1 00:00:01,958 --> 00:00:04,416 [cheerful bright music] 2 00:00:04,417 --> 00:00:08,082 - Do you remember back when lawn care was warfare? 3 00:00:08,083 --> 00:00:09,666 [lawnmower rumbling] 4 00:00:09,667 --> 00:00:13,041 - 8 to 10 seconds for those whirring blades to stop 5 00:00:13,042 --> 00:00:16,707 is a huge opportunity for disaster to strike. 6 00:00:16,708 --> 00:00:20,832 - Do you know that there was a time when household DIY 7 00:00:20,833 --> 00:00:23,500 could make you D-I-E? 8 00:00:24,958 --> 00:00:27,332 - By the time you figure out there's a problem, 9 00:00:27,333 --> 00:00:31,250 the fire is already raging within your walls. 10 00:00:32,583 --> 00:00:36,207 - Or when your house fan said, "I dare you." 11 00:00:36,208 --> 00:00:37,582 - They move a lot more air, 12 00:00:37,583 --> 00:00:40,541 but they also take a lot more fingers. 13 00:00:40,542 --> 00:00:43,416 People just accept this devil's bargain. 14 00:00:43,417 --> 00:00:45,916 - These are the things we used to do, 15 00:00:45,917 --> 00:00:48,582 for fun, for money, 16 00:00:48,583 --> 00:00:50,291 or maybe out of boredom, 17 00:00:50,292 --> 00:00:52,999 that we'll never see again. 18 00:00:53,000 --> 00:00:55,957 Were they dangerous? Certainly. 19 00:00:55,958 --> 00:00:57,916 Deadly? Occasionally. 20 00:00:57,917 --> 00:01:00,541 But boy, wasn't it exciting? 21 00:01:00,542 --> 00:01:02,708 [dramatic music] 22 00:01:07,458 --> 00:01:09,542 [pensive music] 23 00:01:10,708 --> 00:01:15,582 A big part of the American dream is owning your own home. 24 00:01:15,583 --> 00:01:18,832 And for millions of families after World War II, 25 00:01:18,833 --> 00:01:20,999 that meant a place in the suburbs 26 00:01:21,000 --> 00:01:23,999 filled with the latest in home furnishings. 27 00:01:24,000 --> 00:01:27,249 By the 1960s, nothing said modern comfort 28 00:01:27,250 --> 00:01:30,916 quite like a brand new invention that was a little wild 29 00:01:30,917 --> 00:01:32,458 and a lot of wet. 30 00:01:33,792 --> 00:01:36,457 - When you look at the United States in the 1960s 31 00:01:36,458 --> 00:01:41,041 versus the 1950s, there are some real changes in pop culture 32 00:01:41,042 --> 00:01:42,249 that are obvious. 33 00:01:42,250 --> 00:01:43,582 One place this shows up 34 00:01:43,583 --> 00:01:45,707 is in how people decorate their homes. 35 00:01:45,708 --> 00:01:48,582 - '50s furniture has structured edges, clean lines. 36 00:01:48,583 --> 00:01:52,374 It's sophisticated, but very conservative. 37 00:01:52,375 --> 00:01:54,999 - So by the '60s, informality is the thing. 38 00:01:55,000 --> 00:01:57,291 Chairs get replaced by cushions 39 00:01:57,292 --> 00:01:58,582 and then by the end of the decade, 40 00:01:58,583 --> 00:02:00,624 everything is replaced with like a beanbag 41 00:02:00,625 --> 00:02:03,124 that has no structure. 42 00:02:03,125 --> 00:02:04,874 - [Natalia] In around 1967, 43 00:02:04,875 --> 00:02:07,999 a student designer named Charlie Hall has an idea. 44 00:02:08,000 --> 00:02:09,541 What if he can make something 45 00:02:09,542 --> 00:02:12,207 with even less structure than a floor cushion? 46 00:02:12,208 --> 00:02:14,166 - Charlie figures water would work best 47 00:02:14,167 --> 00:02:16,207 for a big, flat surface. 48 00:02:16,208 --> 00:02:20,207 Then it comes to him, how about a big, flat mattress? 49 00:02:20,208 --> 00:02:22,874 - [Jason] It's an eight by eight vinyl mattress 50 00:02:22,875 --> 00:02:26,625 and he dubs it the waterbed. 51 00:02:27,875 --> 00:02:31,707 - [Hakeem] By 1971, Hall has a patent and his waterbeds 52 00:02:31,708 --> 00:02:33,833 are in department stores around the country. 53 00:02:34,875 --> 00:02:36,541 - [Negin] There is like a nationwide craze. 54 00:02:36,542 --> 00:02:39,249 They have a really fun marketing campaign. 55 00:02:39,250 --> 00:02:40,750 They have a poster that says , 56 00:02:40,875 --> 00:02:44,666 "Two things are better in a waterbed- one of them is sleep." 57 00:02:44,667 --> 00:02:46,957 - [Henry] America's love affair with the waterbed 58 00:02:46,958 --> 00:02:49,582 continues well into the '80s. 59 00:02:49,583 --> 00:02:53,792 Eventually, one in every five beds sold is a waterbed. 60 00:02:54,750 --> 00:02:56,374 - [Natalia] The market is crowded. 61 00:02:56,375 --> 00:02:58,582 All these sellers are desperate to stand out, 62 00:02:58,583 --> 00:03:00,874 so they release these over-the-top ad campaigns 63 00:03:00,875 --> 00:03:03,874 where they're crowing about their low, low, low prices. 64 00:03:03,875 --> 00:03:06,874 - Come and get your free money at Country Boy Waterbed! 65 00:03:06,875 --> 00:03:10,457 - [Henry] At its height, there are over 1,200 companies 66 00:03:10,458 --> 00:03:13,041 pumping up a $2 billion industry, 67 00:03:13,042 --> 00:03:17,082 but competition drowns the market with cheap knockoffs. 68 00:03:17,083 --> 00:03:20,332 - A bed filled with water is one place you definitely 69 00:03:20,333 --> 00:03:22,624 don't wanna cut corners. 70 00:03:22,625 --> 00:03:25,332 - [Jason] You could puncture it with a piece of jewelry. 71 00:03:25,333 --> 00:03:27,374 Your dog or cat could jump on the bed 72 00:03:27,375 --> 00:03:29,416 and if one of those claws goes through that thing, 73 00:03:29,417 --> 00:03:31,499 all of a sudden, now you've got a flood. 74 00:03:31,500 --> 00:03:35,291 It's all the dangers of water delivered in your mattress. 75 00:03:35,292 --> 00:03:38,749 - A waterbed weighs nearly one ton. 76 00:03:38,750 --> 00:03:43,041 That's like having a small car in your bedroom. 77 00:03:43,042 --> 00:03:45,457 - [Henry] Rumors spread about heavy waterbeds 78 00:03:45,458 --> 00:03:47,333 crashing through ceilings. 