Your Sump Pit Is Killing You

Shockingly high levels of radon in this home were coming primarily from the sump pit.
In this video I'll show you how we took care of it. I'll be showcasing the Hyper-Drain sump pit covering system sold by Radon Away. Hope it helps and Thanks for watching!
Here is a link to the radon monitor shown in this video--a.co/d/4GL9Vs8

[@beauchampfrancois151]

I've been working and living in my basement for 7 years now. My radon readings are around 150-175 (Bq/me3), even in the bathroom nearby (separated by an inside wall) my open unused sump pit. When I close my bathroom door my readings go up to 450-500 within two hours. Your video is the exact thing I was looking for... you nailed it. Thank you.

[@dwaynejohnson6277]

Question is: is sealing the sump enough, or it must also have a fan that draws from sump and blows outside?

[@timkostka]

These videos are very helpful and well done. Thank you for putting them out!

[@ttables2007]

Awesome video and thank you for sharing your wisdom. Truly helpful!

[@radonman6800]

Glad it was of help to you. Thank you for taking the time to say so. It means a lot.😀

[@talkalot80]

Thank you for making this video. I wasn't sure WHY my sump pump was sealed in a new home. I thought it was for looks because it's a finished basement. Wish they would have done a clear lid like you did instead of a black one. I'm trying to investigate why it never turns on

[@radonman6800]

Several folks have requested a link to where I purchased the lid. Here it is--> www.radonaway.com/20-clear-sump-cover-567? However, Radon Away only sells to Radon Mitigators. Nevertheless, it's a place to start. Thanks for watching. 😀

[@ScottRGarcia123]

Is there a shorten version of this video that gets straight to the dry sump pit point? Not sure why Gary Busey showed up.

[@russell2449]

Nice job, so that 2" ties into a 4" which also has two other areas it's pulling from, one's the foundation but what area is that tee pulling from (just curious). I really enjoy your videos and as someone who used to be a plumber many moons ago, and looking to get out of my current career, this looks like it could be in my wheelhouse ;?)

[@geoffjenkins4633]

I'm currently finishing up a sump install in my basement (first time doing it, not a pro). For allowing water in but keeping radon gas out, I considered devices like the Hi-Perdrain, but they all have low flow rates. I also considered devices that are essentially rubber socks with high shape memory, but again, the flow rate is so low. So my thinking is that I'll make a p-trap on the bottom of the lid. The only issue with that is with traps on low use devices, you have to make sure to top that water up on occasion. I have a dehumidifier that drains through a hose, and I'm just going to put that hose near that drain. Just my current thinking. Thanks for making videos and being honest about your skill level, don't fret the people who choose to be negative rather than keep scrolling.

[@radonman6800]

Hi Geoff. Thanks for your comments! Hope I'm not too late. I recall a situation where a p trap did not go well and it's in the video link at the bottom. However, I believe that I was using a high suction fan. Nevertheless it caused gurgling from a floor drain. Best of luck to you and your project. kzbin.info/www/bejne/h3bKqnxsp8mAm6M

[@geoffjenkins4633]

@@radonman6800 Not too late, and interesting! My approach is inspired by the link below. My p-trap will be on the sump basin lid itself, and the sump is ~40 ft from my radon fan. Hopefully that will allow enough room so as to not be an issue. The drain on the basin lid is not necessarily a "must have" for us, so if it's an issue, I'll just remove it for the time being haha. Thanks, man. Cheers

[@geoffjenkins4633]

andrewwinkel.com/tag/sump-hole/

[@radonman6800]

Good luck Geoff!

[@johntambascio3971]

home inspector here, 1 in 10 are hot in the NE test please and test again if you change your roof windows insulate finish areas change grade and if not every three years,

[@TheBoomtown4]

CAUTION!!! You’re creating a negative air pressure by not sealing the discharge pipes to the lid. Also very important to pay attention to other cracks and conduit that can pull air from the room/house. If a natural draft appliance is located in the house it can and often does spill carbon monoxide into the house rather than venting properly via buoyancy/stack effect. Potentially fatal oversight. Looks like electric hwh in this circumstance but diy’ers can get very sick/die if they don’t know what they’re doing and follow this method verbatim.

[@djmcnamer7159]

I like this input. It would be wise to have a air balance done with systems running to verify one is not attacking the other. Most areas have a energy cooperative that can help. Range hoods, Gas dryer vents and a furnace can back draft. Making sure the lid is rated for radon mitigation is a first thing. Cracks in the slab and cement floor that meets the walls need to be sealed off. If the basement slab is sealed 100% and the lid rated for this. the system will create suction and deems the house safe.

