Building or buying a new home? Here are the radon-resistant features the EPA says builders should include, and what to ask for.
Independent referral service. We don't perform the work ourselves.
Source: EPA, Radon-Resistant Construction Basics and Techniques.
The EPA says the builder's cost of including these features is typically less than the cost to mitigate after construction, and a buyer may ask the builder to include them if they aren't standard. If a home is tested after move-in and high radon is found, the owner's cost to fix it can be much more. In the Black Hills, more than half of reported tests were at or above 4 pCi/L (local data), so test even a new home once you've moved in. If a passive system needs a fan, a local mitigation pro can activate it; use the form above.
The EPA describes five basic features: a gas-permeable layer such as 4 inches of clean, coarse gravel under the slab; heavy-duty plastic sheeting over it; a 3- or 4-inch PVC vent pipe from below the slab through the roof, labeled Radon System; sealing and caulking foundation openings; and an electrical junction box in the attic for a future fan.
The EPA says the cost to the builder of including radon-resistant features is typically less than the cost to mitigate the home after construction.
Yes. The EPA's junction box feature exists in case testing shows a more robust, fan-powered system is needed, and SD DANR says the only way to know a building's radon level is to test.