79 00:03:48,375 --> 00:03:50,082 Now some of that might be urban legend, 80 00:03:50,083 --> 00:03:53,749 but waterbeds do hide real dangers. 81 00:03:53,750 --> 00:03:57,832 - There is a freak accident in 1976 in Ventura, California 82 00:03:57,833 --> 00:04:00,707 where a woman is sleeping on her waterbed. 83 00:04:00,708 --> 00:04:04,541 So this rogue wave gets created inside her waterbed which, 84 00:04:04,542 --> 00:04:06,374 as you can imagine, sort of pops her out of the bed 85 00:04:06,375 --> 00:04:07,874 and then the mattress sort of follows her 86 00:04:07,875 --> 00:04:09,792 and it plops right out on top of her. 87 00:04:11,042 --> 00:04:14,457 - By 1983, damage from waterbeds becomes such a problem 88 00:04:14,458 --> 00:04:17,750 that 60% of California landlords ban them. 89 00:04:19,083 --> 00:04:22,374 - [Henry] And surprisingly, the biggest risk from waterbeds 90 00:04:22,375 --> 00:04:24,416 has nothing to do with water. 91 00:04:24,417 --> 00:04:26,291 - So you had to heat the waterbed 92 00:04:26,292 --> 00:04:28,999 if you didn't want the bed to be very, very cold. 93 00:04:29,000 --> 00:04:32,707 So it used a pretty traditional heating coil of that era. 94 00:04:32,708 --> 00:04:35,416 - Like many heating devices of this era, 95 00:04:35,417 --> 00:04:38,457 these heaters lack safety devices 96 00:04:38,458 --> 00:04:41,541 and are prone to causing electrical fires. 97 00:04:41,542 --> 00:04:44,499 And you'd think that 200 gallons of water 98 00:04:44,500 --> 00:04:46,457 would douse the danger, 99 00:04:46,458 --> 00:04:49,249 but because water conducts electricity, 100 00:04:49,250 --> 00:04:52,624 it can actually make an electrical fire worse. 101 00:04:52,625 --> 00:04:54,832 - [Negin] So you see these stories throughout the '70s 102 00:04:54,833 --> 00:04:57,749 and early '80s of mattresses bursting into flames 103 00:04:57,750 --> 00:05:00,750 and then setting the entire bedroom on fire. 104 00:05:01,958 --> 00:05:03,666 - [Austin] By the late 1980s, 105 00:05:03,667 --> 00:05:05,791 the old heating coils are replaced 106 00:05:05,792 --> 00:05:11,332 with newer, safer insulated pads that automatically shut off 107 00:05:11,333 --> 00:05:13,291 when they hit a certain temperature. 108 00:05:13,292 --> 00:05:15,999 - [Henry] What ultimately turns the tide on waterbeds 109 00:05:16,000 --> 00:05:19,374 isn't fires or crushing the occasional owner. 110 00:05:19,375 --> 00:05:21,707 It's just a shift in taste. 111 00:05:21,708 --> 00:05:24,957 - Though you can find waterbeds today, 112 00:05:24,958 --> 00:05:26,541 even though they're safer, 113 00:05:26,542 --> 00:05:28,957 many apartment buildings don't allow them. 114 00:05:28,958 --> 00:05:32,833 So in essence, the waterbed party is over. 115 00:05:34,667 --> 00:05:36,582 - For your average homeowner, 116 00:05:36,583 --> 00:05:40,791 what could be more fearsome than the dreaded termite? 117 00:05:40,792 --> 00:05:43,666 Well, back in the '50s and the '60s, 118 00:05:43,667 --> 00:05:46,458 the solution was even more frightening. 119 00:05:47,958 --> 00:05:50,666 - [Natalia] When World War II ends, America is rejoicing. 120 00:05:50,667 --> 00:05:52,416 There are welcome home parades. 121 00:05:52,417 --> 00:05:54,916 There are people making out in Times Square. 122 00:05:54,917 --> 00:05:57,874 Most of all, you have all these ships filled with sailors 123 00:05:57,875 --> 00:06:00,916 and soldiers who no one was sure were gonna make it home. 124 00:06:00,917 --> 00:06:03,457 - The military is also bringing back 125 00:06:03,458 --> 00:06:07,707 millions and millions of tons of surplus equipment, 126 00:06:07,708 --> 00:06:12,041 all of which has been crated up and shipped from overseas. 127 00:06:12,042 --> 00:06:14,707 - [Henry] But stowing away on the wooden crates 128 00:06:14,708 --> 00:06:17,666 is something even more destructive than the weapons 129 00:06:17,667 --> 00:06:20,042 and the hardware inside. 130 00:06:21,708 --> 00:06:24,041 - We've gotten a hitchhiker , 131 00:06:24,042 --> 00:06:27,791 and that is the Formosan subterranean termite, 132 00:06:27,792 --> 00:06:29,582 and they're dug into this wood. 133 00:06:29,583 --> 00:06:31,916 They can come in groups of 10 million 134 00:06:31,917 --> 00:06:34,832 coming straight into our ports and into our country. 135 00:06:34,833 --> 00:06:37,666 - [Natalia] Very quickly before anyone knows what's going on, 136 00:06:37,667 --> 00:06:39,791 these termites are getting everywhere. 137 00:06:39,792 --> 00:06:41,541 - [Henry] As termites dig in, 138 00:06:41,542 --> 00:06:43,957 American home builders are ringing the dinner bell. 139 00:06:43,958 --> 00:06:47,874 - The 1950s is the high point of suburbanization. 140 00:06:47,875 --> 00:06:51,291 Architects come up with the idea for concrete slab housing. 141 00:06:51,292 --> 00:06:52,832 You just put down a concrete slab 142 00:06:52,833 --> 00:06:54,874 and build the house right there. 143 00:06:54,875 --> 00:06:58,791 - The problem is, that concrete is inevitably going to crack 144 00:06:58,792 --> 00:07:01,082 and the termites can go through very teeny cracks 145 00:07:01,083 --> 00:07:03,666 and they go straight into the wood of the house. 146 00:07:03,667 --> 00:07:05,041 - [Henry] Quickly, the country 147 00:07:05,042 --> 00:07:08,041 is in the thick of a termite infestation. 148 00:07:08,042 --> 00:07:12,041 It eventually reaches a billion dollars a year in damage. 149 00:07:12,042 --> 00:07:14,082 - [Lance] This is a super-powered termite. 