Is this blue concrete?

[Christian Ek]

Hello,
we removed our old oil tank, which opened up the view of the wall that was next to it.
Is this blåbetong?

 

[Stefan N]

It looks that way, yes, what is the problem?

 

[Christian Ek]

it seems to be only this interior wall in the basement that is made of blåbetong and we are considering removing it to minimize radon.

 

[sulfobus]

The blue concrete emits radiation at different levels depending on where the alum shale was extracted from. If it's low-emitting, it's definitely unnecessary to remove the wall, probably unnecessary even if it emits radiation since a wall doesn't make a big difference. Gamma measurement provides answers.

 

[krille09]

If it's just one wall, there's no need to tear it down (assuming you’re not remodeling anyway).

It often needs to be that the entire frame or basement is made of blue concrete for it to be harmful.

The amount of radon it emits also varies.

Do a radon measurement if you want to be sure.

 

[Christian Ek]

This wall only separates the boiler room, so it's not a big job to remove it.

The reason we are considering it is because when we moved into the house (Jan 2014), we measured radon in the office in the basement (located ~10m from the boiler room) which showed 100bq (+-20) and when we suspected that this wall was made of blåbetong, we placed a short-term dosimeter in the boiler room which showed ~150bq.

 

[Stefan N]

Too low values to even consider any action, I think. You probably have the same if you go out into the garden from ground radon.....

 

[hempularen]

In terms of value, there is no reason to remove it. But if you can make the house completely free from blåbetong by just tearing down a wall, when you are already doing renovations, then there is value in that. If nothing else, it could affect a future sale. Even a single wall in blåbetong can create uncertainty for a buyer.