Protect your home and your family from the dangers of radon this month!

With radon being one of the leading causes of lung cancer today, it's vital to bring attention to this often-overlooked danger. January is National Radon Month, making it a good time to purchase a home radon test kit or hire a professional radon mitigation contractor.

Evergreen Basement Systems is an expert on radon mitigation and has made a number of recommendations for homeowners during National Radon Month. Radon is a naturally occurring gas that is released from soil. Because it is a radioactive carcinogen gas, it can be dangerous to people if it travels up into their homes. Radon is responsible for 20,000 lung cancer deaths each year, making it the second-leading cause of lung cancer (behind smoking). Luckily, there are ways to lessen the amount of radon in a home, thereby preventing the contraction of lung cancer.

Radon mitigation is becoming a common service that a number of contractors can provide. "As the upcoming year approaches, everyone is thinking about resolutions for the New Year," said Shauna Parsons, owner of Evergreen Basement Systems. "I want you to also think about checking your home for radon. Unless your home were tested for this gas, you would not know it is a present, active and harmful part of your life until it is too late." Radon in a building is measured by picocuries per liter (pCi/L).

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recommends mitigating any building with a radon measurement at or above 4.0 picocuries per liter. When a building's radon levels are found to be unhealthy, a radon mitigation system is specially designed to effectively reduce the levels to a healthier amount. Radon abatement methods can keep radon from entering a house, including soil suction, which draw the radon from below the basement or crawl space floor and push it outside. Some other radon mitigation techniques include sealing, house/room pressurization, heat recovery ventilation, and natural ventilation.

Evergreen Basement Systems is western Virginia's expert basement waterproofing, crawl space, sump pump installation and foundation repair contractor. Evergreen's radon mitigation systems use sub-slab depressurization to reduce radon levels. A PVC pipe collects soil gasses, radon is piped upwards in the building, and then a radon depressurization vent forces radon out of the house.