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Monday, June 3, 2013

What's the big deal?


We had a second test of our house for Radon. The first test was done in the basement and showed that we needed mitigation. The second test was done in the house proper and showed that we do not need mitigation – unless we are going to spend a lot of time in the basement.

This is possible – there will be a lot of stuff down there and we are fortunate that it is very big. We also have a lot of space over our – ahem – ‘carriage house’ which of course is really just a garage – and I imagine is called a ‘carriage house ‘ only by Realtors. This space above the garage is apparently called a loft.

Both these spaces together are much bigger than the basement we had in Vienna so we will be able to spread our stuff out a bit and make it more negotiable and indeed I may be able to occasionally find things when I need them.

Did I mention that before moving Cate got rid of some towels. Not many – mind you - and we still have a fine collection – just not as many as before.

Anyway – we are going ahead with the Radon mitigation mainly because we don’t understand it and just because everyone has it does not seem to be a good reason to allow it to lurk under the basement floor. The Radon man will come on Tuesday week to drill holes in the basement floor and walls so that the Radon will be sucked out of the house and blown onto the neighbors.

At the same time they are no doubt sucking it out of their basements and blowing it on us so it would seem to be a zero-sum game – except that we probably have more Radon than them so have a slight edge. 

I imagine in  a year or so we will be as blasé as everyone else about Radon ‘Radon? Sure – everyone has Radon – what’s the big deal?’

6 comments:

  1. The problem with the Radon is the build-up in confined spaces. Basements and attics/lofts. I suspect he meant if you were to build a space for living in the basement, rec room, finished basement with extra bedroom, Dracula room for Austrian guests. If it were me I would get it done and that would be the end of it, no problems when you resell either.

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  2. Dracula room for Austrian guests? Oh well, we've been called worse! ;-)

    Since I have no one anymore to have coffee with I am now reduced to "steal" pictures of other people's coffee cups (as in today's post). Everything went down the drain since you left (literally, causing massive floods up and down the Danube river!).

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  3. I like your idea that when everyone gets rid of their radon by dumping it on their neighbor you just get somebody else's radioactivity. Perhaps thats why it has 'active' as part of its name.

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  4. OMG! Do we have Radon in Australia??????

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  5. fmcgmccllc: Yes we are getting it down immediately. I do not wish to have any radon around me at all.

    Merisi: You could take some duck pics now that I am not there.

    esb: It's too active for me.

    Sandy: Happily I think not.

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