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Radon Testing · Smithland, IA

Radon Testing in Smithland

Radon Testing in Smithland, IA by Closer Look Inspectors. A photo-mapped digital report within 24 hours.

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Smithland · Woodbury County

Radon Testing in Smithland

Radon Testing in Smithland, Woodbury County, by Closer Look Inspectors. Smithland is one of the oldest settlements in Woodbury County, small and quiet beside the Little Sioux River valley.

Radon testing places an EPA-protocol continuous monitor on a home's lowest livable level to measure radon gas — and it matters across Iowa, where Iowa HHS reports 71.6 percent of homes above the action level — the largest percentage of any state.

Smithland is served by our Ida Grove team →  ·  (563) 517-7815

Split-level home with stone facing on a sloped lot — Radon Testing in Smithland, IASmithland
Local housing

Homes in Smithland.

Smithland housing runs to a small stock of early-1900s farm-town houses with mid-century homes and a few newer builds, across the compact town grid, the acreages around it and the farm ground running out toward the river valley, on the Little Sioux River valley where it cuts through the Loess Hills, with steep loess slopes above the valley floor — and that mix shapes what a radon testing here needs to find.

Local conditions in Smithland

Smithland sits in the Loess Hills, where wind-deposited silt stands up in steep bluffs but erodes and settles readily once runoff is directed into it — grading and retaining structures here drive real foundation movement, not just a damp basement. Smithland sits in Woodbury County, and every Iowa county is EPA Radon Zone 1. Iowa HHS reports Iowa has the largest percentage of homes above the 4.0 pCi/L action level of any state — 71.6 percent in the Iowa Radon Survey — and the Iowa seller disclosure form asks for any known radon test results. Finished basements concentrate it, and only a 48-hour test gives you this home's number. Iowa leaves frost depth to the local building code rather than one statewide number, and the annual freeze-thaw cycle drives the settlement cracks and ice-dam wear that Smithland-area homes face.

Home inspection in Smithland →  ·  More about radon testing →

Questions

Common questions.

Is radon really a concern in Iowa?
Yes. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources reports that more than two in five Iowa homes have radon levels that pose a significant health risk, and finished basements are where it concentrates.
How long does the test run?
A 48-hour minimum under closed-house conditions; the result is delivered with your inspection report.
Do the loess slopes around Smithland change what an inspector looks for?
Yes. Smithland sits where the Little Sioux River valley courses through the Loess Hills on its way to the Missouri River floodplain. Loess holds a steep face well when dry and moves when it is saturated, so drainage matters more here than in flat country. How roof and downspout water leaves the house, retaining walls and sloped yards, and foundation cracks and stair-step patterns in masonry are the things to watch. Smithland has shrunk from 224 residents in 2010 to 181 in 2020, so homes that have sat vacant are worth a close look for signs of frozen lines and dead sump pumps.
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