Short-term kitempowerDX
Standard Radon Test short-term mail-in radon test kit
- Lab fee included
Method: Passive sampler
In home: 48 to 96 hours
Locations and reports
Radon Levels in New Hanover County, North Carolina
EPA puts New Hanover County in Zone 3, its lowest radon zone, and only 2 radon tests from it are on file with CDC (2022). Homes with elevated levels occur in all three zones, so only a test measures yours.
Data checked By Radon411Methodology
Share at 4+ pCi/L
3.2%
20.0 pts below NC
- New Hanover
- 3.2%
- NC
- 23.2%
124 tests, 2007 to 2016
Median result
0.1pCi/L
Below action level
- New Hanover
- 0.1 pCi/L
- EPA
- 4.0 pCi/L
Midpoint of the tests, 2007 to 2016
Tests reported
124
55th of 73 by tests
- New Hanover
- 124
- Wake
- 9,664
Reported to CDC before any fix, 2007 to 2016
EPA radon zone
Zone 3
Lower potential
- 1
- 2
- Zone 3
1 highest, 3 lowest
EPA predicts under 2 pCi/L indoors
Rank in NC
62 of 73
Lowest quarter
- New Hanover
- 3.2%
- Transylvania
- 48.1%
By share, of 73 with 30+ tests
Read a result for New Hanover County
Starts at New Hanover County's median, 0.1 pCi/L
EPA’s own thresholds; the figures are the area’s, never this home’s.
EPA’s reading of 0.2 pCi/L
Below 2 pCi/L
- Under 20 to 1.9 pCi/L
- 2 to 4consider a fix
- 4 and aboveEPA says fix it
This result is below 2 pCi/L, the level at which EPA says a fix should be considered. 0.1 pCi/L above New Hanover County's median of 0.1 pCi/L.
The data
New Hanover County, At a glance
New Hanover County at a glance
Predicted: EPA radon zone
EPA Zone 3: lower predicted potential
USGS geologic potential: Low across 78% of the county's area
Predicted: EPA Map of Radon Zones
Measured: tests reported to CDC
Radon tests reported for New Hanover County, 2022
| Year | Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L |
|---|---|
| 2014 | 0.0% |
| 2020 | 0.0% |
| 2021 | 0.0% |
| 2022 | 0.0% |
2022: 0.0%. Across these years the share ran from 0.0% to 0.0%. Each column counts radon tests reported to CDC that year, not homes.
What these figures count
Only 2 tests were reported to CDC for New Hanover County over 2022, 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: 2022. Measured data period: 2005 to 2022 (every CDC figure on file).
New Hanover County, Compared
New Hanover County radon figures, compared
Calculated by Radon411Only 4 of 124 radon tests reported for New Hanover County over the 2007 to 2016 laboratory totals reached 4 pCi/L (3.2%). The median result, 0.1 pCi/L, sits below 2, well under EPA's 4 pCi/L action level, and the top reported result was 9.3 pCi/L.
The newest figure, in 2022, counts only 2 tests (0.0% at or above 4 pCi/L), too few to compare, so this reading uses the 124-test figure.
Across 99 North Carolina counties pooled together, 23.2% of tests reached that level, so New Hanover County runs 20.0 points below its state. Against the national pool of 35.8%, the gap is 32.6 points lower. Its place in the state: 62nd of 73 North Carolina counties with 30 or more tests for the same period.
Zone 3 on EPA's map (predicted average under 2 pCi/L) and a 3.2% share point the same way here. Brunswick County, the one bordering county with a figure for the same period, reported 0.0%.
Below the action level, 119 tests (96.0%) came in under 2 pCi/L, against 55.2% statewide, and 1 tests (0.8%) fell between 2 and 4, against 21.6% statewide. USGS geology rates 78% of the county's land low radon potential.
The busiest year on file was 2020, with 35 tests reported; the quietest, 2022, had 2.
Pooled shares: Radon411's sum of CDC's county counts for one period.
New Hanover County, Geology
The ground under New Hanover County
PredictedUSGS's geologic map puts all of New Hanover County's mapped land in one class: low radon potential. The map puts 43.8% of New Hanover County in the area it calls Inner Coastal Plain and 34.3% in Outer Coastal Plain. USGS gives the first a radon index of 8 and the second 7, both in the low band (5 to 8).
| Area | The rock, in USGS's words | Potential | Radon index | Share of land |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inner Coastal Plain | Fossiliferous clay and sand, shelly sand, sandy marl, and limestone. | Low | 8 | 43.8% |
| Outer Coastal Plain | Unconsolidated sand. | Low | 7 | 34.3% |
Names, descriptions and indexes: U.S. Geological Survey, Geologic Radon Potential Map (2025). Shares: Radon411, from the map cut to the boundary.
