Radon mitigation techniques for basement houses with poor sub-slab communication

This paper reports that while the sub-slab depressurization technique is widely used to mitigate basement houses, these are instances for which this method is not a viable option. For example, in some houses the slab is poured directly on the soil resulting in poor-to-nonexistent communication under the slab. To apply SSD methods require elaborate plumbing and multiple suction holes in the slab. In an effort to develop viable alternatives, EPA has funded research to explore other radon mitigation options. Case studies will be presented that include: basement pressurization with and without heat extraction, and filtration using charcoal. In the first, air from the upper portion of the house was forced into the basement producing a pressure barrier at the slab/soil interface. In one case the heat was extracted from the upstairs air using a heat pump device to supply hot water for the occupants. The air filtration method used a bed of charcoal to remove the radon gas. The charcoal bed was flushed with outside air to extract the radon before complete decay to the radon daughters took place