Radon Mitigation in Zumbrota, MN
Radon testing and mitigation in Zumbrota.
Zumbrota has the only original covered bridge left in Minnesota, a downtown that has been continuously occupied since the 1850s, and a real estate market shaped in part by Mayo Clinic commuters. The housing here covers a wider span than the population would suggest.
A historic town with a Rochester commute
Zumbrota was platted in 1856 and the original downtown still has its grid of brick storefronts. The homes closest to that core are some of the oldest in town, with foundations that pre-date modern building practice. Stone walls, block walls, and slabs that got added in pieces over the years.
The newer subdivisions on the south and west sides of town are post-2000 builds, mostly poured-concrete foundations with the Minnesota passive radon system roughed in on anything built after June of 2009.
A meaningful share of Zumbrota residents commute to Mayo Clinic, IBM, or other Rochester employers. That commuter pattern shapes the local real estate market and means a lot of buyer-side radon questions come up during home inspections on a tight closing timeline.
Zumbrota at a glance
Radon work for a Goodhue County town with a historic downtown, the last covered bridge in Minnesota, and a strong commuter connection to Rochester.
- Housing
- Older historic homes near the central blocks, mid-century housing through the middle rings, and newer subdivisions on the edges of town.
- Geology
- The same regional bedrock that runs across southeast Minnesota. Goodhue County sits in the EPA's highest-risk radon zone.
- Median radon (Zumbrota)
- 4.3 pCi/L , above the EPA action level 33 tests/yr avg, MDH 2014–2023
- Goodhue County ≥ 4 pCi/L
- 49.6% of tested homes Ranks #41 of 87 MN counties
- Distance from Rochester
- 24 miles north
- County
- Goodhue
- Notable feature
- Last historic covered bridge in Minnesota
What the radon numbers actually say in Zumbrota
Across the testing the Minnesota Department of Health, Radon Testing public dataset has on file for Zumbrota (2014–2023), the median home reads 4.3 pCi/L. That is above the EPA action level of 4 pCi/L. The geometric mean comes in at 3.9 pCi/L. That is a log-scale average that tends to track better when the distribution has a long upper tail, which radon distributions always do.
Zoom out to Goodhue County. 49.6% of tested homes in the county come back at or above 4 pCi/L. That ranks Goodhue County #41 of 87 Minnesota counties for the share of homes above the action level. A separate 75.4% of tested homes are at or above 2 pCi/L, which is the threshold the Minnesota Department of Health uses when it recommends action.
About 33 Zumbrota homes get tested every year on average, drawing from a stock of roughly 2,501 housing units. The number above is not a forecast for your specific home. Radon varies house to house even on the same street. The number is a reasonable starting line for the conversation, not a prediction. See the full data set for the by-county and by-tract picture.
Three steps. On your timeline.
Measure your radon level.
We start with a measurement of what is actually in the air your family breathes. You see the result we see, and we walk through what it means in plain language.
You see the picture first.
Once you have the result, we talk through what your home is dealing with. No scripts, no pressure. You decide what to do next on your own timeline.
A conversation about your home.
If you want to take action, we look at the basement together and talk through what a plan for your foundation could look like. Every home is its own conversation.
Other towns we cover.
Pine Island
Pine Island has been adding new housing for years and has plenty more on the way. The town recently annexed land for a development with around 200 single-family lots, plus medium and high density housing on top of that. The radon question for these homes looks different than it does in the older parts of town.
Oronoco
Oronoco wraps around Lake Zumbro, and a lot of the housing here is tied to the water in one way or another. Older lake cabins that got converted to year-round homes, newer builds on lots with a view of the river, and rural acreage homes outside the city limits. The basements vary as much as the homes do.
Mantorville
Mantorville is one of the oldest cities in Minnesota, founded in 1854, and the entire twelve-block downtown has been on the National Register since 1974. A fair number of the homes here are nearly as old as the town, and the foundations underneath them are part of the architectural record.
Find out your radon levels with a free radon test.
About 42% of tested Olmsted County homes come back above the EPA action level. The surrounding counties are higher. The first step is knowing where yours sits, and that is the part we do for free.