THE HIDDEN DANGER OF MANTLE LAMPS

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We were interested enough, therefore, to check MOM'S house—the earth-bermed, hybrid solar structure at the Eco-Village—to determine whether it produces higher-than-normal levels of radiation. The structure didn't budge the detector's needle, though . . . but then, the house is located in—and largely built of materials from—a relatively old geographic region where naturally occurring levels of radiation are not as high as in some other parts of the United States.

In short, using the detector helped awaken us to the fact that low-level radiation is fairly prevalent . . . often in common, readily available consumer items. And as an outgrowth of their cooperation with MOTHER on this story, the folks at Solar Electronics have decided to make two types of instruments available to readers who might want to do some testing in their own homes or workplaces.

The Radiation Alert Monitor 4 has a meter that directly reads in milliroentgens (mR) per hour . . . plus a count light and "beeper" function. Three meter ranges allow detection of radiation levels up to 50 mR/hour, or up to 5,000 times natural background levels. Essentially, the instrument is a mini-Geiger counter for making precise measurements. A Radiation Alert Monitor 4 costs $150, plus $5.00 for shipping charges.

Another detector that some of you might find interesting is the Radiation Alert- Mini. This is a small instrument—which can be clipped in a shirt pocket or on a belt—designed to alert a person who is exposed to radioactivity by sounding an alarm. While there's no meter, the device does have a three-level alarm system of flashing LED's (light-emitting diodes) and audible tones.

According to Mr. Sythe, the Radiation AlertMini would provide good insurance for someone who might be exposed to radioactivity during the course of his or her work, or who lives in a "risk" area (perhaps close to a nuclear power plant) and would like to know about it if radiation levels were suddenly to surge. The Radiation Alert-Minis are available for $199 each (a unit customarily sells for $249.50, but Solar Electronics is discounting the device for MOTHER-readers only), plus $5.00 for shipping.

These radiation detectors can be ordered, far the prices mentioned above, from Solar Electronics, Dept. TMEN, 156 Drakes Lane, Summertown, Tennessee 38383. If you'd like to obtain more information about either device, simply write (please enclose a dollar or two to help defray mailing expenses) and request brochures. Or you might want to inquire about discounts on bulk orders (Solar Electronics has recently supplied a number of Radiation Alert-Minis to companies whose employees may be exposed to excessive radiation levels).

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