150 00:07:14,083 --> 00:07:15,291 It is very aggressive 151 00:07:15,292 --> 00:07:16,791 and much more difficult to control 152 00:07:16,792 --> 00:07:19,082 than any termites that we've ever had before. 153 00:07:19,083 --> 00:07:21,082 So you start even seeing them in cartoons, 154 00:07:21,083 --> 00:07:24,082 literally eating the wood in the walls very quickly. 155 00:07:24,083 --> 00:07:27,124 [suspenseful music] [harp thuds dissonantly] 156 00:07:27,125 --> 00:07:29,707 - [Henry] The cure everyone is screaming for 157 00:07:29,708 --> 00:07:32,457 reveals itself by accident. 158 00:07:32,458 --> 00:07:33,374 - [Announcer] Chlordane is available 159 00:07:33,375 --> 00:07:35,582 in liquid or powder form. 160 00:07:35,583 --> 00:07:38,499 - Chlordane is a surprise discovery 161 00:07:38,500 --> 00:07:40,874 from a byproduct of synthetic rubber production 162 00:07:40,875 --> 00:07:43,082 and it turns out, just by accident, 163 00:07:43,083 --> 00:07:45,791 that this stuff is very deadly to termites. 164 00:07:45,792 --> 00:07:47,457 - [Natalia] The promise is you can spray it. 165 00:07:47,458 --> 00:07:48,624 You can dust it. 166 00:07:48,625 --> 00:07:50,582 You can even paint it on surfaces 167 00:07:50,583 --> 00:07:52,624 and termites will leave your house alone. 168 00:07:52,625 --> 00:07:54,958 It's a miracle in a bottle and people run to it. 169 00:07:55,875 --> 00:07:58,957 - [Austin] One ad shows a housewife 170 00:07:58,958 --> 00:08:02,291 gleefully spraying it across her kitchen, 171 00:08:02,292 --> 00:08:04,916 painting her furniture with it. 172 00:08:04,917 --> 00:08:08,999 A pamphlet even recommends utilizing it on your clothing. 173 00:08:09,000 --> 00:08:11,999 - [Henry] From the 1950s through the 1980s, 174 00:08:12,000 --> 00:08:14,666 more than 30 million homes in America 175 00:08:14,667 --> 00:08:16,457 are treated with chlordane. 176 00:08:16,458 --> 00:08:20,999 The result, a dramatic drop in the termite population. 177 00:08:21,000 --> 00:08:22,916 - [Natalia] It works, America wins. 178 00:08:22,917 --> 00:08:25,082 The stuff is deadly on termites. 179 00:08:25,083 --> 00:08:28,167 Problem is, it's really bad for humans too. 180 00:08:29,208 --> 00:08:31,207 - [Lance] By the 1980s, people start to realize 181 00:08:31,208 --> 00:08:35,041 there are symptoms: memory lapses, tremors, even seizures, 182 00:08:35,042 --> 00:08:37,207 and they realize that something around their home 183 00:08:37,208 --> 00:08:38,499 is making them sick. 184 00:08:38,500 --> 00:08:40,082 - [Austin] After decades of telling people 185 00:08:40,083 --> 00:08:42,166 that this stuff can be used everywhere, 186 00:08:42,167 --> 00:08:44,957 painted on your house, worn on your clothes, 187 00:08:44,958 --> 00:08:46,499 the government comes out and says, 188 00:08:46,500 --> 00:08:48,916 "Oh, by the way, it's poisonous." 189 00:08:48,917 --> 00:08:50,624 It just takes a little longer 190 00:08:50,625 --> 00:08:53,916 for it to kill a person than it does a termite. 191 00:08:53,917 --> 00:08:56,457 - [Henry] Chlordane, the miracle termite killer 192 00:08:56,458 --> 00:08:59,624 is banned for good in 1988. 193 00:08:59,625 --> 00:09:02,832 - Today, manufacturers are prohibited from producing 194 00:09:02,833 --> 00:09:06,416 new chlordane for anti-termite use around a house. 195 00:09:06,417 --> 00:09:10,291 If someone knowingly uses chlordane around a home, 196 00:09:10,292 --> 00:09:13,624 there are criminal penalties in place that range from 197 00:09:13,625 --> 00:09:17,292 a fine of $25,000 to a year of imprisonment. 198 00:09:18,250 --> 00:09:20,291 - [Natalia] Decades later, the descendants of those 199 00:09:20,292 --> 00:09:23,041 stowaway termites are still eating our homes. 200 00:09:23,042 --> 00:09:24,749 Let's just hope that the next miracle cure 201 00:09:24,750 --> 00:09:26,167 doesn't take us out too. 202 00:09:28,542 --> 00:09:32,792 - Termites: temporary. Bad decisions: forever. 203 00:09:36,833 --> 00:09:38,166 - Starting in the '50s, 204 00:09:38,167 --> 00:09:39,832 disposable plates, cups, and utensils 205 00:09:39,833 --> 00:09:43,707 made cleaning up after a party easier than ever. 206 00:09:43,708 --> 00:09:46,207 But what do you do with all that trash? 207 00:09:46,208 --> 00:09:49,666 For many families, the answer was simple: 208 00:09:49,667 --> 00:09:51,125 Set it on fire. 209 00:09:53,042 --> 00:09:56,624 - [Hakeem] These days, trash pickup is a complicated process. 210 00:09:56,625 --> 00:09:59,332 First, you have to separate your recyclables 211 00:09:59,333 --> 00:10:00,666 from your non-recyclable. 212 00:10:00,667 --> 00:10:01,999 And then your recyclables, 213 00:10:02,000 --> 00:10:03,999 they get broken down by category. 214 00:10:04,000 --> 00:10:06,916 And don't even talk to me about yard waste. 215 00:10:06,917 --> 00:10:09,749 - [Henry] It wasn't always like this. 216 00:10:09,750 --> 00:10:12,207 Imagine a magical time in America 217 00:10:12,208 --> 00:10:15,832 when we were all free to send our own trash 218 00:10:15,833 --> 00:10:19,707 to oblivion right in our own backyard. 219 00:10:19,708 --> 00:10:21,832 - Back when I was a kid, we burnt our trash. 220 00:10:21,833 --> 00:10:23,332 There was two ways you went about it. 221 00:10:23,333 --> 00:10:26,624 Well, you just put in a pile and you burned it there. 222 00:10:26,625 --> 00:10:28,416 After we set the woods on fire, 223 00:10:28,417 --> 00:10:31,624 we moved to the trash barrel. 224 00:10:31,625 --> 00:10:33,541 - If you were a little bit more fancy, 225 00:10:33,542 --> 00:10:36,041 you could spring for an actual incinerator. 