[@kaltrex9465]

Do you mean don’t have any open gaps under the lid Above? What do you think it means if the discharge water is golden color? Rust or bacteria and how to clear it? My sump pump is just touching the ground under the foundation, that’s bad? I’m thinking of putting a Home Depot bucket in there and drilling holes on the sides to reduce earthy substances.

[@TheBoomtown4]

@@kaltrex9465 yeah, it all needs to be sealed from the suction point, lest the ambient air in the home be exposed to the suction. The above comment from @djmcnamer7159 makes a good point about sealing up cracks in the foundation for example. If you had a cracked slab, the vacuum just take path of least resistance and just pull air from the ambient air in the basement creating a vacuum (negative air pressure) which would pull products of combustion (carbon monoxide CO) from your natural draft (hot water heater potentially) appliances. It would also decrease the amount of suction we could apply to the sub slab. But yeah, lit sealed for sure.

[@mleofc]

When you dig the clay in the old Houses. How much are the radon levels before and after?

[@doug4772]

Why not just use the updated sump pit dome lids made for radon fans and sump plumbing? That's what I did at my house.

[@BitmappedWV]

I’ve never seen a sump pump discharge into corrugated pipe before.

[@wysiwyg654]

If you had a water softener that drained to that sump pit, how would you handle it? I have a similar setup as shown in your video and would like to install a Tee fitting on my radon exhaust pipe (about 2 feet above the sump cover) and put a trap and standpipe for the water softener to discharge into. This would allow me to maintain the vacuum seal on the sump pit (with the trap) yet still meet the code requirements of having an air gap for the water softener discharge. Does this sound like a reasonable approach to you?

[@radonman6800]

I would use the sump lid shown in this video that equipped with the Hyper Drain and route the discharge line to that. The strainer is plastic so you could notch out a section to route the tube into it or put a 90 right on top of it. Thanks for watching!

[@wysiwyg654]

@@radonman6800 Thanks for the suggestion! Have you ever seen a radon exhaust pipe from a sump pit double as a drain pipe for a standpipe with a trap? I'm trying to think of reasons this wouldn't be a workable solution that would be less prone to failure over time as compared to a mechanical device like the Hyper drain.

[@donreinholz8121]

Hey Scott, I thought most radon mitigation seal up the cover and fittings so it draws radon from under the slab better than from the room above. How much do they cost? I will go to their website and check.

[@nebulousJames12345]

rip all that conditioned air :(

[@radonman6800]

Hi Don, I get mine from Radon Away. However they only seem to sell to Radon Pro's. I'm sure Google or Amazon will get you there. 😀

[@matthewlewellen5219]

Don jackal radon cap on Amazon 75 bucks seals for all different sizes, cap gasket, stainless hardware, I would not use another cover system

[@dprofessor12]

Radon systems are supposed to be sealed as tight as possible. Why didn't you seal around the 2" pipe you installed in the pit cover? It won't draw as good as it should unless the slab corners,grooves and pit are sealed as tight as possible.

[@TheBoomtown4]

In addition to not drawing under the sub slab this method can also create a negative air pressure sucking gas appliance exhaust/carbon monoxide into house.

[@user-vt4tn1ng8g]

These videos are helpful.. Thanks. Just curious why you wouldn't purchase a small sump pump tube knowing that it is split and leaking. (charge it to the owner?) Also wondering why you would not seal the hole where the Radon exhaust tube goes through the new lid that you purchased. You were meticulous when installing the piece to the new lid that allows water to go into the sump pump pit but it does not allow air to escape yet you are allowing 1/2 gap between the lid and exhaust tube.

[@mediumsizedm]

A lotta talk, a lotta shortcuts, a lotta guesswork. Notta pro.

[@naturalhealing9970]

Can you post a link of where we can get that lid?

[@radonman6800]

Hi Natural Healing. Here it is -->www.radonaway.com/20-clear-sump-cover-567? However, Radon Away only sells to Radon Mitigators... but it's a place to start. Thanks for watching. 😀

[@sethmoeckel7853]

Not a fan of the lid choice here. Would be way too easy to crack if stepped on and doesn't seem to have all that great of a seal. Better seal would likely mean lower numbers.

