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 Bristol city, Virginia
EPA puts Bristol city in Zone 1, its highest radon zone, and high results are common there: 50.9% of the 110 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
Share at 4+ pCi/L
50.9%
20.5 pts above VA
- Bristol city
- 50.9%
- Virginia
- 30.4%
110 tests, 2008 to 2017
Median result
4.2pCi/L
Action level reached
- Bristol city
- 4.2 pCi/L
- EPA
- 4.0 pCi/L
Midpoint of the tests, 2008 to 2017
Tests reported
110
59th of 84 by tests
- Bristol city
- 110
- Fairfax
- 8,657
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 Virginia
9 of 84
Top quarter
- Bristol city
- 50.9%
- Russell
- 67.3%
By share, of 84 with 30+ tests
Read a result for Bristol city
Starts at Bristol city's median, 4.2 pCi/L
EPA’s own thresholds; the figures are the area’s, never this home’s.
EPA’s reading of 4.2 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. Bristol city's median reported result, 2008 to 2017.
The data
Bristol city, At a glance
Bristol city at a glance
Predicted: EPA radon zone
EPA Zone 1: highest predicted potential
EPA puts all of Bristol city 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 Bristol city, 2008 to 2017, laboratory
Under 2 pCi/L: 14%2 to 4 pCi/L: 35%4 pCi/L and above: 51%
Of 110 pre-mitigation tests reported to CDC, not homes in this area.
| Result band | Tests Measured | Share Measured |
|---|---|---|
| Under 2 pCi/L | 15 | 13.6% |
| 2 to 4 pCi/L | 39 | 35.5% |
| 4 pCi/L and above | 56 | 50.9% |
What these figures count
These are the 110 tests reported to CDC for Bristol city 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).
Bristol city, Compared
Bristol city radon figures, compared
Calculated by Radon411More than half: 50.9% of the 110 radon tests reported to CDC for Bristol city over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals read at least 4 pCi/L. That places it 9th of 84 Virginia counties with 30 or more tests for the same period. That is 20.5 points above the 30.4% pooled from 131 Virginia counties.
The median result, 4.2 pCi/L, sits above EPA's 4 pCi/L action level, and the top reported result was 33.2 pCi/L. The rest split 13.6% under 2 pCi/L and 35.5% from 2 to 4 (Virginia: 44.7% and 24.9%). Zone 1 on EPA's map (predicted average above 4 pCi/L) and a 50.9% share point the same way here.
All 2 of its bordering counties with figures ran higher, led by Washington County at 58.1%; the lowest of them, Sullivan County, TN, reported 51.5%. Statewide for the same period, Russell County reported the highest share (67.3%) and Norfolk city the lowest (2.7%).
CDC's ten-year totals for Bristol city went from 106 tests (2005 to 2014) to 110 (2008 to 2017), the share going from 41.5% to 50.9%.
Nationally, every county with a figure for the same period pools to 35.7%; Bristol city sits 15.2 points above it.
Pooled shares: Radon411's sum of CDC's county counts for one period.
Bristol city, Geology
The ground under Bristol city
PredictedUSGS's geologic map puts all of Bristol city's mapped land in one class: high radon potential. 98.5% of it lies in the area the map calls Valley and Ridge, to which USGS gives a radon index of 15, in the high band (12 to 17).
| Area | The rock, in USGS's words | Potential | Radon index | Share of land |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Valley and Ridge | Cambrian dolomite, limestone, shale, and sandstone, Silurian-Ordovician limestone, dolomite, shale, and sandstone, Mississippian-Devonian sandstone, shale, limestone, gypsum, and coal. | High | 15 | 98.5% |
| Ridge and Valley | Paleozoic sandstone and cherty dolostone. | High | 14 | 1.5% |
Names, descriptions and indexes: U.S. Geological Survey, Geologic Radon Potential Map (2025). Shares: Radon411, from the map cut to the boundary.
