Radon testing is recommended, but not required, for private homes in Florida. However, when a residence is used as a facility for 24-hour care, such as a group home, testing is required. Radon testing requirements for family foster homes vary by county, and the local Florida Department of Health office can provide the specifics for your county.

    Here is the text of the requirement from Florida Administrative code (FAC 64E-5.1208):

The following buildings are required to be measured for radon or radon progeny.
   (a) All public and private school buildings or school sites housing students in kindergarten through grade 12.
   (b) All state-owned, state-operated, state regulated or state-licensed 24-hour care facilities. This shall include but not be limited to the following: hospitals, nursing homes, foster homes, assisted living facilities, mental institutions, nursery facilities providing 24-hour care, detention centers, correctional institutions, and pre-release centers.
   (c) All state-licensed day care centers for children or minors.

    It’s important to note that if you do test your home and the results meet or exceed the 4.0 pico-curies per liter (4.0 pCi/L) level at which the EPA recommends mitigation, then you must provide that information to prospective buyers of the house unless radon mitigation has been done. See our blog post Should homeowners get a pre-listing radon test before selling their home? for more on this.

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Here’s links to a collection of our blog posts about “RADON":

• Is a radon mitigation fan required to be on a dedicated circuit breaker/fuse in the electric panel?

• What happens to a radon test result if the windows were opened, the test device moved, or there was any other evidence of tampering during the test? 

• Where do I find the Florida laws regarding radon?

• Can I test vacant land for radon before building a house? 

• Is radon mitigation possible for a condominium?

• Do radon mitigation systems require maintenance?

• What is the average life expectancy of a radon mitigation system?  

• Do older houses have higher radon levels than new houses? 

• Can the seller tamper with a homebuyer's radon test to change the results?

• How long does it take to get the results of a radon test? 

• Will opening the windows reduce the radon level in a house?

• How was it determined that between 15,000 and 22,000 lung cancer deaths each year are caused by radon?

• Can a homebuyer do their own radon test for a real estate transaction with a self-test kit?

• What is the danger of radon in well water?

• What are the symptoms of radon poisoning? 

• Does Florida have radon?

• Where does radon come from? 

• For how many years does an old radon test result remain valid?

• What are a homebuyer's options when the radon test comes back high (4.0 pico-curies/liter or more)? 

• Do granite countertops emit radon?

• How can I tell if a house has a radon mitigation system? 

• Can a mobile/manufactured home have a high radon problem?

• Do I need to test for radon when buying a condominium? 

• What does a radon mitigation contractor do to lower the radon level in a home?

• How can not testing for radon be an expensive mistake for homebuyers? 

• Will the radon test come back sky-high in a house that has been empty and closed-up for months? 

• What is radon? Should I be concerned about it?

• Should I buy a house with a high radon level? 

• What is the average radon level of indoor and outdoor air in America?

• What is the operating cost of a radon mitigation system? 

• Should I buy a house with a radon mitigation system?

• Does the buyer or seller of a home pay for radon mitigation when the radon test comes back high? 

• What is the probability of having high radon in a Florida house?

• How quickly do I need to reduce a high radon level in my house? 

• Does a home inspector check for radon?

• What are the problems with underground return air ducts? 

• What is the probability of having high radon in a Florida house?

• What factors can change radon test levels up or down?

    Visit our RADON page for other related blog posts on this subject, or go to the INDEX for a complete listing of all our articles.