A test of radon service providers available on the Internet

Indoor Air. 2008 Aug;18(4):346-8. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-0668.2008.00535.x. Epub 2008 May 22.

Abstract

With the announcement of the Government of Canada's Radon Guideline and increased public awareness of radon risk, more and more Canadians wish to test their homes for radon. Radon service providers available on the Internet have attracted many homeowners' attention. These services provide an easy and less expensive way for homeowners to test radon levels in their homes. However, a question has frequently been asked, 'How reliable are the radon testing services available on the Internet?' To answer this question, we ordered 36 radon testing kits from 10 service providers on the Internet. The test results showed that online radon testing services could collectively meet the performance requirement. However, the quality of a few service providers needs to be improved.

Practical implications: Indoor radon tests were performed with detectors ordered from 10 service providers available on the Internet. The results showed that online radon testing services could collectively meet the performance requirement. However, the quality of a few service providers needs to be improved.

Publication types

  • Evaluation Study

MeSH terms

  • Canada
  • Commerce*
  • Environmental Monitoring / instrumentation*
  • Environmental Monitoring / standards
  • Equipment Design
  • Housing
  • Internet*
  • Quality Control
  • Radon / analysis*
  • Sensitivity and Specificity

Substances

  • Radon