Long-term kit
RL116 long-term radon test kit
- Lab fee extra
Method: Alpha track
In home: 90 days to 12 months
Locations and reports
Radon Levels in Pipestone County, Minnesota
EPA puts Pipestone County in Zone 1, its highest radon zone, and only 28 radon tests from it are on file with CDC (2023). Homes with elevated levels occur in all three zones, so only a test measures yours.
Data checked By Radon411Methodology
Share at 4+ pCi/L
71.4%
28.0 pts above MN
- Pipestone
- 71.4%
- Minnesota
- 43.4%
360 tests, 2008 to 2017
Median result
5.8pCi/L
Action level reached
- Pipestone
- 5.8 pCi/L
- EPA
- 4.0 pCi/L
Midpoint of the tests, 2008 to 2017
Tests reported
360
51st of 85 by tests
- Pipestone
- 360
- Hennepin
- 35,213
Reported to CDC before any fix, 2008 to 2017
EPA radon zone
Zone 1
Highest potential
- Zone 1
- 2
- 3
1 highest, 3 lowest
EPA predicts over 4 pCi/L indoors
Rank in Minnesota
6 of 85
Top quarter
- Pipestone
- 71.4%
- Rock
- 83.8%
By share, of 85 with 30+ tests
Read a result for Pipestone County
Starts at Pipestone County's median, 5.8 pCi/L
EPA’s own thresholds; the figures are the area’s, never this home’s.
EPA’s reading of 5.8 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. Pipestone County's median reported result, 2008 to 2017.
The data
Pipestone County, At a glance
Pipestone County at a glance
Predicted: EPA radon zone
EPA Zone 1: highest predicted potential
EPA puts all of Pipestone County in
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 Pipestone County, 2023
| Year | Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L |
|---|---|
| 2014 | 58.3% |
| 2015 | 69.4% |
| 2016 | 75.0% |
| 2017 | 82.9% |
| 2018 | 89.3% |
| 2019 | 59.4% |
| 2020 | 60.7% |
| 2021 | 76.0% |
| 2022 | 36.6% |
| 2023 | 71.4% |
2023: 71.4%. Across these years the share ran from 36.6% to 89.3%. Each column counts radon tests reported to CDC that year, not homes.
What these figures count
Only 28 tests were reported to CDC for Pipestone County over 2023, 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: 2023. Measured data period: 2005 to 2023 (every CDC figure on file).
Pipestone County, Compared
Pipestone County radon figures, compared
Calculated by Radon411More than half: 71.4% of the 360 radon tests reported to CDC for Pipestone County over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals read at least 4 pCi/L. That places it 6th of 85 Minnesota counties with 30 or more tests for the same period. That is 28.0 points above the 43.4% pooled from 87 Minnesota counties.
The newest figure, in 2023, counts only 28 tests (71.4% at or above 4 pCi/L), too few to compare, so this reading uses the 360-test figure.
The median result, 5.8 pCi/L, sits above EPA's 4 pCi/L action level, and the top reported result was 80.8 pCi/L. The rest split 10.3% under 2 pCi/L and 18.3% from 2 to 4 (Minnesota: 27.4% and 29.2%). Zone 1 on EPA's map (predicted average above 4 pCi/L) and a 71.4% share point the same way here.
2 of its 6 bordering counties with figures ran higher, led by Rock County at 83.8%; Minnehaha County, SD reported 58.5%. Statewide for the same period, Rock County reported the highest share (83.8%) and Anoka County the lowest (17.4%).
The busiest year on file was 2022, with 82 tests reported; the quietest, 2014, had 24.
Over 5 years of annual figures the share fell 32.8 points, from 69.4% in 2015 to 36.6% in 2022; its peak was 82.9% in 2017. Nationally, every county with a figure for the same period pools to 35.7%; Pipestone County sits 35.7 points above it. CDC also counts 11 tests taken after mitigation in Pipestone County for the same period: tests in homes where a fix was already in.
