{"id":22862,"date":"2026-04-14T09:40:43","date_gmt":"2026-04-14T07:40:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mag.ebmpapst.com\/en\/?p=22862"},"modified":"2026-04-14T09:40:44","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T07:40:44","slug":"radon-mitigation-with-fans-festa-radon-technologies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mag.ebmpapst.com\/en\/products\/fans\/radon-mitigation-with-fans-festa-radon-technologies_22862\/","title":{"rendered":"These fans can save lives"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

It can\u2019t be seen, smelt or heard, but when it accu\u00admu\u00adlates indoors, it is a poten\u00adtially signif\u00adi\u00adcant health hazard. We\u2019re refer\u00adring to radon, a radioac\u00adtive gas with health risks that many people are unaware of. Its impact on the body should not be under\u00ades\u00adti\u00admated: High radon radi\u00ada\u00adtion levels of over 4.0 pico-curies per liter of air (pCi\/L) corre\u00adspond to approx\u00adi\u00admately 200 X-rays per year\u2014the maximum number recom\u00admended by the United States Envi\u00adron\u00admental Protec\u00adtion Agency is five. In America, radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cElevated levels are measured in about one in every 15 house\u00adholds in the United States,\u201d says Avery Festa, whose father founded Festa Radon Tech\u00adnolo\u00adgies in Penn\u00adsyl\u00advania, back in 1996, in response to this crit\u00adical issue. Festa Radon Tech\u00adnolo\u00adgies develops solu\u00adtions to combat this radioac\u00adtive gas. The market is still rela\u00adtively young: \u201cThe problem is that many people don\u2019t know how dangerous radon can be indoors. But aware\u00adness is steadily increasing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Radon (Rn): An invis\u00adible threat<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Radon is a natu\u00adrally occur\u00adring radioac\u00adtive gas that is produced when uranium decays in soil, rock and water. According to esti\u00admates, around 20,000 people in the Euro\u00adpean Union die each year as a result of increased radon expo\u00adsure, with around 1,900 to 2,800 cases annu\u00adally in Germany. Regions with granite-rich soils are partic\u00adu\u00adlarly affected. In Europe, these areas include the Massif Central and Brit\u00adtany in France, the Alpine foothills, the southern Black Forest and Bavarian Forest in Germany, the Swiss Alps, and South Tyrol. In America, the northern US states of Penn\u00adsyl\u00advania, Colorado and Illi\u00adnois in partic\u00adular have elevated radon levels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Radon occurs in low concen\u00adtra\u00adtions in outdoor air and becomes dangerous indoors only when there is insuf\u00adfi\u00adcient air exchange. It can pene\u00adtrate through cracks in floors, walls and building joints\u2014and can even diffuse through concrete.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sources: Aponet, German Federal Office for Radi\u00ada\u00adtion Protec\u00adtion<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Preven\u00adtion is key<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In addi\u00adtion to a catalog of radon-related acces\u00adsories like measuring devices and system compo\u00adnents, Festa Radon Tech\u00adnolo\u00adgies offers a lineup of radon miti\u00adga\u00adtion fans. These systems consist of a network of pipes connected to a radon fan. The fan gener\u00adates air flow and pres\u00adsure which prevents radon gas from infil\u00adtrating the struc\u00adture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Festa relies on ebm-papst\u2019s back\u00adward-curved radial fans. The fans are installed in a casing, to which capac\u00adi\u00adtors and other small compo\u00adnents are added\u2014making the fan fit for use in the extrac\u00adtion system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The radon is simply released into the ambient air above the roof. (Image | Festa Radon Tech\u00adnolo\u00adgies Co.)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Avery Festa, Festa Radon Tech\u00adnolo\u00adgies (Image | Festa Radon Tech\u00adnolo\u00adgies Co.)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

The part\u00adner\u00adship between the two compa\u00adnies has been continued since the late 1990s: \u201cebm-papst has always impressed us with its inno\u00adva\u00adtions, high-tech solu\u00adtions and, above all, the people that we collabo-rate with. Together, we work to create the best prod\u00aducts for our customers,\u201d says Avery Festa. George Riker, Busi\u00adness Devel\u00adop\u00adment Manager at ebm-papst, has posi\u00adtive memo\u00adries of the early stages of the collab\u00ado\u00adra\u00adtion: \u201cWe\u2019ve been working with Festa since the late 1990s, when radon miti\u00adga\u00adtion was still a new market. In those early years, we provided them with valu\u00adable engi\u00adneering services. The back\u00adward-curved impeller is what drives these systems, and our envi\u00adron\u00admen\u00adtally robust motors ensure reli\u00ada\u00adbility in harsh envi\u00adron\u00adments.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Their vari\u00adable and precise speed control makes the EC fans ideal for radon manage\u00adment: \u201cThey offer consis\u00adtent and reli\u00adable perfor\u00admance and are char\u00adac\u00adter\u00adized by their long service life, low main\u00adte\u00adnance require\u00adments and high effi\u00adciency,\u201d says Riker. They also reduce energy costs: \u201cThe EC fans have a much lower power consump\u00adtion and higher perfor\u00admance than our AC fan coun\u00adter\u00adparts, reducing power consump\u00adtion by up to 45 percent in some models,\u201d says Festa. In addi\u00adtion, EC motors are pleas\u00adantly quiet\u2014an advan\u00adtage that is partic\u00adu\u00adlarly appre\u00adci\u00adated by resi\u00addents. Although ebm-papst still currently supplies fans with AC motors, \u201cour goal is to grad\u00adu\u00adally convert the industry to EC tech\u00adnology,\u201d says Festa.<\/p>\n\n\n

