Radon Gas Causes Lung Cancer

Breathing radon gas in your home is the second leading cause of lung cancer in Canada. That is according to Health Canada that completed a study about a year ago.

In other words you have a better chance of developing lung cancer from breathing radon gas in your home than you do from breathing second hand smoke. Now does that not put it in perspective?

The problem with radon is that you cannot sense it by ordinary means. You can’t smell it. You can’t taste it. But it is there. Some areas of Ottawa have higher concentrations than others, but it is likely in your house regardless. You can test for radon if you like. There are many different ways to test for radon… the simplest is to use a do-it-yourself kit. These kit are easy to use. Simply place the kit in your basement for a couple of days, then send the kit off to be tested at a lab… and in a few weeks, you’ll have you answer as to what levels of concentration you actually have in your home.

Where you ask does radon come from? Radon is a carcinogenic gas that is under high pressure under ground. The gas is the result of rock formations (underground) breaking down. It is constantly pushing its way above ground to an area of lower pressure. When it does this and the radon is extracted outside of our homes, then it simply moves up in the atmosphere and poses no immediate threat to us. However, when it pushes its way into our homes then it gets trapped. And given that we are building our homes tighter and tighter all the time, that radon has little opportunity to escape naturally, through holes/infiltration in our home’s building envelope. We are simply trapping radon in our homes and, for lack of a better term, writing our own death certificate!

So whether you have high levels or low levels of radon gas in your home, you will want to remove them ASAP! There are two general ways to get rid of radon gas from your home:

The first method to remedy radon gas is to install a radon extractor. This things looks kind of like a chimney coming out of our basement concrete slab floor. The “chimney” creates a low pressure are for the radon to funnel towards. the radon is then pushed to this area, and delivered outside the house. This system works well, is not mechanical (so no moving parts), but it can be cumbersome and unsightly in some circumstances.

The second, and my personal favorite because it also solves so many other issues, is to install a Heat Recovery Ventilator (HRV)… commonly called and air exchanger. An HRV is a ventilation system that will send polluted “inside” air out, and will bring fresh “outdoor” air into the home. Though while it is changing the air, it is recovering the heat. In essence, you change the air, but don’t lose the heat. The HRV will dilute the polluted indoor “radon filled” air by exhausting it to outside.

There are many other things that a HRV does as well… from removing humidity, air borne chemicals, particulate, viruses among others. An HRV is also one of the best means of fixing issues that lead to mold growth.

For more information please message me at jchapin@climateworks.ca or visit us at www.climateworks.ca.

 

Please leave me a comment and let me know if this content was helpful and/or enriched your life. I strive to educate people so that they can make informed decisions. I enjoy writing this stuff, and enjoy the feedback even more!

 

Indoor Air Quality Testing in Ottawa

The average Canadian spends over 90% of their time indoors.

The first time I heard that statistic I said “No way!” Not me… I’m an outdoor kind of guy. I’m outside all the time, whether it’s walking the dog, working in the yard, or out dirt-biking with the boys… I’m outside. There’s no way I spend that much time inside.

Well…. do the math. If I leave the house at 7am to head to work, and I get home from work around 6pm or so… and I don’t leave the house until the following morning, then that’s 12+ hours at home… inside… that alone is 50% of the time. When I’m at the office I’m inside… at my martial arts dojo, I’m inside… doing sales quotes in other people’s homes, again… inside. It adds up very quickly.

But what does this all mean? The air that we are breathing is often very poor quality air.

As we build our houses tighter and tighter… more energy efficient, and cheaper to heat, we are in fact trapping the contaminants, chemicals, particulates, and otherwise polluted air in our homes. Many of these carcinogenic pollutants are undetectable. We cannot small them or taste them and most of the time, we have no idea that they are even in our homes.

Let me come and do a free indoor air quality assessment for you. If you live in the greater Ottawa area, I will pay you a visit on my dime. If we find nothing, you can rest your mind. If we do find issues, we will explore possible causes for the IAQ (Indoor Air Quality) problems. Some of these problems may be solved by changing habits, small changes… for little to no cost. Some solutions may be addressed by installing an air purification system, a ventilation system, such as an HRV (Heat Recovery Ventilator) and/or by tempering humidity in the house. And as you guessed it, we do install these items.

 

Call me at 613-292-9573 for your free indoor air quality assessment.

John Chapin

www.climateworks.ca

 

Please leave me a comment and let me know if you found this content helpful. I strive to educate people so that they can make informed decisions. I enjoy writing this stuff, and enjoy the feedback even more. Cheers!