Pipestone CountyMinnesota, pooled
| Year | Tests | Pipestone County, at or above 4 pCi/L | Minnesota, pooled |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 49 | 69.4% | 43.6% |
| 2016 | 36 | 75.0% | 37.0% |
| 2017 | 35 | 82.9% | 38.2% |
| 2019 | 32 | 59.4% | 36.1% |
| 2022 | 82 | 36.6% | 31.6% |
Pooled shares: Radon411's sum of CDC's county counts for one period.
Pipestone County, State data
Minnesota's own radon test data
MeasuredWhat Minnesota's own agencies publish about radon tests in Pipestone County, with their period. These are not CDC's figures and are never added to them.
MeasuredState figures, not CDC's
What the Minnesota Department of Health reports for Pipestone County
Radon Testing (MN Public Health Data Access Portal): home radon tests reported voluntarily by private laboratories and licensed radon measurement professionals, counted by property. Period: 2016-2025.
Share with one or more tests at or above 4 pCi/L
68.8%
245 properties tested with one or more tests at or above 4 pCi/L
Median result
5.7 pCi/L
Average result
8.6 pCi/L
Tests behind these figures
36 properties tested a year on average
- MDH says these data do not include all of the radon tests conducted in Minnesota.
- Post-mitigation tests are excluded from the averages and the median; the percentages use each property's highest test.
- Each home is unique and can have very different results than a neighbor's home; the only way to know is to test.
- These figures describe tests reported to the Minnesota Department of Health in this area. They count a different set of tests than CDC's figures and are not a reading of any one home.
Measured: Minnesota Department of Health data, 2016-2025.
Pipestone County, Geology
The ground under Pipestone County
PredictedUSGS's geologic map puts all of Pipestone County's mapped land in one class: high radon potential. The map puts 61.9% of Pipestone County in the area it calls Prairie Coteau and 38.1% in Central Lowland-Till Prairie. USGS gives the first a radon index of 12 and the second 14, both in the high band (12 to 17).
| Area | The rock, in USGS's words | Potential | Radon index | Share of land |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prairie Coteau | Pre-Wisconsinan glacial deposits (includes Wisconsinan loess and older bedrock). | High | 12 | 61.9% |
| Central Lowland-Till Prairie | Silty and clayey till derived from shale and sandstone. | High | 14 | 38.1% |
Names, descriptions and indexes: U.S. Geological Survey, Geologic Radon Potential Map (2025). Shares: Radon411, from the map cut to the boundary.
Pipestone County beside the ground around it
Pipestone County has more high-potential ground than Minnesota as a whole: 100% of its land against 61.1%. Of the 7 counties that border it, none has as large a share of high-potential ground; Brookings County, SD comes nearest at 100%.
The map rates the ground, not the air in any home.
Local help
Pipestone County, Local resources
Radon testing and mitigation in Pipestone County
- MDH Indoor Air UnitMDH Indoor Air Unit, run by MN Dept. of Health, licenses or certifies radon professionals and states the rule for disclosing radon when a home is sold, and answers questions about testing and mitigation in Minnesota.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 Minnesota255 professionals are listed in Minnesota.
What Minnesota's program says
- Phone
- 651-201-4601
- health.indoorair@state.mn.us
- Licensing of radon professionals
The Radon Licensing Act requires anyone who performs a radon test or radon mitigation, in a building they do not own or lease, must be licensed by MDH.
- Disclosure when a home is sold or rented
The Minnesota Radon Awareness Act requires specific disclosure and education be provided to potential home buyers during residential real estate transactions in Minnesota.
What it means
Pipestone County, Questions
Questions about radon in Pipestone County
Are radon levels high in Pipestone County?
In 2023, 71.4% of the radon tests reported to CDC for Pipestone County, Minnesota were at or above 4 pCi/L, and the median reported pre-mitigation result was 7.3 pCi/L. Of 85 Minnesota counties with 30 or more tests for the same period, 5 reported a higher share; pooled, the state comes to 43.4%.
Which counties border Pipestone County?
Pipestone County borders 7 counties: Moody County, SD, Lincoln County, MN, Rock County, MN, Murray County, MN, Lyon County, MN, Brookings County, SD and Minnehaha County, SD.
