Hello all. This is my first post so excuse me if this is already covered? I’m not familiar with the forum at all and can barely find myself around yet!
Anyways I have been officially in business and it’s going great so far. Doing about 3 or 4 inspections a week. This week I got a call and the customer wants radon inspection. I have thought about this but wasn’t planning on adding it for a bit. But now I am considering doing it for him. What is the easiest way to get this started? I know there are several options and honestly haven’t researched much but I don’t have much time as he wants this next week! Hoping for a little guidance. Thanks to all in advance!
You’ll have to pass on this one, and refer the environmental portion out; you need to be trained, certified, and have operational equipment & supplies to perform radon testing.
You can’t just start offering radon testing without advanced planning, so take the required steps if you want to add this service to your business.
#1 Hire someone else to do it for you. I had a guy I worked with for about a year when I was just starting out. He was on my way out of town and I picked up and left the testers at his house.
#2 If the client dosen’t like the added fees, they can go to the big box store and get their own Radon tester. At least the house will be tested after they move in for their own peace of mind.
Currently I do what David suggested. Most of my clients that have asked, bought their own kit at Home depot. I have taken all the courses for Radon though IAC2 and got certified but I am not sure I want to offer it yet. In my area others charge an additional $75.00 to $150.00 for it but the time spent going back to retrieve the monitor, write the report etc. doesn’t seem worth it for me, though I am still considering it.
Regardless, I suggest you still take the courses so you can at least talk to your clients appropriately about Radon. Best of Luck!
Great suggestion. Thank you. I’m kinda in the same boat. The return trip takes alot of time out of the day and can really mess with scheduling. So for 150 bucks… Idk. I am still debating also to be a one stop shop so I don’t loose a job to another who does offer it.
Absolutely! Even if you have someone else testing through you, you need to know.
I got in a situation that I was doing 10-12 Inspections a week for buyers with relocation requirements through their work and Radon was a requirement on all purchases. I traveled about 100 miles a day for inspections and I did not make a living off these tests. I got Agents trained to pick up and deliver my tests to my office. I did however get a bucket load of >5k sf homes to inspect which I otherwise would not have gotten.
I went to Auburn University for Testing and Mitigation so I understood the whole process.
Getting back in the house was a nightmare!
As years passed and relocation requirements changed, my Agents used a Radon Testing Company exclusively when needed and I stopped my own testing because it was not cost effective for me.
I have been certified for radon but I sub it out to a friend of mine who specializes in radon testing. I bill the test for $150 (the going rate in my area) and my friend charges me $90, so I make 60 for making a phone call. I put enough miles on my vehicle doing inspections so adding more miles for a lot less doesn’t make sense to me.
NJ doesn’t recognize the NRPP but has its own certification requirements. 16 hours in class training, a state proctored exam, and 4 hr continuing education per year.
In NJ, its against the law for anyone to handle test equipment unless they’re certified.
In NJ, most people want a radon test, so if you don’t offer that service you’re not gonna get much work. There are 4 or 5 (that I know of) certified radon people in NJ that go around retrieving canisters for home inspectors. They charge $40 per pickup and they usually do 10+ per day. Not a bad gig.
I charge $90 for a test with a home inspection. All I do is place the canister and order a pickup.