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Virtual House
Our virtual house is a cutaway drawing of a radon reduction system installation.
By clicking on the name tags you will see actual photos of a combination sub-slab & sub-membrane suction system installation and finished product.
Descriptions
Block wall foundations:
Can be a major source of radon entry, tops of block walls should be capped or sealed when possible. Block walls usually require multiple suction points.
Crawl:
Dirt and gravel crawl spaces are covered and sealed to prevent radon entry. Sealing crawls can also help reduce dust, molds and humidity in the home. For more go to Crawl Spaces .
Cold Joint:
The point were the foundation wall and floor meet is one of the primary sources of radon entry on poured concrete foundations. Accessible cold joints are cleaned and caulked.
Exhaust:
A few of the exhaust requirements are, located above the eave, minimum of 10 feet off the ground, 10 feet horizontally from windows or doors or a minimum of 2 feet above a window or door if above the edge of the roof and within 10 feet from doors or windows.
All our exhaust openings are protected with a stainless steel screen to prevent debris from falling into the fan. CAP OR COVERS ARE NOT ALLOWED ON EXHAUSTS. Rain will not hurt the fan, use of cap or covers will increase the amount of moisture inside the radon piping, hamper performance and void our warranty. All exhausts should point upwards.
Fan:
Our fans are specifically designed for radon reduction systems, have 5 year warranties and a life expectancy of over 12 years. Fan sizes and performance can vary but over the years we have found two models that have performed exceptionally well.
Fire Collars:
The purpose of fire collars is to help prevent a fire in the garage from spreading into the living area or attic of the home through the radon piping. Unfortunately at the time of creating this web page it is not mandatory to install fire collars on all systems penetrating garage walls, however at VSI Radon Reduction Corp. we feel the benefits of this device far outweigh the cost and install fire collars in garages on all installations. We have a picture of one of our systems after a garage fire was started by a space heater too close to combustible products, the drywall has already been removed but you can clearly see the fire collar still attached at the ceiling and the twisted radon pipe next to the heater, the fire collar has been highlighted.
Floor Drains:
Although most floor drains are trapped just like your sink drains, not all are. If your floor drain holds water it is probably not a source of radon, some drains can dry out, check your drain with a flashlight, you may need to pour water into the drain and wait 5 minutes, if no water is present your drain will need to be sealed. At VSI Radon Reduction Corp. we carry several different styles and sizes of drain traps in our trucks to fit most drains, the traps allow water to drain while preventing radon from passing through.
Piping:
The main run of radon pipe, from floor to exhaust is always a minimum of 3″ schedule 40 pvc pipe as required by Illinois law. A minimum of 3″ pipe is used to reduce air flow restrictions caused by smaller pipes and allow for proper drainage. Secondary pipe runs can be a smaller pipe size, but we never use less than 2″ pipe. Larger size pipe may be needed although this is rare.
Sumps:
If you don’t know what a sump pit is, consider yourself lucky. There are two types of sump pits – dry and waiting to overflow. Sump pits are designed to collect ground (rain) water from under and around the foundation through a network of drain tiles, the water is then pumped outside or into a storm sewer. Sump water should never pump into the septic or city sewer system. For more on sealing Sumps. If the sump is the only means of water relief then a trapped drain must be installed in the lid, otherwise where would the water go if you had a pipe leak or flood.
U-Tube:
Indicates that your radon fan is operating by measuring the amount of suction created by the fan. The u-tube DOES NOT measure radon levels. Other types of indicators are available but we have found the u-tube to be simple and reliable. Some type of system indicator is required on all active radon systems
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