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 Nicholas County, West Virginia
EPA puts Nicholas County in Zone 2, its middle radon zone, and only 13 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
52.3%
Greenbrier County
- Greenbrier
- 52.3%
- Kanawha
- 20.6%
2 of 6 neighbours have 30+ tests, 2008 to 2017
Nearest county
52.3%
Greenbrier County, 30 miles
- Greenbrier
- 52.3%
- WV
- 37.5%
Share at 4+ pCi/L, 176 tests, 2008 to 2017
Ground above low
89.7%
3.7 pts above WV
- Nicholas
- 89.7%
- WV
- 86.0%
Share of land USGS rates moderate or high potential
Tests reported
13
Too few for a share
- Nicholas
- 13
- 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 Nicholas 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
Nicholas County, At a glance
Nicholas County at a glance
Predicted: EPA radon zone
EPA Zone 2: moderate predicted potential
Nicholas County is a
USGS geologic potential: Moderate across 90% of the county's area
Predicted: EPA Map of Radon Zones
Measured: tests reported to CDC
Radon tests reported for Nicholas County, 2008 to 2017, laboratory
CDC holds 13 reported tests for Nicholas County over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals, with a median of 2.6 pCi/L: too few to describe a county (Radon411 reads a share from 30 tests up). Nicholas County beside the counties around it is how this page reads it.
What these figures count
Only 13 tests were reported to CDC for Nicholas 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).
Nicholas County, Compared
Nicholas County radon figures, compared
Calculated by Radon411CDC's largest figure for Nicholas County rests on 13 tests over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals, 4 of them at or above 4 pCi/L, so each test moves its share by 7.7 points and no rank or comparison is drawn from it. Results reached as high as 10.0 pCi/L, with a middle value of 2.6 pCi/L.
Of the counties bordering it, 2 have a figure over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals: Greenbrier County reported the largest share at or above 4 pCi/L, 52.3%, and Kanawha County the smallest, 20.6%. Farther out, Raleigh County (43 miles away) at 16.7%, Randolph County (60 miles away) at 36.4% and Putnam County (62 miles away) at 23.1% have figures too. Pooled across 55 West Virginia counties, 37.5% of reported tests reached that level; across every county in the country with a figure, 35.7%.
Statewide for the same period, Morgan County reported the highest share (58.1%) and Grant County the lowest (9.8%). EPA's 1993 map puts Nicholas County in Zone 2, its middle label: a predicted county average between 2 and 4 pCi/L. USGS geology rates 90% of the county's land moderate radon potential.
Pooled shares: Radon411's sum of CDC's county counts for one period.
Nicholas County, Geology
The ground under Nicholas County
PredictedMost of the ground under Nicholas County is one class on USGS's geologic map: 89.7% of its land is moderate radon potential, with 10.3% low. The map puts 70.4% of Nicholas County in the area it calls Eastern Allegheny Plateau and Mtns and 18.2% in Central Allegheny Plateau, with 2 smaller areas beside them. USGS gives both a radon index of 10, in the moderate band (9 to 11).
| Area | The rock, in USGS's words | Potential | Radon index | Share of land |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eastern Allegheny Plateau and Mtns | Devonian-Pennsylvanian shale, siltstone, sandstone, minor limestone and coal | Moderate | 10 | 70.4% |
| Central Allegheny Plateau | Permian and Pennsylvanian shale, siltstone, sandstone, minor limestone. | Moderate | 10 | 18.2% |
| Cumberland Plateau | Pennsylvanian sandstone, siltstone, shale, and coal | Low | 8 | 10.3% |
| Southern Appalachian Valley and Ridge | Ordovician-Mississippian shale, siltstone, sandstone, limestone. | Moderate | 11 | 1.1% |
Names, descriptions and indexes: U.S. Geological Survey, Geologic Radon Potential Map (2025). Shares: Radon411, from the map cut to the boundary.
Nicholas County beside the ground around it
Across West Virginia 18.7% of the land is rated high; none of Nicholas County's is. Of the 6 counties that border it, 1 has more high-potential ground, Greenbrier County the most at 23.5%.
The map rates the ground, not the air in any home.
