Radon gas is produced when uranium in soil and rock decays. Exposure to high radon levels in your home is a health risk. In fact, it is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the United States. Radon gas is odorless, tasteless, colorless and sneaky. It enters your home through cracks and pores in the foundation. When people test their home for radon and find high levels, the first instinct is to find out how to fix the problem yourself. Radon mitigiation is the best way to reduce levels but we are often asked, since it enters through cracks, does caulking lower radon levels?

Does Caulking Lower Radon Levels?

The short answer for this is… kinda. The EPA says that, “sealing cracks and other openings in the foundation is a basic part of most approaches to radon reduction. EPA does not recommend the use of sealing alone to reduce radon because, by itself, sealing has not been shown to lower radon levels significantly or consistently.”  This means that sealing cracks and areas surrounding construction joints or pipes can help lower radon levels when done along with a radon mitigation system. However,  caulking throughout the basement will not be enough to remove the risk of radon exposure in your home.

The EPA recommends that radon levels in your home should not exceed 4.0 pCi/L. The World Health Organization (WHO) has a lower recommendation of 2.7 pCi/L. The only way to reduce the radon levels below these levels is to install a radon mitigation system.  We guarantee that radon levels will be below 2.7 after we install a radon mitigation system. Post installation we will also perform a smoke test to determine if there are cracks that need to be sealed. Areas that need attention will be sealed on the day of installation.

The first step is testing your home for radon. Simply fill out the form on this page to get started. If you have already tested and have high levels, we offer a free radon mitigation bid. In many cases, one of our radon specialists can do this for you over the phone after asking a series of questions. Call us at 801-871-0715 to get started.