Our client was the landlord of this family home in Staffordshire where radon testing had been carried out at the tenant’s request.
The property is two storey detached home which had been extended approximately 8 years previously.
The radon testing, carried out by others, revealed concentrations of approximately 1000 Bq/m3 in
the ground floor living room and 500 Bq/m3 in the first-floor master bedroom.
Under the Housing Health & Safety Rating System (HHSRS), which forms part of The
Housing Act 2004, landlords are legally obliged to carry out repairs to properties where a hazard to the
health or safety of the tenant has been identified. Radon is specifically included in the list of hazards to be considered.
“When renting a property, it’s important that all health & safety risks are identified and dealt
with, not just the obvious ones like having the boiler serviced.”
Charles Edwards
Managing Director, propertECO
During our survey, it was noted that there were airbricks to the front of the property but none to the rear, where an extension had been added. Diagnostic profiling was used to take a number of comparative ‘grab sample’ readings, which revealed the highest levels of intrusion in the living room but elevated levels throughout the property.
Due to the differing floor construction and sub-floor compartmentalisation as a result of the extension, we specified a dual-spur retrofit sump. The benefit of this design is that gas can be drawn from beneath the original building and extension but only one fan is required.
Our engineers carried out the works over the course of one day, completing all drilling, electrical and making-good works.
As with all our sump installations, a RadonAway fan was specified along with a condensation trap and drain to divert any condensation formed within the pipework away from the fan.
Our client was left satisfied with the reduction in radon levels now 31 Bq/m3.
If radon testing has been requested by your tenant or you have had radon testing carried out for any other reason, and the readings show that there are high concentration levels of radon, then you will need a specialist to carry out a survey.
PropertECO has fully trained and experienced surveyors who can provide have a range of mitigation options to help reduce the radon levels below the target level. Don’t hesitate to contact PropertECO by calling on 0800 046 6193 or you can contact us online.