Radon Mitigation in New Salem, PA
Updated
PA DEP has 3,916 home radon tests on record from the ZIP codes that cover New Salem (17408, 17371). 50.3% came back at or above the EPA's 4.0 pCi/L action level, against 52.5% for York County as a whole. That is close to the county-wide rate, which is itself about one test in two. A standard system here typically costs $800 to $1,500. The only way to know about one house is to test it.
New Salem is a borough in York County with about 1,011 residents and 338 homes, median year built 1969. It is surrounded by North Codorus Township. The borough was incorporated in 1876. 50.3% of PA DEP radon tests in its ZIP codes came back at or above the action level, below the county's 52.5%.
What the PA DEP test records show for New Salem
ZIP codes don't follow borough lines, so the 2 ZIP codes below also take in some homes just outside New Salem.
| ZIP | Tests | Median pCi/L | 4+ pCi/L | 10+ | 20+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17408 | 3,880 | 4 | 50.1% | 23.4% | 10.7% |
| 17371 | 36 | 6.4 | 69.4% | 27.8% | 11.1% |
| York County | 98,845 | 4.3 | 52.5% | 26.8% | 13.1% |
- ZIP 17408 (about 57% of New Salem's land): median 4 pCi/L across 3,880 tests, 10.7% at 20 or higher, top reading 203. Basement median 4.8, first floor 1.4.
- ZIP 17371 (about 43% of New Salem's land): median 6.4 pCi/L across 36 tests, 11.1% at 20 or higher, top reading 43. Basement median 6.5.
The spread inside New Salem runs from 50.1% of tests high in 17408 to 69.4% in 17371.
Look past the median to the high end. One test in 9 here came in at 20 pCi/L or more, five times the action level, and the highest reading on record is 203 pCi/L. Neighboring houses can differ by a factor of ten, so none of this tells you what your house is. It tells you the odds are high enough that a $15 to $30 test kit is worth buying.
Tests people chose to run, not a random survey. Details on the York County radon levels page.
Basement readings versus first-floor readings
In ZIP 17408, basement tests have a median of 4.8 pCi/L, while tests taken on the first floor have a median of 1.4 pCi/L (463 first-floor tests). The basement number runs 3.4 times the first-floor number, which is the usual pattern: radon comes up from the soil, so it is strongest at the lowest level and gets diluted as it moves up through the house.
Radon results by decade in ZIP 17408
| Decade tested | Tests | Median pCi/L | 4+ pCi/L |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 381 | 5.4 | 58.8% |
| 2010s | 2,410 | 4.2 | 51.2% |
| 2020s | 1,086 | 3.1 | 44.8% |
The share peaked in the 2000s at 58.8% and sits at 44.8% for tests since 2020. A drop that size is mostly about who is testing, not the ground. More recent tests come from home sales and from retests after a system went in, and both pull the share down. The rock under New Salem has not changed. 1,086 tests have been logged in 17408 since 2020, so people here are still testing.
Housing in New Salem and what it means for a system
Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020 to 2024:
| New Salem | York County | |
|---|---|---|
| Homes (housing units) | 338 | 189,857 |
| Median year built | 1969 | 1976 |
| Built before 1940 | 24.6% | 18.3% |
| Built before 1980 | 74.9% | 54.8% |
| Built 2000 or later | 19.2% | 20.6% |
| Single-family detached | 98.2% | 64.3% |
| Attached (rowhome, townhouse) | 0.9% | 17.1% |
| Mobile homes | 0.6% | 4.1% |
| Owner-occupied | 96.7% | 76.3% |
Most of the housing in New Salem went up between the 1940s and the 1970s (74.9% was built before 1980, median year 1969). That era mostly means poured or concrete-block basements. Block walls are hollow, and soil gas can move up through the cores, so a system here sometimes needs block-wall suction alongside the usual sub-slab point.
98.2% of homes in New Salem are single-family detached. A detached house with a basement is the easiest layout to mitigate: one suction point through the slab, a fan outside or in the garage, and a vent above the roof line. It is the standard sub-slab depressurization job covered step by step on our mitigation process page, and it usually lands in the middle of the cost range.
Cost-wise, most houses in New Salem are the standard $800 to $1,500 sub-slab job, with block walls or a second suction point pushing toward $2,500. Full ranges on the cost page.
Where we work in New Salem
Main roads include Route 616. The borough was incorporated in 1876.
Installers must hold a PA DEP radon mitigation certification (how to check), and permit questions go to the borough office at newsalemborough.com.
Common questions
Is radon a problem in New Salem?
Yes. PA DEP has 3,916 tests on record from the ZIP codes covering New Salem, and 50.3% of them came back at or above the EPA's 4.0 pCi/L action level. 10.7% were at 20 pCi/L or more. The county-wide rate is 52.5%.
What is the average radon level in ZIP 17408?
The median of 3,880 PA DEP tests in ZIP 17408 is 4 pCi/L and the mean is 9.3 pCi/L. A mean that far above the median means a long tail of very high readings, topping out at 203 pCi/L.
Nearby
West Manchester Township 50.5%, North Codorus Township 55.6%, Jackson Township 53.7%. Share of PA DEP tests at or above 4.0 pCi/L, against 50.3% here.
Have a test result from New Salem?
Send us the number and the foundation type, or call and read it out.
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