Skip to content
RADON411

Locations and reports

Radon Levels in Taylor County, Iowa

EPA puts Taylor County in Zone 1, its highest radon zone, and high results are common there: 60.9% of the 235 radon tests reported to CDC (2008 to 2017, laboratory totals) came back at or above 4 pCi/L. Homes with elevated levels occur in all three zones, so only a test measures yours.

Data checked By Radon411Methodology

How to test this homeFind a certified tester

  • Share at 4+ pCi/L

    60.9%

    2.4 pts above IA

    Taylor
    60.9%
    Iowa
    58.5%

    235 tests, 2008 to 2017

  • Median result

    4.6pCi/L

    Action level reached

    Taylor
    4.6 pCi/L
    EPA
    4.0 pCi/L

    Midpoint of the tests, 2008 to 2017

  • Tests reported

    235

    78th of 99 by tests

    Taylor
    235
    Polk
    10,945

    Reported to CDC before any fix, 2008 to 2017

  • EPA radon zone

    Zone 1

    Highest potential

    1. Zone 1
    2. 2
    3. 3

    1 highest, 3 lowest

    EPA predicts over 4 pCi/L indoors

  • Rank in Iowa

    61 of 99

    Middle half

    Taylor
    60.9%
    Sioux
    84.2%

    By share, of 99 with 30+ tests

Read a result for Taylor County

Starts at Taylor County's median, 4.6 pCi/L

4.6pCi/L

EPA’s own thresholds; the figures are the area’s, never this home’s.

EPA’s reading of 4.6 pCi/L

At or above 4 pCi/L

  1. Under 20 to 1.9 pCi/L
  2. 2 to 4consider a fix
  3. 4 and aboveEPA says fix it

This result is at or above 4 pCi/L. EPA recommends fixing a home when the radon level is 4 pCi/L or higher. Taylor County's median reported result, 2008 to 2017.

Interpret this readingWhat a fix costs

The data

Taylor County, At a glance

Taylor County at a glance

Predicted: EPA radon zone

EPA Zone 1: highest predicted potential

EPA puts all of Taylor County in and predicts an average indoor of greater than 4 pCi/L (greater than 150 Bq/m³) across the county. That is one forecast for the whole county, not a reading of any address in it; homes above EPA's turn up in all three zones.

USGS geologic potential: High across 100% of the county's area

Predicted: EPA Map of Radon Zones

Measured: tests reported to CDC

Radon tests reported for Taylor County, 2008 to 2017, laboratory

Reported results by concentration band, Taylor County, 2008 to 2017, laboratory
Under 2 pCi/L: 19%2 to 4 pCi/L: 20%4 pCi/L and above: 61%

Of 235 pre-mitigation tests reported to CDC, not homes in this area.

Reported results by concentration band, Taylor County, 2008 to 2017, laboratory: data table
Result bandTests MeasuredShare Measured
Under 2 pCi/L4519.1%
2 to 4 pCi/L4720.0%
4 pCi/L and above14360.9%
What these figures count

These are the 235 tests reported to CDC for Taylor County over 2008 to 2017 (laboratory totals), many from homes being sold or already suspected of a problem: they describe the county's reported tests, not this house.

Measured: CDC tracking data. Figure above: 2008 to 2017, laboratory. Measured data period: 2005 to 2017 (every CDC figure on file).

How to read these figures

Taylor County, Compared

Taylor County radon figures, compared

Calculated by Radon411

More than half: 60.9% of the 235 radon tests reported to CDC for Taylor County over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals read at least 4 pCi/L. That places it 61st of 99 Iowa counties with 30 or more tests for the same period. That is 2.4 points above the 58.5% pooled from 99 Iowa counties.

The median result, 4.6 pCi/L, sits above EPA's 4 pCi/L action level, and the top reported result was 54.6 pCi/L. The rest split 19.1% under 2 pCi/L and 20.0% from 2 to 4 (Iowa: 21.8% and 19.7%). Zone 1 on EPA's map (predicted average above 4 pCi/L) and a 60.9% share point the same way here.

4 of its 6 bordering counties with figures ran higher, led by Page County at 71.7%; Ringgold County reported 28.7%. Statewide for the same period, Sioux County reported the highest share (84.2%) and Decatur County the lowest (25.9%).

