Radon quebec is a radio-active gas that have agonizing health hazards when present in high levels in the atmosphere. However, it naturally occurs in relatively small quantities in the atmosphere that are harmless. This gas is odorless, colorless and thus very hard to detect with our natural senses. This make it easier for it to accumulate indoors in places such as basements or low living areas.

At room temperature it's generally heavy, turns into a brilliant phosphorescent yellow below freezing point and when in liquid it changes to red-orange. Generally, radon concentration is higher in ground waters and in the soil. It finds its way into our houses through cracks or openings on the floor more so in the basements and keeps on accumulating. Basically, you may never notice its presence until it becomes very toxic causing sever health problems such as cancer or even death.

The dangers of radon were quite unknown to many before the mid 80's and it's until then that it was discovered to be a threat in our homes. High radiation levels in a nuclear plant of Limerick Pennsylvania were actually triggered by the presence of this gas in the area. This concentration was compared to the impact of smoking more than 130 cigarettes a day.

Did you know that a simple thing as taking a bath in a hot spring can actually expose you to this gas? Well, as crazy as it may sound, it's the simple truth. Countries like Germany, Japan or the U.S are the leading places with hot-springs rich in radium that can expose you to this gas. Basically, keeping check of this gas often would actually be the best way in combating it.

Radon Test

With all the different models of radon test kit for home use in the market today, it can be quite a task to choose the right test for your home use. In fact, unless you read through carefully on the information available on the tests, you might end up buying one that will not give you the right results. Nevertheless, there are two main groups of this test devices today i.e passive and active ones.

The passive test kits do not require any form of power source to function. They include chemical compounds that reveals the presence of alpha particles. Basically this process relies on using charcoal canisters and liquid detectors with scintillation properties. However, this can not be used in just every house since it's more likely to be affected by high levels of moisture.

This charcoal radon test kits are short-term in nature and are exposed only up to to three days in the areas of the house where radio active elements are suspected to accumulate. For active test kits, a power source is required for them to function. Nevertheless, they give detailed information on radon variation throughout the entire testing period. In fact, some models are so advanced that they detect any interference that may arise.

Long-term radon test kits can be used for a minimum period of three months and this can be extended to a period of one year. Commonly used type of this kits include alpha track detectors and electric ion chamber detectors. If you choose the long-term method, it's also advisable to combine it with short-term period. This way you'll have immediate as well as extended results.