226 00:10:36,042 --> 00:10:40,124 It's a store-bought, steel trash oven 227 00:10:40,125 --> 00:10:44,125 with a chimney to vent the smoke safely away. 228 00:10:45,375 --> 00:10:47,374 - [Natalia] Because the chimney cuts down on embers, 229 00:10:47,375 --> 00:10:48,916 it's meant to be safer, 230 00:10:48,917 --> 00:10:52,082 and because it brings air in, the fire burns really hot, 231 00:10:52,083 --> 00:10:55,042 making sure that whatever you put in there burns to dust. 232 00:10:56,375 --> 00:10:58,916 - [Henry] By the early '50s in Los Angeles alone, 233 00:10:58,917 --> 00:11:02,916 there are 1.5 million homes with backyard chimneys 234 00:11:02,917 --> 00:11:05,041 where mom, dad, or junior 235 00:11:05,042 --> 00:11:07,999 can start their very own trash fire. 236 00:11:08,000 --> 00:11:10,416 - Picture the scene, you're walking down this tidy, 237 00:11:10,417 --> 00:11:14,874 suburban, white picket-fence neighborhood in post-war America 238 00:11:14,875 --> 00:11:16,874 and everyone smiles and waves. 239 00:11:16,875 --> 00:11:19,041 And behind every house, 240 00:11:19,042 --> 00:11:24,292 a billowing black cloud of plastic fire smoke. 241 00:11:25,792 --> 00:11:27,332 - [Hakeem] Because the incinerator builds up 242 00:11:27,333 --> 00:11:28,707 such incredible heat, 243 00:11:28,708 --> 00:11:31,207 you gotta be really careful when you open it 244 00:11:31,208 --> 00:11:32,666 because the extra oxygen 245 00:11:32,667 --> 00:11:35,624 can make that thing spit out fire like a dragon. 246 00:11:35,625 --> 00:11:36,791 [fire crackling] 247 00:11:36,792 --> 00:11:38,874 - [Austin] In 1957 alone, 248 00:11:38,875 --> 00:11:42,541 there are over 2,000 property fires 249 00:11:42,542 --> 00:11:44,833 in the greater Los Angeles area. 250 00:11:46,333 --> 00:11:49,249 - There is a science to fire that most people don't realize. 251 00:11:49,250 --> 00:11:52,707 Plastic burns hotter than wood and more toxic. 252 00:11:52,708 --> 00:11:53,957 And that's where you start getting like, 253 00:11:53,958 --> 00:11:56,124 "I just burned down a block." 254 00:11:56,125 --> 00:11:58,874 - [Henry] With fears around backyard fire spreading, 255 00:11:58,875 --> 00:12:01,332 the home appliance industry introduces 256 00:12:01,333 --> 00:12:03,749 what they promise to be a cleaner, 257 00:12:03,750 --> 00:12:07,374 safer alternative to the backyard chimney. 258 00:12:07,375 --> 00:12:08,624 - What is it? 259 00:12:08,625 --> 00:12:11,749 - Well, it's a simple gas disposer 260 00:12:11,750 --> 00:12:13,542 that takes care of all the waste. 261 00:12:14,542 --> 00:12:16,874 - Why go outside and risk burning down your neighborhood 262 00:12:16,875 --> 00:12:18,374 when you can just burn your trash 263 00:12:18,375 --> 00:12:20,832 right inside your own house? 264 00:12:20,833 --> 00:12:22,207 - [Austin] The kitchen incinerator 265 00:12:22,208 --> 00:12:25,541 does not eliminate any of the old dangers. 266 00:12:25,542 --> 00:12:27,541 It brings them into your house 267 00:12:27,542 --> 00:12:30,417 where they create a whole new breed of dangers. 268 00:12:32,125 --> 00:12:35,416 - When you burn things indoors, you're gonna create fumes 269 00:12:35,417 --> 00:12:37,749 and some of them are colorless 270 00:12:37,750 --> 00:12:41,249 and odorless, like carbon monoxide, 271 00:12:41,250 --> 00:12:44,124 and you could kill your entire family with this. 272 00:12:44,125 --> 00:12:46,207 - [Lance] And of course, we're burning a lot of new things 273 00:12:46,208 --> 00:12:47,832 that are coming out in the consumer market 274 00:12:47,833 --> 00:12:48,957 that might be causing cancer, 275 00:12:48,958 --> 00:12:51,249 that might be causing asthma. 276 00:12:51,250 --> 00:12:53,624 All sorts of stuff that today would be regulated, 277 00:12:53,625 --> 00:12:55,125 wasn't regulated then. 278 00:12:56,083 --> 00:12:58,999 - [Henry] By 1965, enough people have been burned 279 00:12:59,000 --> 00:13:01,707 or sickened by rampant trash fires 280 00:13:01,708 --> 00:13:03,249 that the government steps in. 281 00:13:03,250 --> 00:13:05,791 - There's the Solid Waste Disposal Act 282 00:13:05,792 --> 00:13:08,332 that prohibits the burning of household garbage 283 00:13:08,333 --> 00:13:12,541 and it also funds household local trash pickup. 284 00:13:12,542 --> 00:13:14,666 - [Hakeem] Taking out the trash used to be fun. 285 00:13:14,667 --> 00:13:16,832 It was almost a science project, 286 00:13:16,833 --> 00:13:19,917 and now it's just a chore with a bunch of rules. 287 00:13:20,833 --> 00:13:22,124 - Now back in the '70s, 288 00:13:22,125 --> 00:13:25,041 foam insulation was a miracle product. 289 00:13:25,042 --> 00:13:27,374 You sprayed it in, you sealed it up, 290 00:13:27,375 --> 00:13:30,374 and you never had to think about it again, 291 00:13:30,375 --> 00:13:32,208 or so you thought. 292 00:13:33,500 --> 00:13:37,332 - In the 1970s, the winters are really cold 293 00:13:37,333 --> 00:13:42,166 and there are several massive blizzards on the East Coast 294 00:13:42,167 --> 00:13:45,541 that lock people inside for days on end. 295 00:13:45,542 --> 00:13:48,041 - At the same time that these brutal winters are hitting, 296 00:13:48,042 --> 00:13:49,332 there's an energy crisis 297 00:13:49,333 --> 00:13:51,875 that is skyrocketing the price of oil. 298 00:13:53,167 --> 00:13:56,707 - [Bryant] People are desperate to keep their homes warm 299 00:13:56,708 --> 00:13:59,083 and to keep their bills lower. 300 00:14:01,083 --> 00:14:03,207 - [Kavitha] For decades, people would insulate their homes 301 00:14:03,208 --> 00:14:06,041 using straw or crumpled newspaper. 302 00:14:06,042 --> 00:14:08,082 You're basically making your house into a tinder box. 303 00:14:08,083 --> 00:14:09,958 So fires rage throughout. 