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How to Test for Radon in Your Home (DIY and Professional)

The short version. There are two honest ways to test for radon in your home: run a store-bought kit yourself (about $20, mail it in, get a number back in a week), or hire someone to place a sealed 48-hour monitor (that's what we do at$295 flat). Both measure the same gas and get compared to the same EPA action level (4.0 pCi/L — the level where the EPA says to fix your home). The right pick depends on what the number is for.

This page walks through each way step-by-step in the order things actually happen — so you can pick the one that fits your situation and run it right.

4.0pCi/L

EPA action level

48hrs

minimum test time

12hrs

close-up prep before the test starts

Two Ways In One Paragraph

The Two Paths, in One Paragraph

A DIY test uses a short-term charcoal kit (2 to 7 days) or a long-term alpha-track detector (90 days to a year) — you place it, you mail it to a lab, and you get one number back. A professional test uses a sealed electronic monitor that records the radon level hour by hour for 48 hours, plus temperature, humidity, and motion; the tester retrieves it and an independent lab scores it. Both measure the same gas against the same "fix it" line. Which one to use depends on what the number is for. For the full head-to-head, see home radon test kits vs. professional testing — this page focuses on how to actually run each one.

Do It Yourself

How to Run a Home Radon Test Kit Correctly

A charcoal or alpha-track kit gives a real number as long as you use it the way the box says. These are the five steps people skip and later regret. Run them in order and your kit result will hold up as a first-pass screen.

  • Step 1 — Buy a kit that mails to an approved lab. The Alabama Department of Public Health keeps a list of approved radon labs. Any kit that mails to one of them (or names the lab clearly on the box) is a legitimate starting point. Short-term charcoal kits (2 to 7 days) run about $15–30 plus a lab fee. Long-term alpha-track kits (90 days to a year) are in the same ballpark. Before you open it, check the "use by" date on the sealed canister — charcoal kits lose accuracy as they age.
  • Step 2 — Close the house up for 12 hours before you start.Keep windows and outside doors shut (the trade calls this "closed-house conditions" — windows and outside doors kept shut). Your heat or A/C runs normally. You can still open a door to walk in and out. What's not allowed: a whole-house fan, propped-open windows, or an open fireplace damper. This 12-hour settling period lets the air in your house reach a steady radon level so the test can measure what's really there.
  • Step 3 — Put the kit in the right spot. Lowest lived-in floor of the house. At least 20 inches off the floor. At least 3 feet from any outside wall, window, or door. Clear of any heating or A/C vent. Not in a bathroom, kitchen, or laundry room (humidity and airflow throw off the reading). Sitting on a shelf, table, or dresser is fine; hanging from a string is fine; taping it to a wall is not. Once it's placed, leave the room and don't move it for the whole test.
  • Step 4 — Keep the house closed up for the full test. For a charcoal kit that's usually 2 to 7 days — the box will tell you exactly. For an alpha-track detector (90 days to a year), closed-house rules the whole time aren't practical, and that's fine — long-term tests are designed to average across your normal daily use of the house. For any short-term kit, keep windows and outside doors shut until the test is done.
  • Step 5 — Reseal and mail it right away, then compare to 4.0 pCi/L. Charcoal starts losing radon as soon as the test ends; reseal it in the window the instructions say (usually the same day) and drop it in the mail. When the lab result comes back — usually about a week — compare the number to 4.0 pCi/L (the level where EPA says to fix your home). At or above, EPA and ADPH say fix the home. Between 2 and 4 pCi/L, they say think about fixing it. Below 2, no action is required — though EPA is honest that no indoor level is fully "safe."

A single kit result is a snapshot. If yours comes back close to 4.0, the honest next step is a second test — seewhat to do with a 2 to 4 pCi/L result.

