Airtech Offers Radon Solutions for Social Housing

Ventilation specialists Airtech Environmental Systems are supporting the currently ongoing UK Radon Awareness Week.

Taking place from 5 – 11 November and run by the UK Radon Association, the theme for the 2018 campaign is Healthy Living.

The focus is on raising awareness of how radon can affect all aspects of life, from home to workplaces.

Airtech offers social housing providers a complete solution to help protect residents from the risks caused by Radon gas in the home.

Domestic exposure to radon increases the risk of lung cancer, with 1,000 to 2,000 deaths each year estimated to be caused by exposure to the gas.

Since Landlords have a responsibility to their tenants, under Duty of Care and the Housing Act, to provide a safe home, radon is a major consideration for social housing providers.

Vitally, Airtech has 30 years of experience in radon prevention and can provide a complete range of products and services, from radon testing to full remediation of housing stock.

A naturally occurring colourless, odourless radioactive gas, radon disperses harmlessly into the air outdoors.

However, once indoors, finding its way through gaps and cracks in floors and walls, it may build up to potentially harmful levels.

Every building has radon and in most areas the levels are low – but some buildings in ‘radon Affected Areas’ have higher levels.

Buildings in these areas need to be tested for radon but high levels can be reduced with simple measures.

At Airtech, the company offers social housing providers peace of mind it can effectively test housing stock for radon through an efficiently organised programme.

This will make sure all required properties are tested within necessary time scales and ensure accurate testing Airtech leave test pods in properties for a three-month period to help ensure correct radon readings are collected.

Jeremy Cleeter, sales director at Airtech Environmental Systems, explained: “We always recommend testing first using our radon detectors which are small unobtrusive pods which are placed in your property for up to 3 months.

“The pods are then analysed by our laboratory to determine the Radon level in a property expressed in Becquerels per cubic metre (Bq/m3).

“Once tested if a home is above 200Bq/m3 then we will advise remediation measures.”

The action level set by the UK Government for homes is 200Bq/m3; if a home’s radon level exceeds this, PHE (Public Health England) recommends action be taken to reduce the level.

If remediation is needed, Airtech recommends an appropriate solution to fit the levels of radon present – this could be installing positive input ventilation (PIV), which forces contaminated air out of a home by introducing fresh air into the property.

Another scenario could be, in properties with very high levels of radon they may need to have an active radon sump, fitting a fan.

Sumps work effectively under solid floors, and under suspended floors if the ground is covered with concrete or a membrane.

The amount of radon gas released varies massively, depending on where you live – it is more likely to be found in areas where the geology features concentrations of granite and limestone.

Airtech has played a big role in radon preventative measures for many years in Devon and Cornwall, where Radon levels are naturally very high.

It has worked to help lower the radon levels in properties nationwide. Social housing providers can be assured that Airtech can offer a complete solution to radon prevention.