Short-term kit
PicoCan short-term charcoal canister radon test
- Lab fee included
Method: Charcoal
In home: 48 to 96 hours
Locations and reports
Radon Levels in Powell County, Kentucky
EPA puts Powell County in Zone 2, its middle radon zone, and only 29 radon tests from it are on file with CDC (2008 to 2017, laboratory totals). Homes with elevated levels occur in all three zones, so only a test measures yours.
Data checked By Radon411Methodology
Highest bordering
51.4%
Montgomery County
- Montgomery
- 51.4%
- Menifee
- 22.0%
4 of 6 neighbours have 30+ tests, 2008 to 2017
Nearest county
44.1%
Estill County, 12 miles
- Estill
- 44.1%
- Kentucky
- 43.7%
Share at 4+ pCi/L, 177 tests, 2008 to 2017
Ground above low
100.0%
5.7 pts above Kentucky
- Powell
- 100.0%
- Kentucky
- 94.3%
Share of land USGS rates moderate or high potential
Tests reported
29
Too few for a share
- Powell
- 29
- Needed
- 30
2008 to 2017, laboratory
EPA radon zone
Zone 2
Moderate potential
- 1
- Zone 2
- 3
1 highest, 3 lowest
EPA predicts 2 to 4 pCi/L indoors
Read a result for Powell County
Starts at EPA's action level
EPA’s own thresholds; the figures are the area’s, never this home’s.
EPA’s reading of 4.0 pCi/L
At or above 4 pCi/L
- Under 20 to 1.9 pCi/L
- 2 to 4consider a fix
- 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.
The data
Powell County, At a glance
Powell County at a glance
Predicted: EPA radon zone
EPA Zone 2: moderate predicted potential
Powell County is a
USGS geologic potential: Moderate across 76% of the county's area
Predicted: EPA Map of Radon Zones
Measured: tests reported to CDC
Radon tests reported for Powell County, 2008 to 2017, laboratory
CDC holds 29 reported tests for Powell County over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals, with a median of 3.2 pCi/L: too few to describe a county (Radon411 reads a share from 30 tests up). Powell County beside the counties around it is how this page reads it.
What these figures count
Only 29 tests were reported to CDC for Powell County over 2008 to 2017 (laboratory totals), and tests are often run on homes being sold or already suspected of a problem: so few describe neither the county nor this house.
Measured: CDC tracking data. Figure above: 2008 to 2017, laboratory. Measured data period: 2005 to 2017 (every CDC figure on file).
Powell County, Compared
Powell County radon figures, compared
Calculated by Radon411CDC's largest figure for Powell County rests on 29 tests over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals, 13 of them at or above 4 pCi/L, so each test moves its share by 3.4 points and no rank or comparison is drawn from it. Results reached as high as 45.7 pCi/L, with a middle value of 3.2 pCi/L.
Of the counties bordering it, 4 have a figure over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals: Montgomery County reported the largest share at or above 4 pCi/L, 51.4%, and Menifee County the smallest, 22.0%, with Estill County at 44.1% and Clark County at 29.0% between. Farther out, Madison County (26 miles away) at 38.7%, Rowan County (33 miles away) at 18.9% and Bourbon County (34 miles away) at 53.5% have figures too. Pooled across 120 Kentucky counties, 43.7% of reported tests reached that level; across every county in the country with a figure, 35.7%.
Statewide for the same period, Meade County reported the highest share (68.4%) and Hopkins County the lowest (9.5%). EPA's 1993 map puts Powell County in Zone 2, its middle label: a predicted county average between 2 and 4 pCi/L. USGS geology rates 76% of the county's land moderate radon potential.
Pooled shares: Radon411's sum of CDC's county counts for one period.
Powell County, Geology
The ground under Powell County
PredictedMost of the ground under Powell County is one class on USGS's geologic map: 75.6% of its land is moderate radon potential, with 24.4% high. The map puts 61.4% of Powell County in the area it calls Mississippian Plateau and 24.4% in New Albany-Chattanooga Shale, with one smaller area beside them. USGS gives the first a radon index of 11, in the moderate band (9 to 11), and the second 14, in the high band (12 to 17).
| Area | The rock, in USGS's words | Potential | Radon index | Share of land |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mississippian Plateau | Mississippian marine limestones, dolomites, marine sandstones, siltstones, and shales. | Moderate | 11 | 61.4% |
| New Albany-Chattanooga Shale | Devonian/Mississippian Black shale. | High | 14 | 24.4% |
| Cumberland Plateau | Pennsylvanian sandstones, siltstones, and shales. | Moderate | 9 | 14.1% |
Names, descriptions and indexes: U.S. Geological Survey, Geologic Radon Potential Map (2025). Shares: Radon411, from the map cut to the boundary.
