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Radon from *SEALED* Granite Countertops????

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Radon from *SEALED* Granite Countertops???? infiniteMPG 10-04-2008
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Posted by infiniteMPG on October 4, 2008, 11:57 pm


With the up and down stories on radon emisions from granite
countertops there is some questions that this brings up. Radon occurs
from the natural deacy of rock and soil. When radon enters a home
from soil, we have seen it posted that it enters the home thru cracks
in the foundation or basement, and other "leaks" into the home from
the foundations slab.

If this is the case, and radon is actually a GAS, how can it escape
from a SEALED granite countertop??? Since most all granite
countertops are totally sealed against bateria and so contaminants
cannot contact the granite itself and stain it, how can a gas escape
this sealed confinement????

Just curious how this happens since it doesn't enter homes except thru
leaks or cracks in the foundation.... thanks!

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Posted by Bob F on October 5, 2008, 1:54 am



> With the up and down stories on radon emisions from granite
> countertops there is some questions that this brings up. Radon occurs
> from the natural deacy of rock and soil. When radon enters a home
> from soil, we have seen it posted that it enters the home thru cracks
> in the foundation or basement, and other "leaks" into the home from
> the foundations slab.
>
> If this is the case, and radon is actually a GAS, how can it escape
> from a SEALED granite countertop??? Since most all granite
> countertops are totally sealed against bateria and so contaminants
> cannot contact the granite itself and stain it, how can a gas escape
> this sealed confinement????

And where did you get this idea?


>
> Just curious how this happens since it doesn't enter homes except thru
> leaks or cracks in the foundation.... thanks!



Posted by HeyBub on October 5, 2008, 8:25 am


infiniteMPG wrote:
> With the up and down stories on radon emisions from granite
> countertops there is some questions that this brings up. Radon occurs
> from the natural deacy of rock and soil. When radon enters a home
> from soil, we have seen it posted that it enters the home thru cracks
> in the foundation or basement, and other "leaks" into the home from
> the foundations slab.
>
> If this is the case, and radon is actually a GAS, how can it escape
> from a SEALED granite countertop??? Since most all granite
> countertops are totally sealed against bateria and so contaminants
> cannot contact the granite itself and stain it, how can a gas escape
> this sealed confinement????
>
> Just curious how this happens since it doesn't enter homes except thru
> leaks or cracks in the foundation.... thanks!

Radon travels through solid concrete because concrete is porous. More comes
through cracks, true, but Radon will migrate through (not as solid as it
seems) concrete.

As to whether Radon will migrate after "sealing," it will. The Radon atom is
smaller than the distance between the molecules of the sealant. Same way
Helium leaks from a rubber balloon.

It is possible that some sealant could effectively become one giant
molecule, similar to thermosetting plastics like Bakelite. This WOULD trap
the Radon within the sealant. Don't forget, the ENTIRE item must be
"sealed." Doesn't do any good to seal the top and leave the bottom raw.

I suspect the best method of "sealing" a granite countertop is to encase the
countertop in some fairly dense metal, such as stainless steel.



Posted by Zz Yzx on October 5, 2008, 12:30 pm


>Just curious how this happens since it doesn't enter homes except thru
>leaks or cracks in the foundation.... thanks!

The currently accepted conceptual model for vapor intrusion is that
soil vapor migrates into buildings through the seams between the slab
and walls, and through slab penetrations (i.e. toilets, bathtub and
sink drains, other plumbing, electrical conduits, &tc.). Older models
used to consider cracks in the slab, but these are obsolete.

Diffusion through a concrete slab is glacially slow. I bet there'd be
more radon generated from the aggregate in the slab than what would
come though solid concrete from the subsurface.

I haven't done the calculations, but I'd bet that the amount of radon
generated from 8 or 10 cubic feet of granite counter top would be
negligable, as would be the amount of radiation produced by the
generation of radon.

-Zz

Posted by stuart on October 5, 2008, 12:58 pm


Granite is very porous and even "sealed" will leak. You should disinfect
your countertop often .
> >Just curious how this happens since it doesn't enter homes except thru
> >leaks or cracks in the foundation.... thanks!
>
> The currently accepted conceptual model for vapor intrusion is that
> soil vapor migrates into buildings through the seams between the slab
> and walls, and through slab penetrations (i.e. toilets, bathtub and
> sink drains, other plumbing, electrical conduits, &tc.). Older models
> used to consider cracks in the slab, but these are obsolete.
>
> Diffusion through a concrete slab is glacially slow. I bet there'd be
> more radon generated from the aggregate in the slab than what would
> come though solid concrete from the subsurface.
>
> I haven't done the calculations, but I'd bet that the amount of radon
> generated from 8 or 10 cubic feet of granite counter top would be
> negligable, as would be the amount of radiation produced by the
> generation of radon.
>
> -Zz



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