Description
Should I be concerned with Radon in my drinking water?
Not all drinking water contains radon. If your drinking water comes from a surface water source, such as a river, lake or reservoir, most radon that might be in the water will be released into the air before reaching your water supplier or home. Radon is only a concern if your drinking water comes from underground, such as a well that pumps water from an aquifer, though not all water from underground sources contains Radon. The only way to know if you have Radon in your water is to test.
My neighbor has a well and they do not have Radon. So do I need to test my well?
Yes, you should test your well water. Just because your neighbor doesn’t have Radon doesn’t mean you won’t. You cannot see, smell or taste radon. You don’t know what you are breathing unless you test.
What is the level that I want my well water to be under?
There is currently no federally enforced drinking water standard for radon. A few states have set levels at which you should take action. Please contact your state’s radon office or public health department for more information.
I’ve tested my well water and it shows I have Radon in my water. What choices do I have to fix it?
If after testing your private well and the results show that you have a high level of radon in your drinking water you may want to remove the radon before the water enters your home. There are two types of systems that do this.
Aeration systems bubble air through the water and carry radon gas out into the atmosphere through an exhaust fan.
Granular activated carbon filters which use activated carbon to remove the radon. These filters tend to cost less however radioactivity collects on the filter, which may cause a handling hazard and require special disposal methods for the filter.
I live in a state with no Rn in H2O mitigation recommendations. What do I do?
There is no federally enforced regulation for radon in drinking water. A few states have set their own guidelines or regulations regarding radon in drinking water. Please contact your state or local public health department, or state radon program director for more information.