Bristol city beside the ground around it
Bristol city has more high-potential ground than Virginia as a whole: 100% of its land against 47.9%. Of the 2 counties that border it, none has as large a share of high-potential ground; Sullivan County, TN comes nearest at 100%.
The map rates the ground, not the air in any home.
Local help
Bristol city, Local resources
Radon testing and mitigation in Bristol city
- VDH Radon ProgramVDH Radon Program answers questions about testing, mitigation and the rules in Virginia.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 Virginia2 professionals are listed in Virginia.
What Virginia's program says
- Phone
- (804) 864-8161
- Radon@vdh.virginia.gov
- Licensing of radon professionals
The Code of Virginia requires that Radon testers and mitigators be currently certified by either the National Radon Proficiency Program (NRPP) or the National Radon Safety Board (NRSB).
What it means
Bristol city, Questions
Questions about radon in Bristol city
Are radon levels high in Bristol city?
Over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals, 50.9% of the radon tests reported to CDC for Bristol city, Virginia were at or above 4 pCi/L, and the median reported pre-mitigation result was 4.2 pCi/L. Of 84 Virginia counties with 30 or more tests for the same period, 8 reported a higher share; pooled, the state comes to 30.4%.
Which counties border Bristol city?
Bristol city borders 2 counties: Sullivan County, TN and Washington County, VA.
Products
Bristol city, Products
Testing a home in Bristol city
In Bristol city, 50.9% of 110 tests reported to CDC over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals reached 4 pCi/L, against 30.4% pooled across Virginia. In Zone 1 the year-round level in Bristol city 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
MonitorForensics Detectors
FD-65-RADON rechargeable radon detector with a color screen
- C-NRPP 2024/25: Not included
- Battery
- Alarm
- Screen
Method: Semiconductor sensor
First reading: Within 6 hours
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
- See every kit and monitor Test kits and monitors
Test kits and monitors: 1 of 3
Bristol city is in EPA Zone 1, the highest predicted radon potential. Best radon monitors for Zone 1 counties like Bristol city
Explore
Bristol city, Bordering counties
Counties bordering Bristol city
Calculated by Radon411- Radon levels in Washington County, VAEPA zone 1
58.1%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 4.8 pCi/L · 384 tests · 7.2 points above Bristol city
- Radon levels in Sullivan County, TNEPA zone 1
51.5%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 4.2 pCi/L · 1,799 tests · 0.6 points above Bristol city
Bristol city, Cities and towns
Cities and towns in Bristol city
Bristol city has been losing residents: from 17,321 in 2020 to 16,418 on July 1, 2025, a fall of 5.2% by the Census Bureau's estimates. Packed into its land, that is 1,276 people per square mile. Bristol, its one incorporated place, has 16,418 residents, 100.0% of the total. CDC's 110 reported tests for 2008 to 2017 work out to 6.7 per 1,000 residents (2025 estimate), close to Virginia's 6.0.
Bristol is the one incorporated place here; CDC publishes no figure by town, so it reads Bristol city's.
| Place | Residents | Since 2020 | Share of residents |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bristol | 16,418 | −5.2% | 100.0% |
One incorporated place, 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).
Bristol city, Homes
Homes in Bristol city
Of Bristol city's 8,654 homes, 65% are detached houses, against 61% across Virginia; 20% are in buildings of five or more homes. The homes are older than Virginia's as a whole: half were built before 1966 (1984 for Virginia), and 40% date from before 1960. 63% of occupied homes are lived in by their owner (Virginia: 67%); in the rest a tenant can run a test, but a fix is the landlord's to make.
| Homes | Bristol city | Virginia |
|---|---|---|
| Housing units | 8,654 | 3,654,784 |
| Detached houses | 65% | 61% |
| In buildings of 5 or more | 20% | 19% |
| Mobile homes | 1% | 4% |
| Built before 1960 | 40% | 19% |
| Built since 2000 | 10% | 25% |
| Middle year built | 1966 | 1984 |
| Owner-occupied | 63% | 67% |
Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2019 to 2023: estimates from a sample of homes, looser for a small place. Shares by Radon411.