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The fan ensures constant air circu\u00adla\u00adtion and nega\u00adtive pres\u00adsure in the radon extrac\u00adtion system. (Image | Festa Radon Tech\u00adnolo\u00adgies Co.)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

The goal: Combat radon before it becomes dangerous<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Radon emanates from the ground and enters build\u00adings through small cracks in the foun\u00adda\u00adtion slab. Various factors, including HVAC systems and the chimney or stack effect, create nega\u00adtive pres\u00adsure within the struc\u00adture that pulls radon into the building. When radon accu\u00admu\u00adlates indoors, HVAC or venti\u00adlation systems distribute the harmful gas throughout the building.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Preven\u00adtion is bene\u00adfi\u00adcial, and in the US, a radon test is stan\u00addard prac\u00adtice before buying a house. If radon levels in the building exceed permitted limits, the seller needs to install a miti\u00adga\u00adtion system. \u201cThere are special\u00adists for radon miti\u00adga\u00adtion, and they are our most impor\u00adtant customers,\u201d explains Avery Festa. \u201cBut home\u00adowners are also inter\u00adested in our solu\u00adtions.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cThe fan is the heart of the radon system.\u201d<\/p>\nAvery Festa, Festa Radon Tech\u00adnolo\u00adgies<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Indoor air made safe through fan tech\u00adnology<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Active soil depres\u00adsur\u00adiza\u00adtion (ASD) is the most common and effec\u00adtive method for reducing radon levels. The Festa radon removal system has two func\u00adtions: It actively extracts radon from the soil to the beneath the slab outside and, at the same time, creates nega\u00adtive pres\u00adsure so that the gas cannot enter the house in the first place. For the removal system to work, all cracks and gaps in the floor slab must first be sealed. The installers then drill a hole through the floor slab and dig a so-called \u201csuction pit.\u201d A pipe is connected to this sealed hole, which leads from the floor to the outer wall of the house. This is where the fan is located. It gener\u00adates air flow and nega\u00adtive pres\u00adsure, ensuring that the radon present is safely discharged above the roofline and cannot infil\u00adtrate the struc\u00adture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The impor\u00adtance of dura\u00adbility<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Radon extrac\u00adtion fans are often exposed to harsh envi\u00adron\u00admental condi\u00adtions. Because they are vented through the roof, they must contin\u00adu\u00adously with\u00adstand mois\u00adture, rain and conden\u00adsa\u00adtion. \u201cThe fan must also be able to cope with other chal\u00adlenges like sedi\u00adments, debris and temper\u00ada\u00adture changes,\u201d says Festa. The fans are in constant operation\u201424 \/7, 365 days a year\u2014and must main\u00adtain a consis\u00adtent suction pres\u00adsure. Festa Radon Tech\u00adnolo\u00adgies is able to offer its customers a seven- year warranty. \u201cWe are very proud to be able to offer the most reli\u00adable prod\u00aducts on the market, and we owe this not least to the fans from ebm-papst,\u201d says Festa.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It can\u2019t be seen, smelt or heard, but when it accu\u00admu\u00adlates indoors, it is a poten\u00adtially signif\u00adi\u00adcant health hazard. We\u2019re refer\u00adring to radon, a radioac\u00adtive gas with health risks that many people are unaware of. Its impact on the body should not be under\u00ades\u00adti\u00admated: High radon radi\u00ada\u00adtion levels of over 4.0 pico-curies per liter of [\u2026]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":29,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"wp_typography_post_enhancements_disabled":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-22862","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-fans"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mag.ebmpapst.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22862","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mag.ebmpapst.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mag.ebmpapst.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mag.ebmpapst.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/29"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mag.ebmpapst.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22862"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/mag.ebmpapst.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22862\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22912,"href":"https:\/\/mag.ebmpapst.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22862\/revisions\/22912"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mag.ebmpapst.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22862"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mag.ebmpapst.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22862"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mag.ebmpapst.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22862"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}