CDC's ten-year totals for Taylor County went from 230 tests (2005 to 2014) to 235 (2008 to 2017), the share going from 65.2% to 60.9%.

Nationally, every county with a figure for the same period pools to 35.7%; Taylor County sits 25.2 points above it. CDC also counts 8 tests taken after mitigation in Taylor County for the same period: tests in homes where a fix was already in.

Taylor County against Iowa, the United States and nearby counties, 2008 to 2017, laboratory
AreaTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedianDifference from Taylor County
Taylor County23560.9%4.6 pCi/LThis county
Iowa, pooled99 counties, pooled95,24558.5%Not pooled−2.4 points
United States, pooled2,661 counties, pooled2,013,54435.7%Not pooled−25.2 points
Sioux Countyhighest in the state1,98284.2%10.7 pCi/L+23.3 points
Decatur Countylowest in the state8525.9%2.5 pCi/L−35.0 points
Page County, IAborders it65371.7%7.2 pCi/L+10.8 points
Montgomery County, IAborders it23367.4%6.1 pCi/L+6.5 points
Adams County, IAborders it8165.4%6.1 pCi/L+4.5 points
Union County, IAborders it13161.8%4.9 pCi/L+0.9 points
Nodaway County, MOborders it22534.2%2.7 pCi/L−26.7 points
Ringgold County, IAborders it8728.7%2.6 pCi/L−32.2 points
Worth County, MOborders it119.1%1.5 pCi/L−51.8 points
Where Taylor County's reported results fell, 2008 to 2017, laboratory, beside Iowa and the United States
ResultTaylor County testsTaylor County shareIowa shareU.S. shareAgainst Iowa
Under 2 pCi/L4519.1%21.8%39.6%−2.7 points
2 to 4 pCi/L4720.0%19.7%24.7%+0.3 points
4 pCi/L and above14360.9%58.5%35.7%+2.4 points
Taylor County ranked among the 99 Iowa counties with 30 or more tests, by share at or above 4 pCi/L, 2008 to 2017, laboratory
CountyRankTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedian
Madison County56 of 9931862.3%6.0 pCi/L
Benton County57 of 9969662.1%5.6 pCi/L
Union County58 of 9913161.8%4.9 pCi/L
Howard County59 of 9938861.3%5.9 pCi/L
Mahaska County60 of 9928861.1%5.2 pCi/L
Taylor County61 of 9923560.9%4.6 pCi/L
Cedar County62 of 9976560.4%5.0 pCi/L
Keokuk County63 of 9921460.3%5.2 pCi/L
Butler County64 of 9937759.9%5.2 pCi/L
Story County65 of 992,56859.9%5.0 pCi/L
Floyd County66 of 9969759.5%5.1 pCi/L
Taylor County ten-year laboratory totals, against Iowa's pooled share
PeriodTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedianHighestIowa, pooledChange from the row before
2008 to 201723560.9%4.6 pCi/L54.6 pCi/L58.5%+0.3 points
2007 to 201621860.6%4.6 pCi/L54.6 pCi/L58.6%−3.2 points
2006 to 201524363.8%5.3 pCi/L54.6 pCi/L59.4%−1.4 points
2005 to 201423065.2%5.5 pCi/L54.6 pCi/L59.6%First on file

Pooled shares: Radon411's sum of CDC's county counts for one period.

Taylor County, Geology

The ground under Taylor County

Predicted

USGS's geologic map puts all of Taylor County's mapped land in one class: high radon potential. All of it lies in the area the map calls Loess-Covered Drift Plains, to which USGS gives a radon index of 13, in the high band (12 to 17).

USGS's geologic areas under Taylor County
AreaThe rock, in USGS's wordsPotentialRadon indexShare of land
Loess-Covered Drift PlainsPre-Illinoian and Illinoian glacial deposits, and loess.High13100%

Names, descriptions and indexes: U.S. Geological Survey, Geologic Radon Potential Map (2025). Shares: Radon411, from the map cut to the boundary.

Taylor County beside the ground around it

On high-potential ground Taylor County is close to Iowa as a whole: 100% of its land against 98.8%. Of the 7 counties that border it, none has as large a share of high-potential ground; Adams County comes nearest at 100%.

