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$5000? I got a bunch of quotes and none came anywhere near that high and I live in a home that made it difficult to install the system (finished basement, large

$5000? I got a bunch of quotes and none came anywhere near that high and I live in a home that made it difficult to install the system (finished basement, large footprint, three stories tall, concrete outer walls (ICF), etc. I think the highest was $3,000 and the lowest $1,600. I ended up installing it myself for about $500 in materials.

Waterluvian 1y ago
It’ll vary considerably. But I just picked a random round number that doesn’t affect the point I’m sharing.
- deleted 1y ago
  [deleted]
zamadatix 1y ago
That's only the initial capex though. $5,000 is a realistic swag for install + lifetime electricity + minor system maintenance.
- bradlys 1y ago
  These fans are not using $3000 in electricity over their lifetime.
  - zamadatix 1y ago
    I guess that depends how old you are when you install it and how long you plan to live but ~$7 per month is not at all an unrealistic electricity usage estimate for the system. 7*12*35 = $2,940. Edit: E.g. the numbers from this site suggest, for 15 out of the 16 listed fan models, the lifetime electricity cost is likely to be significantly larger than the install cost unless you are already much older at the time you start using the system or you have extremely cheap electricity (or both) https://www.radonaway.com/radon-fan-operating-cost-calculator https://www.radonaway.com/radon-fan-operating-cost-calculato...
    - dgfitz 1y ago
      This point always amuses me. Thats like, 1 starbucks coffee a month, or 1 trip to a fast food place a month, or one extra thing at the grocery store a month, or half a movie ticket a month, or half a streaming service a month, or less than half an LLM subscription a month, I could go on for a while. For the cost, preventing cancer seems like it's a wise investment. I say this as a cancer survivor.
      - Waterluvian 1y ago
        But it doesn’t prevent cancer. It lowers the risk of a specific kind of cancer by some amount. Is it $650 worth? That’s what I’m stuck on. People just go by vibe and say things like “it’s a good investment” but that’s just coming from I don’t know where.
        maxbond 1y ago
        How much does it really have to prevent one of the most painful and expensive forms of cancer, not just for you but also your family, to justify $7/mo? Not very much, in my book.
        yunwal 1y ago
        Same comment as the one above. There are literally infinite things you can do to reduce your risk of mortality. This would have to be among the best options if those things.
        maxbond 1y ago
        If you have a radon test indicating there's a problem, then it is no longer theoretical. There aren't an infinite number of pressing and known risks. I think it's a mistake to conflate an infinite number of hypothetical risks with a definite and known risk. It leads to analysis paralysis and FUD. It is not possible to know what, among all of the infinite hypothetical options, is the best to reduce your mortality. So let's focus on the concrete steps we can take and that we do know are effective. For most people, that is not radon mitigation, because most people don't have a radon problem. If you find out that it is a problem for you, and you have the cash to solve it - just solve it. It's that simple.
- ProAm 1y ago
  That is still insanely high. The highest Ive seen for install is $650 but required quite a bit of piping to the exterior.
  - irrational 1y ago
    Just the materials cost was $500. How are they doing labor for $150?
- adamsiem 1y ago
  And heating/cooling the fresh air replacing evacuated air + radon.
  - irrational 1y ago
    The air is under your slab. How would it be replaced by fresh air inside the house?

Waterluvian 1y ago

It’ll vary considerably. But I just picked a random round number that doesn’t affect the point I’m sharing.

deleted 1y ago
[deleted]

zamadatix 1y ago

That's only the initial capex though. $5,000 is a realistic swag for install + lifetime electricity + minor system maintenance.

bradlys 1y ago
These fans are not using $3000 in electricity over their lifetime.
- zamadatix 1y ago
  I guess that depends how old you are when you install it and how long you plan to live but ~$7 per month is not at all an unrealistic electricity usage estimate for the system. 7*12*35 = $2,940. Edit: E.g. the numbers from this site suggest, for 15 out of the 16 listed fan models, the lifetime electricity cost is likely to be significantly larger than the install cost unless you are already much older at the time you start using the system or you have extremely cheap electricity (or both) https://www.radonaway.com/radon-fan-operating-cost-calculator https://www.radonaway.com/radon-fan-operating-cost-calculato...
  - dgfitz 1y ago
    This point always amuses me. Thats like, 1 starbucks coffee a month, or 1 trip to a fast food place a month, or one extra thing at the grocery store a month, or half a movie ticket a month, or half a streaming service a month, or less than half an LLM subscription a month, I could go on for a while. For the cost, preventing cancer seems like it's a wise investment. I say this as a cancer survivor.
    - Waterluvian 1y ago
      But it doesn’t prevent cancer. It lowers the risk of a specific kind of cancer by some amount. Is it $650 worth? That’s what I’m stuck on. People just go by vibe and say things like “it’s a good investment” but that’s just coming from I don’t know where.
      - maxbond 1y ago
        How much does it really have to prevent one of the most painful and expensive forms of cancer, not just for you but also your family, to justify $7/mo? Not very much, in my book.
        yunwal 1y ago
        Same comment as the one above. There are literally infinite things you can do to reduce your risk of mortality. This would have to be among the best options if those things.
        maxbond 1y ago
        If you have a radon test indicating there's a problem, then it is no longer theoretical. There aren't an infinite number of pressing and known risks. I think it's a mistake to conflate an infinite number of hypothetical risks with a definite and known risk. It leads to analysis paralysis and FUD. It is not possible to know what, among all of the infinite hypothetical options, is the best to reduce your mortality. So let's focus on the concrete steps we can take and that we do know are effective. For most people, that is not radon mitigation, because most people don't have a radon problem. If you find out that it is a problem for you, and you have the cash to solve it - just solve it. It's that simple.
ProAm 1y ago
That is still insanely high. The highest Ive seen for install is $650 but required quite a bit of piping to the exterior.
- irrational 1y ago
  Just the materials cost was $500. How are they doing labor for $150?
adamsiem 1y ago
And heating/cooling the fresh air replacing evacuated air + radon.
- irrational 1y ago
  The air is under your slab. How would it be replaced by fresh air inside the house?