Granite Countertops. Radioactive?

[sr71blackbird]

Someone told me that granite countertops emit radiation. Is this true and is it harmful?
I tried looking it up and there seems to be two sides, for and against, and I cannot tell which is accurate. Anyone know for sure?

[Friday]

google is an amazing tool. (http://www.marble-institute.com/industryresources/truthaboutgraniteradonradiation.pdf)

[Don Stugots]

I have never heared of this and I install them on almost every job I do. Its a bit cheaper than marble usually
and looks a lot better than the recycled concrete tops.

[IMSlacker]

My enriched uranium countertop is the envy of all my neighbors.

[Thebazile78]

Someone told me that granite countertops emit radiation. Is this true and is it harmful?
I tried looking it up and there seems to be two sides, for and against, and I cannot tell which is accurate. Anyone know for sure?

I have never heared of this and I install them on almost every job I do. Its a bit cheaper than marble usually
and looks a lot better than the recycled concrete tops.

Most of this concern is from an article that ran a few months ago in the NY Times' "Home and Garden" section:

What's Lurking in Your Countertop? (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/24/garden/24granite.html?scp=1&sq=granite%20countertops&st=cse) (24 July 2008; NY Times; Home & Garden section)

People freaked out about it. I even asked my realtor about it when we went in to start our contracts. She hadn't heard about it yet, but I told her that maybe she would like to read the article because I thought that more people might freak. (I wasn't freaking, but I thought it was something she might like to know.) Heck, it even came up during our home inspection when the inspector set the radon testing kit ... he said that if our radon reading came back funky, they would proceed with a second radon reading and possibly a geiger counter test for the countertops.

The bottom line is, while it's true that granite MAY have trace (or higher) amounts of radioactive isotopes in it, granite is generally a safe material and you won't run into that. If you're freaking out, however, hire a radiation tester.

[Don Stugots]

Thanks for the info Liz. I am going to read that when I get home. I am also going to ask the designer on this job about it. I had no idea.

[Thebazile78]

Thanks for the info Liz. I am going to read that when I get home. I am also going to ask the designer on this job about it. I had no idea.

It's a pretty well-written article, but it can be mis-interpreted in a paranoid "scare-frenzy" sort of a way.

The best part, if I recall correctly, is they provided links to resources to get your granite tested, so, for someone in your line of work, you might consider getting in touch with the EPA and/or any of the agencies listed as resources.

[sr71blackbird]

I wonder if installers can be exposed to higher amounts or particles if they are doing grinding work. The guy that told me (he was a little nutty) said that there is a granite building in Merrick that had a radiation level so high that they recommended people not be in the building more than 8 hours a day. But again, I am not overly concerned, since almost any stone material should have trace amounts in it, the sun has an aweful lot.

[Ritalin]

No.

But the cracks in your kitchen floor tile will break your mother's back.