{
  "id": "testing-method-comparison",
  "title": "Radon Testing Method Comparison Dataset",
  "description": "Every residential radon measurement method side by side: what it reports, how long it runs, whether it evidences its own conditions, and which decisions it can and cannot carry.",
  "version": "1.0.0",
  "status": "published",
  "provenance": "editorial-taxonomy",
  "license": "CC BY 4.0 — reuse with attribution to Radon Connect and a link to the dataset page.",
  "published": "2026-07-29",
  "canonical": "https://radonconnect.com/datasets/testing-method-comparison/",
  "schema": [
    {
      "key": "method",
      "label": "Method",
      "type": "string",
      "description": "Measurement device or approach."
    },
    {
      "key": "duration",
      "label": "Typical duration",
      "type": "enum",
      "values": [
        "2-7 days",
        "90+ days",
        "continuous"
      ],
      "description": "How long the device is exposed."
    },
    {
      "key": "reports",
      "label": "What it reports",
      "type": "string",
      "description": "The output."
    },
    {
      "key": "evidencesConditions",
      "label": "Evidences its own conditions",
      "type": "boolean",
      "description": "Whether the output shows if closed-building conditions actually held."
    },
    {
      "key": "transactionSuitable",
      "label": "Suitable for a transaction",
      "type": "boolean",
      "description": "Whether it is normally accepted where two parties with opposing interests must both trust the number."
    },
    {
      "key": "verificationSuitable",
      "label": "Suitable for post-mitigation verification",
      "type": "boolean",
      "description": "Whether it is appropriate to prove a system worked."
    },
    {
      "key": "bestFor",
      "label": "Best for",
      "type": "string",
      "description": "The question this method answers well."
    }
  ],
  "methodology": {
    "question": "Which radon measurement method answers which question, and which decisions can each one carry?",
    "construction": [
      "Methods are the device classes available to a residential homeowner in the states we serve.",
      "The conditions and suitability columns encode the practical distinction that matters in a dispute: whether the output evidences the test conditions or merely asserts a number.",
      "Durations are the typical exposure ranges published for each device class, not manufacturer-specific specifications."
    ],
    "inclusion": [
      "Methods a homeowner can obtain or commission for a residential property.",
      "Laboratory and research instrumentation is excluded."
    ],
    "limitations": [
      "Suitability columns reflect general practice, not a legal requirement. Where a state specifies acceptable devices for a given purpose, that specification governs.",
      "No accuracy or precision figures are published. Those are device and laboratory specific, and a general claim would misrepresent them.",
      "Every method depends on correct placement and closed-building conditions. A well-chosen device placed badly produces a well-documented wrong answer."
    ]
  },
  "rowCount": 5,
  "rows": [
    {
      "method": "Charcoal short-term kit (lab analysed)",
      "duration": "2-7 days",
      "reports": "Average concentration over the exposure period.",
      "evidencesConditions": false,
      "transactionSuitable": false,
      "verificationSuitable": true,
      "bestFor": "An inexpensive first measurement, and routine biennial retesting by an owner."
    },
    {
      "method": "Alpha-track long-term detector",
      "duration": "90+ days",
      "reports": "Average concentration across seasons.",
      "evidencesConditions": false,
      "transactionSuitable": false,
      "verificationSuitable": false,
      "bestFor": "Understanding the exposure you actually live with, and deciding within the 2–4 consideration band."
    },
    {
      "method": "Continuous radon monitor (professionally deployed)",
      "duration": "2-7 days",
      "reports": "Hourly log plus an average, commonly with tamper and condition data.",
      "evidencesConditions": true,
      "transactionSuitable": true,
      "verificationSuitable": true,
      "bestFor": "Real-estate measurement and any result likely to be disputed."
    },
    {
      "method": "Consumer plug-in continuous monitor",
      "duration": "continuous",
      "reports": "Rolling averages and trends over time in the owner’s own home.",
      "evidencesConditions": false,
      "transactionSuitable": false,
      "verificationSuitable": false,
      "bestFor": "Watching seasonal trend, and noticing a mitigation system that has stopped performing."
    },
    {
      "method": "Radon-in-water test",
      "duration": "2-7 days",
      "reports": "Concentration dissolved in a private well supply.",
      "evidencesConditions": false,
      "transactionSuitable": false,
      "verificationSuitable": false,
      "bestFor": "Households on a private well, as a separate exposure pathway with its own treatment."
    }
  ]
}