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Radioactive water


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Okay, but if you live in a condo or fracc, you gotta get their attention first. Or do it yourself and report results. I have had water tested before, but not for radioactivity, or so I remember. Please suggest where we should take our water samples for a test for radioactivity. NOT that I drink the water here, but one wishes to know. Currently, it is my belief that I do not glow in the dark, but who knows?

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Okay, but if you live in a condo or fracc, you gotta get their attention first. Or do it yourself and report results. I have had water tested before, but not for radioactivity, or so I remember. Please suggest where we should take our water samples for a test for radioactivity. NOT that I drink the water here, but one wishes to know. Currently, it is my belief that I do not glow in the dark, but who knows?

at my age, a little glow would be appreciated

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Yes, I'm curious too. Just trolling? Who gets their water tested for radioactivity, anywhere in North America? Maybe in Chernobyl or Japan or folks living by nuclear plants that have melted down... or is it just the people who lean their heads against the CFE meter all day?

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Radon gas is a byproduct of natural uranium degradation. Municipal water wells in Southern California are monitored for radon gas, not just because drinking slightly radioactive water is harmful to living things but because it may be an indication of underground movement and a precursor to an earthquake.

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I think the point he's making is whether or not we really know if the bottled water we buy here is really OK.

Perhaps the answer is that if it wasn't we'd hear about it? Like we do with restaurants? Or maybe not.

It's a fair question. Is anyone really monitoring these water suppliers to confirm that they are actually selling pure water? I can't recall hearing of any actual standards or testing for same.

We have our own purification system and hence do not use bottled water. However most of the people we know do.

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Why would this even come up?

people here is bored...they need to think or do something new and different. Other than go to the same restaurants, the same medical clinic, the same old Ajijic village....

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When we lived in the Colorado mountains, we lived in an area full of old mining claims. We built on a mining claim that pre-dated the National Forest. When we built the house, I told the contactor to vent under the foundation for possible Radon gas. But who listens to the wife? Not him. When we were getting ready to sell, we had to provide a test and found - drumroll - a low radon gas level but too high to pass inspections. Correcting it cost us a fair amount.

I don't think there was enough mining in most of Lakeside to be a problem, but if you're near the old gold mines...

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You can buy a decent used Geiger counter for less than a hundred dollars online.

True, you can buy a Geiger-Müller counter, but why would one?

Geiger-Müller counters are useless for testing radioactivity in water.

A gross alpha/gross beta test on water can be done for modest costs in the USA, at $50 to $100 per sample (depending on the detection limit). Gross Alpha/Beta is a good screening/diagnostic method for determining if further, more detailed testing is needed.

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Mtn Mama is headed in the right direction. Have there been any historical reports of uranium in the area?

Naturally occurring uranium decays to several elements that emit significant radioactivity: Radon (a gas), Radium, and Polonium:

Fig2.jpg

http://www.kgs.ku.edu/Publications/PIC/25figures/Fig2.jpg
.

.
As Mtn Mama found, areas of Colorado's mountains can have strikingly large levels of uranium, radon, and radium from both groundwater and dust, while Colorado's Front Range (Denver, Colo Springs etc) have elevated levels of background radiation from uranium dust and its decay products.

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About 20,000 persons die each year in the US from lung cancer due to radon gas. Radon gas is found in all 50 states except Hawaii. Radon is a class A carcinogen, the same as cigarettes. The obvious danger of both is lung cancer. There is NO safe level of Radon. It is just a matter of how much risk you are willing to live with. Know anyone who died of lung cancer, friends or family. The leading cause of lung cancer in non smokers is radon gas. Radon is tagged with the name "the silent killer" . You can't see it , smell or feel it. Why OMG doesn't everybody already know all about radon gas like we do cigarettes?? Because there are no deep pockets for lawsuits as radon gas is naturally occurring in the soil. Not dumped there by somebody or company. If you tested 1,000 homes you would get a reading of some sort in all 1,000 homes if done correctly "worse case scenario".

Water. Well? Hummm ?? In Mexico? humm? Has anyone out there gone thru EPA's testing /mitigation classes in the last several years. Scary? You bet.. Factual? Yep. Tomorrow I will share some realities that will make you sleep better. Stayed tuned.

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I am so glad I read this thread. I was running out of things to worry about. I might have gone on enjoying this beautiful day here at the lake. Now, I can stew and worry and be afraid to drink my bottled water while waiting for the radon gas or radioactive water to kill me.

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