304 00:14:11,042 --> 00:14:14,874 - In the '50s, you have Rockwool 305 00:14:14,875 --> 00:14:17,499 and fiberglass, this pink fiberglass, 306 00:14:17,500 --> 00:14:18,917 and they're really helpful, 307 00:14:20,083 --> 00:14:22,707 but they're kind of like materials that still leave gaps. 308 00:14:22,708 --> 00:14:24,041 - [Henry] Just in time 309 00:14:24,042 --> 00:14:26,457 for the heating crisis of the late 1970s, 310 00:14:26,458 --> 00:14:31,749 a new option arrives, one that seems to check all the boxes: 311 00:14:31,750 --> 00:14:34,207 Spray foam insulation. 312 00:14:34,208 --> 00:14:36,082 - Spray foam insulation is kind of like 313 00:14:36,083 --> 00:14:37,416 shaving cream for your walls. 314 00:14:37,417 --> 00:14:39,791 You spray it in, it's got these resins 315 00:14:39,792 --> 00:14:41,041 and it's got these hardeners. 316 00:14:41,042 --> 00:14:42,582 So it goes in, it expands, 317 00:14:42,583 --> 00:14:44,207 so it fills all the nooks and crannies, 318 00:14:44,208 --> 00:14:46,249 plugs all the little holes, 319 00:14:46,250 --> 00:14:49,291 and then it hardens, and it doesn't cost very much. 320 00:14:49,292 --> 00:14:50,874 [foam hissing] 321 00:14:50,875 --> 00:14:53,166 - [Negin] And this stuff keeps your house cool in the summer, 322 00:14:53,167 --> 00:14:55,875 warm in the winter, and people save a lot of money. 323 00:14:58,042 --> 00:15:01,166 - [Henry] From the mid '70s to the early '80s, 324 00:15:01,167 --> 00:15:04,749 the number of American houses using spray foam 325 00:15:04,750 --> 00:15:06,417 increases 20 fold. 326 00:15:07,750 --> 00:15:11,541 - Most of the applications for spray foam insulation, 327 00:15:11,542 --> 00:15:13,207 these are all retrofits. 328 00:15:13,208 --> 00:15:17,457 They spray it and people go to bed in that house that night. 329 00:15:17,458 --> 00:15:19,457 - [Henry] As families drift to sleep, 330 00:15:19,458 --> 00:15:21,749 they discover their new insulation 331 00:15:21,750 --> 00:15:25,082 doesn't quite pass the sniff test. 332 00:15:25,083 --> 00:15:28,374 - There's this odor that's wafting through the whole house 333 00:15:28,375 --> 00:15:31,541 and it seems to be coming from inside the walls. 334 00:15:31,542 --> 00:15:34,874 - [Kavitha] What the people are smelling is formaldehyde gas, 335 00:15:34,875 --> 00:15:36,374 and you might remember formaldehyde 336 00:15:36,375 --> 00:15:37,874 as the fluid that they use 337 00:15:37,875 --> 00:15:40,582 to preserve frogs in science class. 338 00:15:40,583 --> 00:15:42,207 - Formaldehyde makes really good 339 00:15:42,208 --> 00:15:44,374 embalming fluid for corpses, 340 00:15:44,375 --> 00:15:46,957 not so great for living people. 341 00:15:46,958 --> 00:15:48,457 Turns out when you breathe it in, 342 00:15:48,458 --> 00:15:51,374 it attacks your pulmonary and nervous system. 343 00:15:51,375 --> 00:15:54,541 - [Adam] And people start having health problems, 344 00:15:54,542 --> 00:15:57,458 and it's all linked back to the foam. 345 00:15:58,542 --> 00:16:00,082 - [Henry] By 1982, 346 00:16:00,083 --> 00:16:02,832 over 2,000 people lodge complaints 347 00:16:02,833 --> 00:16:05,042 about formaldehyde poisoning. 348 00:16:06,042 --> 00:16:08,207 Meanwhile, a study reveals 349 00:16:08,208 --> 00:16:11,916 that long-term exposure can cause cancer. 350 00:16:11,917 --> 00:16:14,041 - By the early 1980s, 351 00:16:14,042 --> 00:16:19,374 the government bans this formaldehyde insulation. 352 00:16:19,375 --> 00:16:22,874 But what about the homes with this product in it? 353 00:16:22,875 --> 00:16:25,791 - [Kavitha] This insulation is everywhere in these homes 354 00:16:25,792 --> 00:16:28,041 and it's stuck to whatever it touches. 355 00:16:28,042 --> 00:16:29,749 So removing it basically means 356 00:16:29,750 --> 00:16:33,832 ripping your entire house apart and scrubbing every beam. 357 00:16:33,833 --> 00:16:35,666 Some families actually just abandoned 358 00:16:35,667 --> 00:16:39,457 their formaldehyde-filled homes and those homes sit empty 359 00:16:39,458 --> 00:16:41,667 and sell for way under market value. 360 00:16:43,375 --> 00:16:46,082 - [Negin] Oh my God, there's so many horrible reasons 361 00:16:46,083 --> 00:16:48,541 that you would have to flee your home, 362 00:16:48,542 --> 00:16:51,041 but like, trying to reduce your heating bill 363 00:16:51,042 --> 00:16:52,417 shouldn't be one of them. 364 00:16:54,542 --> 00:16:58,000 - Warm, cozy, and just a little deadly. 365 00:17:02,042 --> 00:17:03,457 - Remember back when staying cool 366 00:17:03,458 --> 00:17:05,874 meant one of those old-fashioned metal fans 367 00:17:05,875 --> 00:17:07,374 aimed right at your face? 368 00:17:07,375 --> 00:17:10,832 No plastic safety cage. No safety switch. 369 00:17:10,833 --> 00:17:15,832 Just a steady breeze coming from those rotating blades. 370 00:17:15,833 --> 00:17:18,083 What could possibly go wrong? 371 00:17:19,792 --> 00:17:23,541 - Some version of a fan is probably as old as heat. 372 00:17:23,542 --> 00:17:26,249 We know at least in ancient civilizations, 373 00:17:26,250 --> 00:17:28,249 the Romans are using them, the Greeks are using them, 374 00:17:28,250 --> 00:17:29,624 the Egyptians are using them. 375 00:17:29,625 --> 00:17:32,082 We're using them all the way through the Middle Ages. 376 00:17:32,083 --> 00:17:33,666 When the Industrial Revolution comes along, 377 00:17:33,667 --> 00:17:36,458 it allows you to make a lot of things move mechanically. 