Hire A Pro

How a Professional Radon Test Works

A professional test does the same core job as a kit — measure the radon in your house over a set window — but adds hour-by-hour data, tamper detection, and an independent lab reading. Here's what actually happens, step by step:

  • Step 1 — Schedule and close the house up. You (or your agent, if this is for a home sale) pick a 48-hour window that fits the timeline. Closed-house conditions (windows and outside doors kept shut) start 12 hours before the tester arrives. Same rules as the DIY test.
  • Step 2 — The tester places a sealed monitor. They set up a calibrated continuous radon monitor on your lowest lived-in floor, following the same placement rules (20 inches off the floor, 3 feet from outside walls and windows, clear of HVAC vents). The monitor is sealed and tamper-evident — it logs motion, temperature, and humidity right alongside the radon readings.
  • Step 3 — The 48-hour test runs. The monitor records the radon level hour by hour for two full days. No mail-in delay, no charcoal chemistry to preserve, no risk of the sample going bad in transit.
  • Step 4 — The tester picks up the monitor. After 48 hours (or longer, if you want extra confidence), the tester comes back, retrieves the unit, and downloads the sealed log. Every hour of the test, any tamper flags, and proof that the house stayed closed up are all on the record.
  • Step 5 — Independent lab reads it and you get a report. The data goes to a lab — not us — to be scored. The tester never grades their own test. Your report shows the hourly readings, the overall 48-hour average, any tamper flags, and where that number lands relative to 4.0 pCi/L (the "fix it" line). That's the report a buyer, seller, insurer, or lender can rely on.

Our fee in the Birmingham metro is $295 flat — sealed monitor, 48-hour minimum, lab-scored report, no mitigation upsell. Seethe full cost page for what's included,how long the whole process takes, and the deeper writeup.

Which Path Fits

Which Path Fits When

The short version: a properly deployed kit is a legitimate screening test in a home you own and plan to keep. A professional test is the right call whenever the number will be shared with a third party or acted on financially.

  • Screening a home you already live in and plan to keep: a kit is fine. A long-term alpha-track detector is the strongest kit choice because it averages across seasons.
  • Real-estate transaction — buying or selling: professional test. The number needs to be defensible under a 10-day inspection contingency, and a kit cannot carry the chain of custody or the hourly log the deal will want.
  • Post-mitigation verification: professional test. After paying for a mitigation system, the homeowner needs defensible proof it worked.
  • Prior result close to 4.0 pCi/L or disputed: professional test. The honest next step for a borderline reading is a monitored confirming test with hourly data.
  • Recent renovation, HVAC change, foundation work, or basement finishing: either path works, but a professional test is the cleaner baseline for the "after" state.

For the full head-to-head — data granularity, tamper detection, real-estate defensibility, cost — seeradon kits vs. professional testing.

Ready for a professional radon test? $295 flat, metro-wide.

Call (205) 000-0000See the levels chart

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I test for radon myself without hiring anyone?

Yes. A short-term charcoal or long-term alpha-track kit run correctly gives a real number. The two things a DIY test cannot do are prove that closed-building conditions were kept and record hourly data — which is why the ANSI/AARST protocol used for real-estate transactions requires a professional continuous monitor. For a home you own and plan to keep, a properly deployed kit is a legitimate first pass.

How long does closed-house prep have to run before the test starts?

Closed-building conditions begin 12 hours before the test starts and continue through the full test period. Windows and exterior doors stay closed, though the doors can be used normally to enter and leave. HVAC runs on its normal cycle. What the protocol rules out is deliberate ventilation — propped-open windows, whole-house fans, or a fireplace damper left open when it would not normally be — not everyday use of the house.

Where should the radon detector actually go?

On the lowest lived-in level of the home, at least 20 inches off the floor, at least 3 feet from exterior walls and windows, and clear of HVAC supply and return vents. Avoid bathrooms, kitchens, laundry rooms, and any room with heavy humidity or airflow. A basement bedroom that is regularly used is the highest-priority room to test whenever it exists.

How long should a radon test run?

The minimum for any short-term test is 48 hours. Charcoal kits are typically deployed for 2 to 7 days depending on the product; continuous radon monitors run for the ANSI/AARST minimum of 48 hours in real-estate transactions and can run longer for higher confidence. Long-term alpha-track detectors run for 90 days to a full year and are the closest a homeowner can get to the house's true long-term average.

What do I do with the result once I have it?

Compare it to 4.0 pCi/L. At or above that line, the EPA and the Alabama Department of Public Health recommend fixing the home; that means calling a mitigation contractor. Between 2 and 4 pCi/L, the EPA recommends thinking about fixing the home, and the honest next step is a confirming test. Below 2 pCi/L, no action is required, though the EPA notes there is no fully safe indoor level. Our page on the 2 to 4 pCi/L zone walks through the decision in detail.