Share of land by USGS radon potential: Taylor County, the 7 counties bordering it and Iowa
AreaEPA zoneLow potentialModerate potentialHigh potential
Taylor CountyZone 1NoneNone100%
Adams CountyZone 1NoneNone100%
Page CountyZone 1NoneNone100%
Ringgold CountyZone 1NoneNone100%
Worth County, MOZone 2None85.0%15.0%
Union CountyZone 1NoneNone100%
Montgomery CountyZone 1NoneNone100%
Nodaway County, MOZone 1None20.1%79.9%
Iowa99 counties, pooled by land areaVariesNone1.2%98.8%

The map rates the ground, not the air in any home.

Local help

Taylor County, Local resources

Radon testing and mitigation in Taylor County

What Iowa's program says
Phone
(515) 281-4928
Licensing of radon professionals
Iowa’s radon program approves applications for persons who wish to become certified to perform radon testing or credentialed to perform mitigation and laboratories that provide radon testing devices and analytical services.
Disclosure when a home is sold or rented
However, per Iowa Code chapters 543B.9 and 543B.18 and Iowa Administrative Code 193E Chapter 14 administered by the Iowa Real Estate Commission, a seller must disclose any known tests for the presence of radon and if yes, provide the date of last report and the result(s).

What it means

Taylor County, Questions

Questions about radon in Taylor County

Are radon levels high in Taylor County?

Over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals, 60.9% of the radon tests reported to CDC for Taylor County, Iowa were at or above 4 pCi/L, and the median reported pre-mitigation result was 4.6 pCi/L. Of 99 Iowa counties with 30 or more tests for the same period, 60 reported a higher share; pooled, the state comes to 58.5%.

Which counties border Taylor County?

Taylor County borders 7 counties: Adams County, IA, Page County, IA, Ringgold County, IA, Worth County, MO, Union County, IA, Montgomery County, IA and Nodaway County, MO.

Products

Taylor County, Products

Testing a home in Taylor County

In Taylor County, 60.9% of 235 tests reported to CDC over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals reached 4 pCi/L, against 58.5% pooled across Iowa. In Zone 1 the year-round level in Taylor County is the one to know: a long-term test (more than 90 days) or a monitor, with a short-term kit for a first answer.

Test kits and monitors3

See every kit and monitor

Taylor County is in EPA Zone 1, the highest predicted radon potential. Best radon monitors for Zone 1 counties like Taylor County

Explore

Taylor County, Bordering counties

Counties bordering Taylor County

Calculated by Radon411

Taylor County, Cities and towns

Cities and towns in Taylor County

Taylor County's population has barely moved since 2020: 5,835 residents on July 1, 2025 against 5,862 then, by the Census Bureau's estimates. That works out to 11 people per square mile of land. Its largest town, Bedford, has 1,474 residents, 25.3% of the total. CDC's 235 reported tests for 2008 to 2017 work out to 40.3 per 1,000 residents (2025 estimate), close to Iowa's 29.4.

From Bedford to Conway, CDC publishes no figure by town: each reads Taylor County's.

The cities and towns in Taylor County by residents, July 1, 2025
PlaceResidentsSince 2020Share of residents
Bedford1,474−1.1%25.3%
Lenoxextends beyond Taylor County1,364+1.9%Counted whole
New Market381−0.8%6.5%
Clearfieldextends beyond Taylor County278+0.4%Counted whole
Gravity149−2.0%2.6%
Blockton123Level2.1%
Sharpsburg72−1.4%1.2%
Conway15Level0.3%

8 incorporated places, as listed in the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2020 place reference files. Residents: U.S. Census Bureau population estimates for July 1, 2025 (Vintage 2025). A place that extends beyond Taylor County is counted whole, so it has no share.

Taylor County, Homes

Homes in Taylor County

Taylor County is a place of houses on their own lots: 88% of its 2,890 homes are detached single-family houses, against 72% across Iowa. The homes are older than Iowa's as a whole: half were built before 1952 (1971 for Iowa), and 58% date from before 1960. Owners live in 78% of the occupied homes (Iowa: 72%), so for most households a test and a fix are their own to order.

Homes in Taylor County, Iowa, 2019 to 2023
HomesTaylor CountyIowa
Housing units2,8901,427,175
Detached houses88%72%
In buildings of 5 or more2%14%
Mobile homes4%3%
Built before 196058%39%
Built since 20009%21%
Middle year built19521971
Owner-occupied78%72%

Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2019 to 2023: estimates from a sample of homes, looser for a small place. Shares by Radon411.