378 00:17:38,125 --> 00:17:40,666 - [Jason] In 1882, Schuyler Skaats Wheeler 379 00:17:40,667 --> 00:17:43,541 attaches a motor to a two-bladed propeller 380 00:17:43,542 --> 00:17:46,708 and creates the world's first electric fan. 381 00:17:47,708 --> 00:17:49,499 - [Henry] It's not only functional, 382 00:17:49,500 --> 00:17:53,666 it's a sharp design in every sense of the word. 383 00:17:53,667 --> 00:17:56,291 - These early fans are really pretty. 384 00:17:56,292 --> 00:17:58,041 They're very simple. 385 00:17:58,042 --> 00:18:00,999 But they are, essentially, a base and a motor 386 00:18:01,000 --> 00:18:03,749 and then these brass blades 387 00:18:03,750 --> 00:18:06,999 that have sort of a loose covering on the outside 388 00:18:07,000 --> 00:18:11,374 that's trying to kind of show you, this is the blade space, 389 00:18:11,375 --> 00:18:13,207 don't put anything in here. 390 00:18:13,208 --> 00:18:16,500 But you could definitely put stuff in there, for sure. 391 00:18:17,375 --> 00:18:20,082 - They're just like danger blades 392 00:18:20,083 --> 00:18:22,500 whirling around at high speeds. 393 00:18:25,042 --> 00:18:29,667 So as you can imagine, some problems arise. 394 00:18:30,667 --> 00:18:33,541 - [Jason] The priority is in getting fans to move more air 395 00:18:33,542 --> 00:18:36,541 to increase sales, so the blades get bigger 396 00:18:36,542 --> 00:18:38,708 and the motors get more powerful. 397 00:18:39,708 --> 00:18:41,457 - [Natalia] New airplane propeller technology 398 00:18:41,458 --> 00:18:43,957 teaches fan engineers that if they want more airflow, 399 00:18:43,958 --> 00:18:46,249 they need lighter and sharper blades. 400 00:18:46,250 --> 00:18:48,707 So they start making them out of aircraft aluminum 401 00:18:48,708 --> 00:18:51,707 and really sharpening that leading edge. 402 00:18:51,708 --> 00:18:55,207 - [Negin] So the blades now spin at like 55 miles an hour. 403 00:18:55,208 --> 00:18:56,624 They cut like a knife. 404 00:18:56,625 --> 00:19:01,416 It's like sitting in a room full of naked blenders. 405 00:19:01,417 --> 00:19:03,416 - [Jason] They move a lot more air, 406 00:19:03,417 --> 00:19:05,666 but they also take a lot more fingers, 407 00:19:05,667 --> 00:19:09,499 and yet, people don't seem to care because they work. 408 00:19:09,500 --> 00:19:12,874 People just accept this devil's bargain. 409 00:19:12,875 --> 00:19:16,124 - [Henry] The baby boom brings a new generation of injuries 410 00:19:16,125 --> 00:19:18,457 and problems, because for a kid, 411 00:19:18,458 --> 00:19:22,707 an electric fan isn't just an appliance; it's a toy. 412 00:19:22,708 --> 00:19:25,874 - Fans, they sing a siren song to toddlers. 413 00:19:25,875 --> 00:19:27,375 They just draw them in. 414 00:19:29,542 --> 00:19:32,874 - The gaps in the cover of the fan were so big, 415 00:19:32,875 --> 00:19:35,375 a kid could put their whole hand through it. 416 00:19:38,375 --> 00:19:40,207 - [Henry] In the '50s and '60s, 417 00:19:40,208 --> 00:19:44,082 emergency rooms treat a steady stream of kids 418 00:19:44,083 --> 00:19:46,957 who get too friendly with an electric fan. 419 00:19:46,958 --> 00:19:48,707 - It's not until 1978, 420 00:19:48,708 --> 00:19:51,416 like 100 years after the fan is invented, 421 00:19:51,417 --> 00:19:54,207 that OSHA mandates that floor and desk fans, 422 00:19:54,208 --> 00:19:57,666 their fan guards cannot have more than a half inch opening, 423 00:19:57,667 --> 00:20:00,249 so little fingers can't get inside. 424 00:20:00,250 --> 00:20:02,207 - Every time I would get near those old fans 425 00:20:02,208 --> 00:20:03,832 at my grandparents' houses, I was always like, 426 00:20:03,833 --> 00:20:07,582 "Yes, what are we gonna slice in this insane thing?" 427 00:20:07,583 --> 00:20:10,457 Just looking at them, you're like, those look sharp. 428 00:20:10,458 --> 00:20:13,292 And it sort of had a cage around it, but it didn't really. 429 00:20:14,417 --> 00:20:16,416 - Remember when you were a kid, 430 00:20:16,417 --> 00:20:18,249 did you ever come home all sweaty 431 00:20:18,250 --> 00:20:20,207 and stick your head in the freezer, 432 00:20:20,208 --> 00:20:24,957 and it felt so good you wished you could climb right inside? 433 00:20:24,958 --> 00:20:26,417 Bad idea. 434 00:20:28,708 --> 00:20:30,916 - [Kavitha] In post-war America, GIs and their families 435 00:20:30,917 --> 00:20:33,957 are moving out to the suburbs and away from cities. 436 00:20:33,958 --> 00:20:36,916 So instead of going to the local grocer every day, 437 00:20:36,917 --> 00:20:39,541 they need to stockpile their groceries and freeze them. 438 00:20:39,542 --> 00:20:42,291 - [Austin] People are freezing so much 439 00:20:42,292 --> 00:20:44,707 that they're gonna need an extra freezer 440 00:20:44,708 --> 00:20:48,499 and the refrigeration industry has your solution. 441 00:20:48,500 --> 00:20:49,958 It's called the chest freezer. 442 00:20:51,542 --> 00:20:56,332 - [Adam] The chest freezer was essentially this big, 443 00:20:56,333 --> 00:20:58,249 well, arctic coffin, 444 00:20:58,250 --> 00:21:01,457 and because the capacity was so massive, 445 00:21:01,458 --> 00:21:04,832 moms could do one big shop, load up the freezer 446 00:21:04,833 --> 00:21:07,250 with loads of meat and loads of dinners. 447 00:21:08,208 --> 00:21:11,374 - [Henry] Between 1949 and 1960, 448 00:21:11,375 --> 00:21:13,999 the number of homes with a separate freezer 449 00:21:14,000 --> 00:21:17,582 soars from 1 in 20, to 1 in 5. 450 00:21:17,583 --> 00:21:19,499 - [Austin] Unlike today, when you firmly 451 00:21:19,500 --> 00:21:22,582 have to push your freezer to close it, 452 00:21:22,583 --> 00:21:26,707 these heavy metal doors would just 453 00:21:26,708 --> 00:21:29,624 slam down if you let them shut. 454 00:21:29,625 --> 00:21:32,332 There's even a spring-loaded, self-latching mechanism 455 00:21:32,333 --> 00:21:35,666 that makes sure that no cold air escapes. 