Powell County beside the ground around it
On high-potential ground Powell County is close to Kentucky as a whole: 24.4% of its land against 18.2%. Of the 6 counties that border it, 3 have more high-potential ground, Estill County the most at 42.7%.
The map rates the ground, not the air in any home.
Local help
Powell County, Local resources
Radon testing and mitigation in Powell County
- Kentucky's radon programKentucky Board of Radon SafetyKentucky's radon program answers questions about testing, mitigation and the rules in Kentucky.Visit the program’s page(opens in a new tab)
- Free and low-cost kitsAsk the program whether it has free or discounted kits, or compare kits you can buy.
- Compare kits
- Professionals in Kentucky8 professionals are listed in Kentucky.
What Kentucky's program says
- Phone
- 502-782-2782
- Radon@ky.gov
What it means
Powell County, Questions
Questions about radon in Powell County
Are radon levels high in Powell County?
Over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals, 44.8% of the radon tests reported to CDC for Powell County, Kentucky were at or above 4 pCi/L, and the median reported pre-mitigation result was 3.2 pCi/L. Of the counties bordering it, 4 have a figure over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals: Montgomery County reported the largest share at or above 4 pCi/L, 51.4%, and Menifee County the smallest, 22.0%, with Estill County at 44.1% and Clark County at 29.0% between.
Which counties border Powell County?
Powell County borders 6 counties: Estill County, Menifee County, Lee County, Wolfe County, Montgomery County and Clark County.
Products
Powell County, Products
Testing a home in Powell County
No CDC figure names Powell County; the nearest county with one, Estill County (12 miles away), reported 44.1% of its tests at or above 4 pCi/L over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals, the only reading nearby until a test of this home. In Zone 2 a short-term kit (2 to 90 days) is the quick first check in Powell County; a long-term test tells the year-round average.
Test kits and monitors3
See every kit and monitor
Long-term kit
RL416 long-term radon test kit, lab fee included
- Lab fee included
Method: Alpha track
In home: 90 days to 12 months
Monitor
RM-65 rechargeable radon detector with a color screen and alarm
- C-NRPP 2024/25: Not included
- Battery
- Alarm
- Screen
Method: Semiconductor sensor
First reading: Within 6 hours
- See every kit and monitor Test kits and monitors
Test kits and monitors: 1 of 3
Explore
Powell County, Bordering counties
Counties bordering Powell County
Calculated by Radon411- Radon levels in Montgomery CountyEPA zone 2
51.4%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 4.1 pCi/L · 105 tests
- Radon levels in Estill CountyEPA zone 2
44.1%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 3.2 pCi/L · 177 tests
- Radon levels in Clark CountyEPA zone 1
29.0%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 2.4 pCi/L · 231 tests
- Radon levels in Menifee CountyEPA zone 2
22.0%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 1.4 pCi/L · 41 tests
- Radon levels in Lee CountyEPA zone 2
5.6%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 1.2 pCi/L · 18 tests
- Radon levels in Wolfe CountyEPA zone 2
0.0%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 0.1 pCi/L · 4 tests
Powell County, Cities and towns
Cities and towns in Powell County
About 12,812 people live in Powell County by the Census Bureau's estimate for July 1, 2025, 286 fewer than in 2020 (−2.2%). That works out to 72 people per square mile of land. Its largest town, Stanton, has 3,153 residents, 24.6% of the total. Together its 2 incorporated places hold 33.8% of those residents; the other 66.2% live outside any of them. Reported testing is thin here: 29 tests over 2008 to 2017, or 2.3 for every 1,000 residents (2025 estimate), where Kentucky as a whole comes to 6.3.
From Stanton to Clay City, CDC publishes no figure by town: each reads Powell County's.
| Place | Residents | Since 2020 | Share of residents |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stanton | 3,153 | −2.7% | 24.6% |
| Clay City | 1,174 | −1.5% | 9.2% |
2 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).
Powell County, Homes
Homes in Powell County
Of Powell County's 5,619 homes, 62% are detached houses, against 68% across Kentucky; 26% are mobile homes. Half of its homes were built before 1984, close to Kentucky's 1982: 8% date from before 1960 and 26% from 2000 or later. 69% of occupied homes are lived in by their owner (Kentucky: 68%); in the rest a tenant can run a test, but a fix is the landlord's to make.
| Homes | Powell County | Kentucky |
|---|---|---|
| Housing units | 5,619 | 2,010,655 |
| Detached houses | 62% | 68% |
| In buildings of 5 or more | 7% | 12% |
| Mobile homes | 26% | 11% |
| Built before 1960 | 8% | 22% |
| Built since 2000 | 26% | 24% |
| Middle year built | 1984 | 1982 |
| Owner-occupied | 69% | 68% |
Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2019 to 2023: estimates from a sample of homes, looser for a small place. Shares by Radon411.