Products
Pipestone County, Products
Testing a home in Pipestone County
In Pipestone County, 71.4% of 360 tests reported to CDC over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals reached 4 pCi/L, against 43.4% pooled across Minnesota. In Zone 1 the year-round level in Pipestone 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
Monitor
Corentium Home battery digital radon detector
- C-NRPP 2024/25: Approved
- Battery
- Screen
Method: Alpha spectrometry
Short-term kit
RA400 short-term liquid scintillation radon test kit, lab fee included
- Lab fee included
Method: Liquid scintillation
In home: 48 to 96 hours
- See every kit and monitor Test kits and monitors
Test kits and monitors: 1 of 3
Pipestone County is in EPA Zone 1, the highest predicted radon potential. Best radon monitors for Zone 1 counties like Pipestone County
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Pipestone County, Bordering counties
Counties bordering Pipestone County
Calculated by Radon411- Radon levels in Rock County, MNEPA zone 1
83.8%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 7.7 pCi/L · 210 tests · 12.4 points above Pipestone County
- Radon levels in Murray County, MNEPA zone 1
76.4%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 6.7 pCi/L · 237 tests · 5.0 points above Pipestone County
- Radon levels in Moody County, SDEPA zone 1
70.0%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 6.2 pCi/L · 20 tests · 1.4 points below Pipestone County
- Radon levels in Brookings County, SDEPA zone 1
68.5%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 6.6 pCi/L · 356 tests · 2.9 points below Pipestone County
- Radon levels in Lyon County, MNEPA zone 1
64.3%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 5.3 pCi/L · 687 tests · 7.1 points below Pipestone County
- Radon levels in Lincoln County, MNEPA zone 1
64.2%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 6.8 pCi/L · 137 tests · 7.2 points below Pipestone County
- Radon levels in Minnehaha County, SDEPA zone 1
58.5%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 4.8 pCi/L · 1,920 tests · 12.9 points below Pipestone County
Pipestone County, Cities and towns
Cities and towns in Pipestone County
About 9,260 people live in Pipestone County by the Census Bureau's estimate for July 1, 2025, 158 fewer than in 2020 (−1.7%). That works out to 20 people per square mile of land. Its largest town, Pipestone, has 4,100 residents, 44.3% of the total. Testing is reported here more often than across the state: CDC's 360 reported tests for 2008 to 2017 come to 38.9 for every 1,000 residents (2025 estimate), against 22.5 for Minnesota.
From Pipestone to Hatfield, CDC publishes no figure by town: each reads Pipestone County's.
| Place | Residents | Since 2020 | Share of residents |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pipestone | 4,100 | −2.5% | 44.3% |
| Edgerton | 1,256 | −0.2% | 13.6% |
| Jasperextends beyond Pipestone County | 586 | −3.1% | Counted whole |
| Ruthton | 222 | −2.2% | 2.4% |
| Holland | 176 | −2.2% | 1.9% |
| Woodstock | 114 | Level | 1.2% |
| Trosky | 102 | −1.9% | 1.1% |
| Ihlen | 61 | −1.6% | 0.7% |
| Hatfield | 55 | −1.8% | 0.6% |
9 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 Pipestone County is counted whole, so it has no share.
Pipestone County, Homes
Homes in Pipestone County
Pipestone County is a place of houses on their own lots: 87% of its 4,316 homes are detached single-family houses, against 66% across Minnesota. The homes are older than Minnesota's as a whole: half were built before 1958 (1978 for Minnesota), and 53% date from before 1960. Owners live in 81% of the occupied homes (Minnesota: 72%), so for most households a test and a fix are their own to order.
| Homes | Pipestone County | Minnesota |
|---|---|---|
| Housing units | 4,316 | 2,519,538 |
| Detached houses | 87% | 66% |
| In buildings of 5 or more | 7% | 19% |
| Mobile homes | 2% | 3% |
| Built before 1960 | 53% | 29% |
| Built since 2000 | 8% | 22% |
| Middle year built | 1958 | 1978 |
| Owner-occupied | 81% | 72% |
Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2019 to 2023: estimates from a sample of homes, looser for a small place. Shares by Radon411.