456 00:21:35,667 --> 00:21:38,499 - [Henry] The problem is sometimes leftovers 457 00:21:38,500 --> 00:21:42,374 aren't the only thing that ends up inside these freezers. 458 00:21:42,375 --> 00:21:47,416 - Most of kids' playtime is imagination based. 459 00:21:47,417 --> 00:21:50,416 So the chest freezer looks like the coolest thing ever. 460 00:21:50,417 --> 00:21:53,666 It's got a latch and you could hide for hide and seek. 461 00:21:53,667 --> 00:21:57,416 - [Austin] These super heavy steel doors do their job 462 00:21:57,417 --> 00:21:59,832 a little too well. 463 00:21:59,833 --> 00:22:02,916 Once they're shut, nothing can get out. 464 00:22:02,917 --> 00:22:04,791 - [Kavitha] People start finding that they'll go to their garage 465 00:22:04,792 --> 00:22:06,874 to get something out of this freezer and they'll open it 466 00:22:06,875 --> 00:22:09,666 and to their horror, their child is inside. 467 00:22:09,667 --> 00:22:12,582 - [Austin] Maybe an adult here is giggling or yelling 468 00:22:12,583 --> 00:22:16,916 and makes it there in time to open the freezer. 469 00:22:16,917 --> 00:22:21,916 But sometimes, they're too late and the unthinkable happens. 470 00:22:21,917 --> 00:22:24,582 - [Henry] Trapping incidents routinely make headlines 471 00:22:24,583 --> 00:22:28,374 in local papers, and in 1956, the government 472 00:22:28,375 --> 00:22:31,874 cracks down with the Refrigerator Safety Act. 473 00:22:31,875 --> 00:22:34,749 - [Bryant] The focus of the law is the door. 474 00:22:34,750 --> 00:22:38,874 And the door now will have a seal with a magnet, 475 00:22:38,875 --> 00:22:41,707 which means it can't lock from the inside. 476 00:22:41,708 --> 00:22:44,999 So if you play hide and seek and climb inside, 477 00:22:45,000 --> 00:22:46,042 you can get out now. 478 00:22:47,625 --> 00:22:50,541 - [Austin] The law changes how the new freezers are built, 479 00:22:50,542 --> 00:22:52,624 but it doesn't compel people to give up the old ones. 480 00:22:52,625 --> 00:22:54,416 They work just fine. 481 00:22:54,417 --> 00:22:57,041 - [Negin] And eventually, these freezers start breaking down. 482 00:22:57,042 --> 00:22:58,499 Families get rid of them. 483 00:22:58,500 --> 00:23:01,166 The only problem is, now they're outside 484 00:23:01,167 --> 00:23:02,541 in an alley or something 485 00:23:02,542 --> 00:23:06,332 and kids are still playing in these empty freezers. 486 00:23:06,333 --> 00:23:09,082 - [Henry] Into the 1960s, '70s and '80s, 487 00:23:09,083 --> 00:23:13,041 hundreds of trapping incidents continue to make headlines 488 00:23:13,042 --> 00:23:16,874 and they involve all types of freezers and refrigerators. 489 00:23:16,875 --> 00:23:20,707 - In 1986, awareness of freezer entrapment 490 00:23:20,708 --> 00:23:25,457 finally peaks with a very special 491 00:23:25,458 --> 00:23:28,792 and dramatic episode of "Punky Brewster". 492 00:23:30,208 --> 00:23:31,666 In the landmark episode, 493 00:23:31,667 --> 00:23:35,541 Punky's friend Cherie climbs inside of a freezer 494 00:23:35,542 --> 00:23:37,082 and gets trapped. 495 00:23:37,083 --> 00:23:42,499 Punky finds her, she performs CPR, and saves her life. 496 00:23:42,500 --> 00:23:44,416 [Cherie coughing] - Ah, she's breathing. 497 00:23:44,417 --> 00:23:45,499 - [Kavitha] It seems a little corny, 498 00:23:45,500 --> 00:23:47,499 but this messaging actually does work 499 00:23:47,500 --> 00:23:50,082 and kids do start to get the point. 500 00:23:50,083 --> 00:23:51,416 - [Austin] New laws come out 501 00:23:51,417 --> 00:23:53,624 that require you to remove the door 502 00:23:53,625 --> 00:23:57,207 from your fridge and freezer before you dispose of it. 503 00:23:57,208 --> 00:23:58,999 Obviously, no door? 504 00:23:59,000 --> 00:24:01,042 It's gonna take the fun out of hiding in it. 505 00:24:01,958 --> 00:24:03,707 - [Negin] Growing up in the '80s, 506 00:24:03,708 --> 00:24:05,457 you're just fed this message that abandoned freezers 507 00:24:05,458 --> 00:24:06,916 are really deadly. 508 00:24:06,917 --> 00:24:09,666 You'd see them on the side of the road and you'd, ugh, 509 00:24:09,667 --> 00:24:11,207 you know, they scared. 510 00:24:11,208 --> 00:24:13,749 Nowadays, they get to just look at a freezer 511 00:24:13,750 --> 00:24:15,667 and think, "Oh, ice cream." 512 00:24:17,542 --> 00:24:19,457 - Great for frozen pizza 513 00:24:19,458 --> 00:24:21,749 and that 10-pound roast you got on sale, 514 00:24:21,750 --> 00:24:23,458 not great for hide and seek. 515 00:24:27,375 --> 00:24:28,666 - Back in the '50s, 516 00:24:28,667 --> 00:24:30,166 behind those beautiful white picket fences, 517 00:24:30,167 --> 00:24:32,832 suburban lawns were the picture of order. 518 00:24:32,833 --> 00:24:35,541 But the tools we used to achieve that perfection 519 00:24:35,542 --> 00:24:37,583 were utter chaos. 520 00:24:38,667 --> 00:24:40,207 - [Jason] In the early 20th century, 521 00:24:40,208 --> 00:24:43,749 most people mowed their lawns with a non-powered push mower. 522 00:24:43,750 --> 00:24:45,916 Mowing the lawn was grueling. It took forever. 523 00:24:45,917 --> 00:24:48,125 So these push mowers are just slow. 524 00:24:49,583 --> 00:24:51,707 - [Henry] As American backyards get bigger, 525 00:24:51,708 --> 00:24:54,916 demand grows for better lawn care tools. 526 00:24:54,917 --> 00:24:57,416 - [Kavitha] Leonard Goodall is a mechanic in Kansas. 