New Hanover County beside the ground around it
Across North Carolina 1.3% of the land is rated high; none of New Hanover County's is. None of the 2 counties that border it has any moderate-potential ground either.
The map rates the ground, not the air in any home.
Local help
New Hanover County, Local resources
Radon testing and mitigation in New Hanover County
- North Carolina Radon ProgramNorth Carolina Radon Program, run by NCDHHS, answers questions about testing, mitigation and the rules in North Carolina.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 North Carolina2 professionals are listed in North Carolina.
What North Carolina's program says
- Licensing of radon professionals
The North Carolina Radon Program is presently developing a Radon Proficiency Program as directed by Session Law 2023-91 House Bill 782 .
What it means
New Hanover County, Questions
Questions about radon in New Hanover County
Are radon levels high in New Hanover County?
In 2022, 0.0% of the radon tests reported to CDC for New Hanover County, North Carolina were at or above 4 pCi/L, and the median reported pre-mitigation result was 0.1 pCi/L. Of 73 North Carolina counties with 30 or more tests for the same period, 61 reported a higher share; pooled, the state comes to 23.2%.
Which counties border New Hanover County?
New Hanover County borders 2 counties: Brunswick County and Pender County.
Products
New Hanover County, Products
Testing a home in New Hanover County
In New Hanover County, 3.2% of 124 tests reported to CDC over the 2007 to 2016 laboratory totals reached 4 pCi/L, against 23.2% pooled across North Carolina. Zone 3 is the lowest label, yet homes at or above 4 pCi/L occur in every zone: a short-term kit (2 to 90 days) is the quick first check in New Hanover County.
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
MonitorAEGTEST
HOUND-1011 rechargeable radon detector with a screen
- 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
New Hanover County, Bordering counties
Counties bordering New Hanover County
Calculated by Radon411- Radon levels in Pender CountyEPA zone 3
13.3%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 0.1 pCi/L · 15 tests · 10.1 points above New Hanover County
- Radon levels in Brunswick CountyEPA zone 3
0.0%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 0.2 pCi/L · 61 tests · 3.2 points below New Hanover County
New Hanover County, Cities and towns
Cities and towns in New Hanover County
New Hanover County is growing: the Census Bureau puts it at 245,959 residents on July 1, 2025, up 8.6% from 226,449 in 2020. Packed into its land, that is 1,279 people per square mile. Wilmington alone is home to 126,809 of them, 51.6% of the total. Together its 4 incorporated places hold 56.2% of those residents; the other 43.8% live outside any of them. Reported testing is thin here: 124 tests over 2007 to 2016, or 0.5 for every 1,000 residents (2025 estimate), where North Carolina as a whole comes to 6.3.
From Wilmington to Kure Beach, CDC publishes no figure by town: each reads New Hanover County's.
| Place | Residents | Since 2020 | Share of residents |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wilmington | 126,809 | +9.4% | 51.6% |
| Carolina Beach | 6,870 | +4.6% | 2.8% |
| Wrightsville Beach | 2,397 | −2.9% | 1.0% |
| Kure Beach | 2,145 | −1.7% | 0.9% |
4 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).
New Hanover County, Homes
Homes in New Hanover County
Of New Hanover County's 117,236 homes, 61% are detached houses, against 65% across North Carolina; 23% are in buildings of five or more homes. Half of its homes were built before 1992, close to North Carolina's 1990: 14% date from before 1960 and 35% from 2000 or later. 61% of occupied homes are lived in by their owner (North Carolina: 66%); in the rest a tenant can run a test, but a fix is the landlord's to make.
| Homes | New Hanover County | North Carolina |
|---|---|---|
| Housing units | 117,236 | 4,815,195 |
| Detached houses | 61% | 65% |
| In buildings of 5 or more | 23% | 14% |
| Mobile homes | 3% | 11% |
| Built before 1960 | 14% | 14% |
| Built since 2000 | 35% | 33% |
| Middle year built | 1992 | 1990 |
| Owner-occupied | 61% | 66% |
Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2019 to 2023: estimates from a sample of homes, looser for a small place. Shares by Radon411.