[@oldrooster25]

KZbin algorithms popped your video in my feed or whatever….intuition…..very possibly….because radon has been on my mind lately! I subscribed because you are great, informative, so informative I’m scared now 😳. Mind if I ask questions? 1) where can I buy a thingamajiggy to test the levels. The thing the local DEHEC sent me was a level 4. I can’t recall if that was before or after we had a sump pump put in 😱 2) we do have a lid on sump pump much nicer than that ugly black thing, so I will look into buying the lid you used, I liked that you can see inside the pit! 3) when you say I’m dying…I live in the basement I have dry eyes, my dog has dry eyes, I sneeze like crazy pretty much every day. I could say I’m pretty fatigued but I don’t know if it’s not due to chronic low back & spinal pain. 4) am I classified as one foot in the grave, other foot 🦶🏼 on a banana 🍌 peel? Again thank you for making this video 3 years ago, which I know I was searching 3 yrs. ago KZbin come on man! Thank you, hope you are still KZbin ‘ing

[@radonman6800]

Here is a link to the radon monitor shown in this video--a.co/d/4GL9Vs8 Thanks for the kind words, Endora. I wish you lots of luck resolving your health issues.

[@nostalgia46]

You sure it was radon on your mind and not Georgia?

[@chrisp3193]

Could you leave links where to buy these parts?

[@radonman6800]

you got it😀 www.radonaway.com/products/waterproofing-crawlspace/sales-kit-sump-20-clear-10-pack.php

[@Jeff-ik3hn]

Where can I buy a sump pit cover like the one you used ?

[@radonman6800]

Hi Jeff, I get them from Radon Away but they only sell to mitigators- so I'd begin by Googling sump pit lids and Hyper Drain, etc. Ebay, Amazon, etc. Good luck!

[@matthewlewellen5219]

Jeff get a jackal radon mitigation lid off Amazon. Comes with a selection of seals and gaskets and seals up great. New model Ds have a plexiglass access hole to check your floats or perform maintenance. If you are going to do it do it right. That plexiglass cover was junk and in no way was it airtight completely defeating the purpose of the vacuum circuit. That thing was drawing conditioned air into the pit

[@matthewlewellen5219]

That plexiglas cover is definitely not airtight.

[@webmoore4353]

I thought over 4.0 required mitigation…

[@PopaZit]

Why would you not seal the sump discharge hose to the lid properly, and why would you not go the extra mile to replace the sump discharge hose for the customer?

[@radonman6800]

because it it was necessary to do plumbing work at the sump pump beneath the lid (which needed to be removed after I made this video). Thanks for watching. 😀

[@PopaZit]

@@radonman6800 I need to apologize for my overly critical comment, it was not necessary and I apologize. You are working hard to put out quality content to help people and I appreciate your hard work. So thank you.

[@radonman6800]

No problem, Ken. I appreciate that and am glad to have you watching.

[@dariuslavy3913]

@@PopaZit From the comments and the video, he did not make this clear. I thought he was just going to let it ride.

[@jerbo1978]

He made it clear in the video by saying the pipe was cracked ​@@dariuslavy3913

[@Arctictwist]

If i dont currently have a radon problem, will digging a sump pit cause one?

[@radonman6800]

Hi Ken. Long explanation short- the only way to know your radon levels is to measure or monitor them. Here is the link to the monitor I used in this video. ----a.co/d/4GL9Vs8. Here is a link to one short term test kit ---a.co/d/7j7akLl

[@manjushreetsl2531]

3:09

[@Steve-Chicago]

Too much moving causes headache.

[@anitadavis1395]

This fella’ may have some good advice, but, unfortunately, his videotaping was so dizzying, annoying, and distracting that I bailed within 4 minutes of starting/watching the video. I would suggest (to him) that he puts a little more effort into his videotaping techniques/skills so as not to lose potential viewers, like me. Just sayin’.🤷🏻‍♀️

[@03056932]

ok boomer

[@doitbyyourself66]

U did a lil, and u talked too much The cam is on ur face more than on the work u R. Doing

[@lawrencemeyers1212]

This is to funny to watch

[@brians.5434]

Looks like a hack job

[@turbopower130]

Radon is a scapegoat to make money. When was the last time you heard od a "radon" related death/cancer? It's a fake market

[@scottreid4698]

Love the chin diaper.why bother.?

[@dfristoe5524]

Raydon is a scam! Don't fall for it people

[@farukatasever2933]

Why is that brick in the first pit?

[@turbopower130]

People who believe in radon and pay for "mitigation" are the same people who wear a mask in their car when they are the only person in the car. Props for you making money on the retired 👍

[@baboon_baboon_baboon]

People actually get cancer from radon though.