Local help
Nicholas County, Local resources
Radon testing and mitigation in Nicholas County
- OEHS Radon ProgramOEHS Radon Program, run by WV DHHR OEHS Radiation, Toxics & Indoor Air Division, licenses or certifies radon professionals and offers free or discounted test kits, and answers questions about testing and mitigation in West Virginia.Visit the program’s page(opens in a new tab)
- Free and low-cost kitsThe program says:
West Virginia residents can request a free Radon Test Kit by emailing Radon@wv.gov or calling 304-352-5039
- Compare kits
- Professionals in West Virginia35 professionals are listed in West Virginia.
What West Virginia's program says
- Phone
- 304-352-5039
- Radon@wv.gov
- Licensing of radon professionals
Complete listings of professionals licensed to perform Asbestos, Lead, Radon and Clandestine Drug Laboratory Remediation activities in West Virginia.
What it means
Nicholas County, Questions
Questions about radon in Nicholas County
Are radon levels high in Nicholas County?
Over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals, 30.8% of the radon tests reported to CDC for Nicholas County, West Virginia were at or above 4 pCi/L, and the median reported pre-mitigation result was 2.6 pCi/L. Of the counties bordering it, 2 have a figure over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals: Greenbrier County reported the largest share at or above 4 pCi/L, 52.3%, and Kanawha County the smallest, 20.6%.
Which counties border Nicholas County?
Nicholas County borders 6 counties: Clay County, Fayette County, Webster County, Braxton County, Greenbrier County and Kanawha County.
Products
Nicholas County, Products
Testing a home in Nicholas County
No CDC figure names Nicholas County; the nearest county with one, Greenbrier County (30 miles away), reported 52.3% 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 Nicholas 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
RadonScan-Plus USB-powered radon monitor with Wi-Fi
- C-NRPP 2024/25: Not included
- Plug-in
- Wi-Fi
- Alarm
- Screen, app
First reading: Within 5 minutes
- See every kit and monitor Test kits and monitors
Test kits and monitors: 1 of 3
Explore
Nicholas County, Bordering counties
Counties bordering Nicholas County
Calculated by Radon411- Radon levels in Greenbrier CountyEPA zone 1
52.3%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 4.5 pCi/L · 176 tests
- Radon levels in Braxton CountyEPA zone 2
25.0%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 1.3 pCi/L · 12 tests
- Radon levels in Webster CountyEPA zone 2
21.4%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 1.3 pCi/L · 14 tests
- Radon levels in Kanawha CountyEPA zone 3
20.6%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 2.2 pCi/L · 247 tests
- Radon levels in Clay CountyEPA zone 2
0.0%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 0.1 pCi/L · 1 test
- Radon levels in Fayette CountyEPA zone 2
0.0%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 0.8 pCi/L · 20 tests
Nicholas County, Cities and towns
Cities and towns in Nicholas County
About 23,848 people live in Nicholas County by the Census Bureau's estimate for July 1, 2025, 711 fewer than in 2020 (−2.9%). That works out to 37 people per square mile of land. No town dominates: Summersville, the largest, has 3,297 residents, 13.8% of the total. Together its 2 incorporated places hold 20.5% of those residents; the other 79.5% live outside any of them. Reported testing is thin here: 13 tests over 2008 to 2017, or 0.5 for every 1,000 residents (2025 estimate), where West Virginia as a whole comes to 5.7.
From Summersville to Richwood, CDC publishes no figure by town: each reads Nicholas County's.
| Place | Residents | Since 2020 | Share of residents |
|---|---|---|---|
| Summersville | 3,297 | −3.7% | 13.8% |
| Richwood | 1,598 | −3.9% | 6.7% |
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).
Nicholas County, Homes
Homes in Nicholas County
Of Nicholas County's 12,540 homes, 73% are detached houses, against 71% across West Virginia; 22% are mobile homes. Half of its homes were built before 1980, close to West Virginia's 1976: 25% date from before 1960 and 20% from 2000 or later. Owners live in 82% of the occupied homes (West Virginia: 74%), so for most households a test and a fix are their own to order.
| Homes | Nicholas County | West Virginia |
|---|---|---|
| Housing units | 12,540 | 859,653 |
| Detached houses | 73% | 71% |
| In buildings of 5 or more | 3% | 8% |
| Mobile homes | 22% | 14% |
| Built before 1960 | 25% | 33% |
| Built since 2000 | 20% | 18% |
| Middle year built | 1980 | 1976 |
| Owner-occupied | 82% | 74% |
Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2019 to 2023: estimates from a sample of homes, looser for a small place. Shares by Radon411.