, silently creeps inside the homes of thousands across the country every day. Second only to smoking as the leading cause of lung cancer, the risk from this deadly killer is not as well known as that from smoking, yet it is equally prevalent in Denver, Colorado.

While around 20 percent of Colorado adult residents are smokers, the remaining 80 percent may feel they are at little to no risk of lung cancer and similar diseases. Most understand the dangers of second hand smoke and take measures to limit their exposure. What they may not realize, however, is that Denver’s radon levels often rank higher than the recommended safe exposure. The average national indoor radon levels are about 1.3 pCi/L, yet 43 percent of the studied homes in the Denver region have produced results over 4.0 pCi/L.

Exposure to Radon Levels in the Denver Region

For non-smokers, 4.0 pCi/L puts them at as high of a risk from dying from the radon exposure as they are of dying in a car accident. A smoker’s risk is an even higher — about five times the risk of dying in a car accident. Considering that the government has mandated seat belt laws across the country, radon exposure is just as real of a threat and should not be ignored. Many, however, do just that since they cannot see the problem or its effects. While the carnage from radon exposure is not as obvious as that produced by a car crash, its consequences can be just as deadly.

Detecting High Radon Levels

Radon gas cannot be detected through the senses of sight, sound, taste, touch or smell. However, with proper training and equipment, high radon levels can be detected and prevented. You can do this via either a short term or a long term test. Short term tests are easier and take anywhere from a couple of days to three months to complete, depending on the method used. A long term test takes more than three months, but it can give more detailed results, providing a better idea of the radon levels throughout the year. Either method, however, will alert you if you are at risk.

Correcting High Radon Levels

If high radon levels are detected, you should have SWAT Environmental’s specialists begin immediate efforts to reduce them. Since cracks in the foundation allow radon to enter the living environment, sealing them is often the first step to help counter a radon contamination. There are also specialized ventilation systems that can be installed to force the radon out of the home. If you are constructing a new home in the Denver region, you should have the construction site checked first to see if radon is prevalent. If so, include a radon mitigation system in the home design.

Radon is a very real threat in Denver, Colorado. Rather than ignore the problem, you should take the time to properly protect yourself from its risk to your health.

Why You Need Radon Mitigation if You Live in Denver, Colorado

You could be at risk from exposure to radon gas and never even know it. Radon is a radioactive gas that occurs naturally due to the breakdown of uranium in the soil; it is well documented as a carcinogen and has been linked in particular to lung cancer. Since radon cannot be seen and has no smell, the presence of this gas must be detected by professionals. Therefore, you should have SWAT Environmental radon mitigation specialists test your home regularly to make sure that it is safe, and if necessary perform a complete radon mitigation.

It is important to understand that there is no specific region of the country to which radon is limited, even though it is particularly common in the Denver region. Regardless of where you live, you need to be cautious. Radon gas can be found anywhere, not only in the soil, but also in the rocks and water. Homeowners without basements often think that they are at a lower risk of radon, but there is no evidence that this is true. Houses without basements are just as likely to have a radon problem as those with basements.

It is also a mistake to believe that your home does not have a radon problem because a neighbor has had their house tested successfully. Radon problems can be confined to one house and not be present in any of the surrounding houses. Regardless of what other homeowners in your area have found through testing, you should have your own home tested too.

There are acceptable levels of radon, so even if it is found, your may not be in any danger. The Environmental Protection Agency has determined that the safe level is less than four picocuries per liter. Above this level, and you need to have your radon levels reduced through a process called mitigation. This is accomplished through the installation of a custom designed solution for your home.

SWAT Environmental Denver Radon Mitigation & Radon Testing Denver

The experts at SWAT Environmental can choose and install the necessary system to reduce the radon levels in your home. Specific systems and techniques used in radon mitigation can vary widely depending on your house and your radon problem. Some are designed to address the radon before it enters the home, while others reduce radon after it has already entered. In many cases, some combination of multiple systems will be necessary to complete the radon mitigation.

For example, methods to prevent radon from entering the house can include sealing cracks and fissures in the foundation as well as the installation of a fan to distribute pressure more evenly in the structure. A suction system for the soil outside of the house can also be used to keep the gas from entering. Ventilation systems can remove any gas already in your house. Since the potential health impact of radon gas in Denver is so serious, call SWAT Environmental radon mitigation to set up your appointment immediately.