What ANSI-AARST SGM-SF Actually Requires in a Radon Mitigation Documentation Record

Most radon mitigators learned the trade on the job, not from a binder. You know how to find the suction point, route the pipe, and get the post-test under the action level. The paperwork is the part nobody trains you on, and it's the part a real estate attorney, a state inspector, or a homeowner's lawyer will scrutinize months after the fan is running.

ANSI/AARST SGM-SF is the consensus standard for soil gas mitigation in existing single-family homes. It covers how the system is designed and installed, but a big share of the standard is about what you record and hand off. This post walks through what that record needs to contain so you don't find out something's missing after closing day.

A quick note before the details: the SGM-SF documentation requirements are the general framework below. Your state may add its own rules, and certification bodies like NRPP have their own expectations. Treat this as a working checklist, not legal advice, and confirm against the current published standard and your state radon program.

Why the documentation record matters as much as the install

A radon mitigation system is a permanent modification to someone's house. Years from now, a buyer's inspector might pull a u-tube reading, a future contractor might tie into your piping, and a homeowner might call asking why the manometer columns are level. The documentation record is the institutional memory of that system. It's also the proof that what you installed meets the standard, which is exactly what gets challenged when a deal is on the line.

The target keyword here is simple: the ANSI-AARST SGM-SF requirements for documentation are about traceability. Who did the work, what they measured before and after, what equipment is in the wall, and how the homeowner operates and maintains it.

The core fields a complete record should capture

Property and contractor identification

Start with the unglamorous part. The record needs the property address, the date of installation, and the identity and certification of the person or company doing the work. If your state requires a license or certification number on the documentation, this is where it lives. A report that doesn't say who installed the system and when is the first thing a reviewer flags.

Pre-mitigation measurement

Document the radon level that justified the job. Capture the pre-mitigation result in pCi/L, the test method, the device used, and the test dates and duration. This is the baseline that proves the system actually did something. The EPA action level of 4.0 pCi/L is the reference point most homeowners and agents will anchor to, so make sure the before number is unambiguous.

Building and system design basis

The standard expects the system to be designed for the building it's in. Your record should describe the foundation type or types (slab, crawlspace, basement, or a combination), because that drives the mitigation approach. If you performed any diagnostic work, like a suction field or communication test, note what you found. This is the difference between "I put a fan on it" and "I designed an active soil depressurization system for this foundation."

System specifications

This is the heart of the record, and it's where most cobbled-together Word docs fall short. Capture:

• Fan make and model
• System type (active soil depressurization is the common case)
• Suction point locations and how many
• Piping diameter and routing (interior or exterior, point of discharge)
• Discharge location relative to openings, eaves, and grade
• Sealing of major openings, sumps, and accessible cracks
• The system failure indicator (the u-tube manometer or equivalent) and where it's mounted
• Electrical connection details and whether a dedicated circuit was used

If a future contractor or inspector can't reconstruct your system from the paper alone, the record isn't complete.

Labeling and safety devices

The standard calls for the system to be labeled so anyone in the home understands what it is and not to disable it. Your documentation should reflect that the required labeling and the system monitor were installed. Note the warning labels on the fan, piping, and electrical panel as applicable.

Post-mitigation measurement

The post-test closes the loop. Record the post-mitigation pCi/L result, the device, the test duration, and the dates. The standard sets expectations for how soon after installation a confirmatory test can begin, so document that the timing was respected rather than rushing a test the same afternoon. The before-and-after pair is the single most-requested piece of information in a real estate transaction.

Homeowner handoff and operation

Finally, the record should show that the homeowner received operating and maintenance information: how to read the monitor, what a system failure looks like, who to call, and the recommendation to re-test periodically. A signed acknowledgment or a delivered operations document is the cleanest way to prove the handoff happened.

Where the cobbled-together approach breaks down

The clipboard, the camera roll, and the Word template work right up until the moment they don't. The fan model is in a photo on one phone. The pre-test is in an email. The post-test is a text message from your tech. When the request comes in on a Friday afternoon and the closing is Monday, you're reassembling a record from three places and hoping nothing's wrong.

The fields above aren't hard to capture. The hard part is capturing them consistently, every job, in a format that prints clean and matches the standard. That's a discipline problem, and discipline problems are exactly what software is good at solving.

How RemediDocs handles the SGM-SF record

RemediDocs is built so the record is complete by the time you leave the property. You log the pre- and post-mitigation pCi/L readings, enter your ASD system specs once (fan make and model, CFM, static pressure, piping diameter, suction points, safety devices, discharge), attach photos, and tap Generate Report. The output is a branded PDF formatted around the ANSI-AARST SGM-SF standard, ready to send to the homeowner, the agent, or the inspector before you're back in the truck.

It works offline, which matters when the work happens in a crawlspace or a rural basement with no signal. Everything syncs when you reconnect. And because radon, mold, and water documentation live in one app, a multi-trade company isn't stitching three tools together to stay compliant.

RemediDocs is a documentation tool. It doesn't replace your certification, licensing, or compliance obligations under AARST-NRPP, EPA, or your state radon program. What it does is make sure the record you're already responsible for is complete, consistent, and ready the moment someone asks.

Get every field, every job

Stop reassembling radon records from a camera roll and an email thread. See the plans at our pricing, or create a free account at a free account and generate your first SGM-SF report in under ten minutes. No credit card, cancel anytime.