If you are buying a home, it's incredibly important that you have the home tested for radon. It's a gas that could be seeping into your home without you knowing it, and can be quite dangerous for your health. Here are a few key things to know about radon gas.

Radon Gas Is Radioactive

The reason that radon gas is so bad for people is that it is radioactive. This means that radon gas has the potential to cause lung cancer if it is breathed in for a long time. This is very possible if radon gas is getting into a home since that is where many people spend most of their time, and the gas can easily become trapped inside.

Radon Gas Is Unavoidable In Small Doses

Be aware that radon gas is something that you cannot avoid entirely. This is because it forms naturally in the ground by other materials found in the earth's crust. However, that low level of radon gas is not going to be harmful to you. It's the high levels of radon gas that you need to be concerned about. The Environmental Protection Agency only recommends that you take steps to mitigate radon gas if it is found in qualities of 4 pCi/L or more. 

Radon Gas Is Easy To Test For

While you likely have no idea how much a picocurie per liter is, there are thankfully easy ways to test for radon gas to let you know if you have safe levels. You can pick up a radon test kit from your local home improvement store and send the sample to a lab to have it tested. The test works by placing a test kit in your home at the lowest level that you occupy—typically somewhere like the basement—and leaving the kit open and exposed to the air for a specific amount of time. You then seal the kit and send it off to a lab to get the official results. You can also call and hire a professional to test the radon levels for you and get immediate results. 

Radon Gas Can Be Mitigated 

If you do have high levels of radon in your home, know that it is possible to fix the problem. You can have a ventilation system installed that will take those dangerous radon gasses and push them out of your home before you can breathe them in.