Radon Saga, Part II

Read Part I here.

Now that we know our brand-new house is trying to KILL US, what do we do next?  Sadly, the answer isn't "I'm going to Disneyland!", but it's almost as expensive!  (In actual fact, once you consider the cost of seven tickets, two motel rooms, gas, food, and everything else, fixing the radon problem is significantly less expensive than going to Disneyland.  And significantly less fun, as well.)

Radon mitigation in an already-completed structure involves creating a vacuum in the soil beneath the foundation, which sucks the radon gas up through a pipe, through the attic, and expels it outside.  This is done by drilling a four inch hole in the foundation, creating a void about the size of a basketball, and closing it off with said PVC pipe.  In our case, this hole will be drilled in our basement utility room.  The pipe will run up to the ceiling of the utility room, turn slightly to get through the garage wall, and run up the side of the garage to the attic.  The fan, which creates the vacuum, will be installed in the attic with the vent on the backside of the roof, where the evil air, laden with radioactive gas, will be expelled from our home FOREVER.

This will cost us approximately $1350.  (Which is not chump change, but considering our initial fears, it's not too bad.)

There is a small possibility that we will have to have two vacuum systems, on either side of the house.  If that is the case, then the second would run through my closet or the laundry room, and then out through Mema's garage.  The contractor was hopeful, though, that this won't be necessary.  Considering it will be...well...twice as expensive, I sure hope not as well.

The fan runs constantly (or else the vacuum will dissipate), and hopefully we won't really notice it.  We'll need to monitor the indicator on the pipe, to make sure it is always working.  Additionally, we have to test for radon every two years, to make sure nothing is broken or leaking.

Small price to pay, all told, for not having a carcinogen infiltrating our house.  Hopefully, we'll be able to get this all done next week or the week following.  And when that happens, we'll have Part III of our little radon saga.