This page is dedicated the realtor that called us early last summer that wanted a price for a radon system needed for a home she was helping her client to buy. We said that we would need to look at the house first to determine what could be done, and how much work and materials might be needed. As we can usually find a number of ways and locations within the house to install a system, we suggested that she, or better yet her client buying the house, meet with us to discuss this on-site. She informed us that she had been in real estate for 30 years, and that “all mitigation systems are the same”. She refused to meet with us, and refused to “allow” her client to meet with us… saying “they’ll like anything installed”.
We obviously didn’t get… or take that job.
Saying that all mitigation systems are the same is like saying all cars are the same as they all get you from one side of town to the other. That may be true, but other than that, they all have differences… some major. Incorrectly installed systems (http://rmeswi.com/26.html) could be compared to the Ford Pinto. They work well until something goes wrong… like a rear-end collision with the Pinto. At that point, they can be very dangerous!
We’ve included a number of systems below which we call “Ugly Mitigations”… systems we didn’t install for good reason. These are the type of systems that let a home owner scream "Hey, look at us… we have a radon system!”. Our goal at RMES is to install systems that are visually pleasing, and architecturally “fit” a home’s character.
In finding and photographing these protocol systems, we found many more systems that also didn’t fit EPA/ASTM protocols, which we put into our “Bad Mitigations” link (http://rmeswi.com/26.html ... menu column to the right). A home owner looking for a radon system typically wants a system that fits into their home’s design… not something that looks like it should be temporary. As we replace many of these systems with one of ours, many become temporary, doubling the initial price as many times we have to rip out what’s already been done and start over.
Be very wary as to what your system will look like by getting plenty of pictures of what the potential mitigator intends to install, and always get plenty of references. And no, radon mitigation systems are far from being “the same!”