According to media reports, the Federal Office for Radiation Protection warns against home office in the basement: Those who work in the basement are increasingly exposed to the noble gas radon.
Millions of Germans have been working from home since the introduction of mandatory home office * to curb the number of corona infections.
Some people have moved their
workplaces to the basement
.
Shielded from annoying construction site or traffic noise, work is quietest there.
But the Federal Office for Radiation Protection (BfS) does not think this is a good idea.
Radon in the basement: Anyone who works from home there is in the long term at risk of cancer
As the
Wirtschaftswoche
reports, the authority warns urgently of the health risks that a permanent job in the basement could bring.
"
Radon
concentrations
are sometimes
reached
in basement rooms that are
dangerous to health in the long term,
" says Bernd Hoffmann, head of the Radon department at the BfS.
Radon is one of the noble gases and is released when uranium in the soil decays.
Radon enters the basement through poorly sealed subsoil, through cracks or pipe accesses, and collects there.
The consequences can be serious, because
radon is considered to be carcinogenic
.
"Along with smoking, radon is one of the
most important causes of lung cancer
in Germany," said Hoffmann.
Radon is even believed to be the dominant cause among non-smokers.
Around 2,000 deaths in this country are said to be due to the radioactive gas, according to the authority.
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Then workers have to act quickly.
+
Those who work at home should move their home office to the upper rooms of the house.
The radiation exposure in the basement is often too high.
© Uwe Anspach / dpa
Home office in the basement: check radiation exposure beforehand
The Federal Office for Radiation Protection therefore advises anyone who wants to set up their home office in the basement
to check
their
radon
exposure beforehand
.
The fastest way to do this is with an electronic measuring device that immediately provides the current value.
Cost: Around 150 euros upwards.
Such a measurement gives an initial reference point, but the value can fluctuate widely.
According to
the BfS, the
annual average should
not exceed
300 Becquerel per cubic meter of air
.
Further information on the measurement and the
radon risk areas
in Germany can be found on the website of the Federal Office for Radiation Protection.
If you still don't want to do without home office in the basement, you can use a few tricks to help: You can
seal
pipe access points and cracks
, or
extract
the gas with a small ventilation system.
Windows open and ventilate not enough, according to the Federal Office.
(as) * Merkur.de is part of the nationwide Ippen-Digital editors network.
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List of rubric lists: © Uwe Anspach / dpa