Radon Testing

Century Home Inspections has certified Radon Testing Inspectors that are prepared to do your Radon screening for you. Typical Radon screening takes two days to collect samples and one to two days to get lab results, not including weekends. The process takes two trips, the first to set the sample collection devices and the second to pickup the devices.

We also provide educational materials and advice on Radon Abatement Companies in your area who we recommend. Please keep in mind that we have no direct affiliation or are we compensated in anyway for our recommendations. We just want to help you make the best choice of Radon Abatement contractors.

See the Citizen’s Guide to Radon and the Consumers Guide to Radon Reduction as well as the EPA’s Home Buyer’s Guide to Radon for complete information about. Do not hesitate to call our office at 443-537-8823 with any questions or concerns.

Radon Test

According to the EPA, Radon gas is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the USA. Radon is an invisible gas that seeps into any building through cracks in the foundation, open sump pump crocks or exposed crawl spaces. The ill effects are not felt immediately but rather further down the road.

The good news is that Radon is easy to test for and affordable to eliminate in your house. Century Home Inspection has performed over 250 radon tests in the last two years in affiliation with the leading Radon lab in the USA, RA Data.

The test time is 48 hours and takes two trips to perform with results usually coming by dinnertime the third day. We can offer interpretation and advice on how to fix a problem if one is found.

During Covid-19 restricted times, we follow all necessary protocols to remain safe and sanitary including masks, gloves and disinfectants. We will be in your house twice for 5 minutes at a time.

Announcement 

New Legislation:

Montgomery County Council voted through Bill No. 26-22 that requires the following:

As passed, the bill requires a landlord to conduct radon testing for units below the third floor because most indoor radon comes from naturally occurring radon in the soil, high indoor levels are more likely to exist below the third floor. That a multifamily dwelling housing that has direct soil contact with the earth is more susceptible to radon exposure and requires testing; therefore, the bill is a more targeted, narrow approach with 100% testing of ground-contact units in multifamily buildings. 

Legislation FAQ

Q) Who must test?

• Any and all ground-contact or basement unit(s) of a residential rental housing that has a unit below the third floor (basement, 1st and 2nd floor) in:
  • a single-family home; or
  •  a multifamily dwelling 

Q) How long is a test good for?

• A landlord of a single-family home or multifamily dwelling building must conduct a radon test before leasing a unit to a prospective tenant. Test results must be within three (3) years
  before the date of the lease.

Q) When do I test? 

• All unoccupied units must be tested before leasing with results provided to the tenant at lease signing.  Occupied units are tested at the tenant’s discretion at their expense.

Q) What must be provided at lease signing? 

•  At lease signing, the tenant will be provided the following:

  •  a copy of radon test results that indicates any concentration of radon is below the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) recommended action level of 4 picocuries per liter (pCi/L);

  • the radon test was performed less than three (3) years before the date of the lease;

  • a copy of the EPA’s pamphlet on radon guide for tenants or an equivalent pamphlet approved for use by the Department of Environmental Protection. The copy of the pamphlet may be an electronic link to the applicable website, or if requested by the tenant, a hard copy.

Q) Do I test occupied units?

•  An existing tenant, at their expense, may conduct a radon test or hire a radon professional to test a dwelling unit covered by this Section. If the test results indicate that radon hazard is present at a level of 4 pCi/L or higher, the tenant must:

  • in writing; and

  • within 14 days after the test results, notify the landlord and provide the landlord a copy of the test results.

Q) How is radon mitigated?

• A landlord who receives notice from a tenant it must:

  •  within 14 days after notice, initiate a follow-up radon test, in accordance with EPA-recommended standards for testing, to confirm any presence of radon hazard; 

  •  within 90 days after confirmed results, mitigate, repair, or alter the premises to reduce the radon level to 2 pCi/L or below the action level of 4 Ci/L; 

  • provide the tenant with a final copy of test results performed by a radon professional that indicates radon has been reduced below the action level.

  • unoccupied units that test positive for radon must be remediated and test negative before move in.

Q) How do I Resolve a Dispute in Test Results?

• If there is a case of conflicting test results, where the test result provided by a tenant is at or above the action level and a test result by a landlord is below the action level, the following applies to determine the prevailing test results:

  • testing performed in compliance with the EPA-recommended standard, by a radon professional (for hire) must supersede tests not performed by a radon professional;

  • if both tests are performed by radon professionals, long-term testing results must supersede short-term test results; or

  • if both tests are equally valid, as specified in subsections (1) and (2), and the dispute remains, then a mutually agreed upon third-party radon professional must retest in accordance with EPA recommended standards.

Q) Who is responsible for the cost of the radon testing?

• All follow up testing is the responsibility of the landlord.  Initial testing on occupied units is the responsibility of the tenant.  All initial testing for unoccupied units is the responsibility of the landlord.

Q) Is other action required after a positive radon test result?

• A landlord must disclose in writing to each tenant in a residential rental building, within 14 days after a confirmed radon test, any elevated radon concentrations (above EPA’s recommended radon action level) that are known to be present within the dwelling.

Q) Can a lease be terminated because of high radon levels?

• A tenant may have the option has the right to terminate a lease agreement, if the landlord fails to mitigate, without loss of security deposit or any other financial penalty. A tenant must provide the landlord notice of the intent to terminate the lease and vacate the premises.

Q) What is the effective date of the of the new radon testing requirements?

• July 1, 2023.