527 00:24:57,417 --> 00:24:59,207 He's actually been on a lifelong mission 528 00:24:59,208 --> 00:25:03,874 to create outdoor tools that are better mechanically. 529 00:25:03,875 --> 00:25:06,457 - [Jason] In the 1930s, Goodall invents a new design: 530 00:25:06,458 --> 00:25:10,874 a lawnmower with a gas-powered engine, and it's a revelation. 531 00:25:10,875 --> 00:25:12,874 After the Depression and World War II 532 00:25:12,875 --> 00:25:14,332 and suburbia exploding, 533 00:25:14,333 --> 00:25:19,333 this gets adopted into the mainstream in a big, big way. 534 00:25:20,417 --> 00:25:23,666 - When you start this thing up, it sounds like a muscle car. 535 00:25:23,667 --> 00:25:27,082 You pull the cord, this mower roars to life. 536 00:25:27,083 --> 00:25:30,874 - [Henry] Goodall's invention kicks off a lawn care arms race. 537 00:25:30,875 --> 00:25:35,374 By 1960, over 4 million power mowers are sold. 538 00:25:35,375 --> 00:25:37,332 - This thing's got a 20 inch blade 539 00:25:37,333 --> 00:25:41,041 that's driven by a 3,600 RPM engine 540 00:25:41,042 --> 00:25:45,707 that spins the blade at 215 miles per hour. 541 00:25:45,708 --> 00:25:48,166 - For comparison, that blade is spinning faster 542 00:25:48,167 --> 00:25:51,374 than the prop on a P-51 Mustang fighter plane. 543 00:25:51,375 --> 00:25:52,792 It's a beast. 544 00:25:54,208 --> 00:25:56,207 - [Henry] But grass is not the only thing 545 00:25:56,208 --> 00:25:58,791 that these power mowers are chewing up. 546 00:25:58,792 --> 00:26:00,207 - [Jason] Unlike modern mowers, 547 00:26:00,208 --> 00:26:03,166 these mowers didn't have any safety features. 548 00:26:03,167 --> 00:26:06,332 But they were new and people didn't really appreciate 549 00:26:06,333 --> 00:26:07,957 their destructive power. 550 00:26:07,958 --> 00:26:10,791 They were giving them to kids to do their chores with. 551 00:26:10,792 --> 00:26:14,749 - These newfangled lawnmowers with these engines 552 00:26:14,750 --> 00:26:17,957 are shooting out rocks at incredibly high speeds. 553 00:26:17,958 --> 00:26:21,957 I mean, that blade hits that rock at 700 pounds of force 554 00:26:21,958 --> 00:26:23,832 and fires it off at a velocity 555 00:26:23,833 --> 00:26:25,625 similar to that like a bullet. 556 00:26:26,625 --> 00:26:27,957 - [Nicole] So on these early mowers, 557 00:26:27,958 --> 00:26:29,666 there's no protections on these things. 558 00:26:29,667 --> 00:26:32,416 If you hit a rock, where's it gonna go? 559 00:26:32,417 --> 00:26:35,333 Oh, it's coming out fast and it's probably gonna hit you. 560 00:26:36,958 --> 00:26:40,124 - [Austin] These early mower blades are made of rigid steel 561 00:26:40,125 --> 00:26:42,916 that if they hit something, will break 562 00:26:42,917 --> 00:26:45,291 and fly in any direction. 563 00:26:45,292 --> 00:26:47,707 - [Jason] The word for that big hunk of hot metal 564 00:26:47,708 --> 00:26:50,166 that's flying out there is shrapnel. 565 00:26:50,167 --> 00:26:53,416 It can break a car window, it can land in your house 566 00:26:53,417 --> 00:26:56,000 or it can embed itself in your leg. 567 00:26:57,833 --> 00:26:59,957 - Projectiles are only one problem. 568 00:26:59,958 --> 00:27:03,457 Because the shroud around the blades has these gaps, 569 00:27:03,458 --> 00:27:05,291 these early mowers are notorious 570 00:27:05,292 --> 00:27:08,167 for ripping through sneakers and eating toes. 571 00:27:09,542 --> 00:27:11,041 - [Henry] A bigger danger arises 572 00:27:11,042 --> 00:27:13,582 when people try to stop using them. 573 00:27:13,583 --> 00:27:15,832 - [Kavitha] Today's mowers have an automatic kill switch 574 00:27:15,833 --> 00:27:18,541 that shut the blades down when you let go, 575 00:27:18,542 --> 00:27:20,957 but Goodall's mower will just keep going 576 00:27:20,958 --> 00:27:23,124 until you actively shut it down. 577 00:27:23,125 --> 00:27:26,832 And even then, the blades keep spinning for like 10 seconds. 578 00:27:26,833 --> 00:27:28,582 - [Hakeem] 8 to 10 seconds? 579 00:27:28,583 --> 00:27:29,916 Waiting 8 to 10 seconds 580 00:27:29,917 --> 00:27:32,124 for those whirring blades to stop 581 00:27:32,125 --> 00:27:35,207 is a huge opportunity for disaster to strike. 582 00:27:35,208 --> 00:27:37,999 People hit a stick or a rock, so they turn off the engine 583 00:27:38,000 --> 00:27:39,416 and flip it over to see what's wrong, 584 00:27:39,417 --> 00:27:41,582 forgetting that the blades are still spinning 585 00:27:41,583 --> 00:27:42,832 and they can take off a finger. 586 00:27:42,833 --> 00:27:44,207 - [Kavitha] By the late '70s, 587 00:27:44,208 --> 00:27:47,541 the power mower is sending 65,000 people a year 588 00:27:47,542 --> 00:27:49,208 to the ER with accidents. 589 00:27:50,958 --> 00:27:54,999 - In 1979, the Consumer Product Safety Commission steps in. 590 00:27:55,000 --> 00:27:57,291 It institutes a number of reforms. 591 00:27:57,292 --> 00:28:00,374 One of these is the dead-man switch 592 00:28:00,375 --> 00:28:04,749 and that means as soon as you let go, the motor cuts off. 593 00:28:04,750 --> 00:28:08,082 In addition, they add shields on the side 594 00:28:08,083 --> 00:28:11,291 to block rocks from flying all over the place, 595 00:28:11,292 --> 00:28:15,041 and they make the blades stronger so they don't shatter. 596 00:28:15,042 --> 00:28:16,832 - [Hakeem] The feeling of pulling that cord 597 00:28:16,833 --> 00:28:18,707 and hearing it turn over and start up, 598 00:28:18,708 --> 00:28:21,707 ah, pure magic nostalgia. 599 00:28:21,708 --> 00:28:23,041 Yeah, they were dangerous, 600 00:28:23,042 --> 00:28:25,374 but they taught us a valuable lesson. 601 00:28:25,375 --> 00:28:28,291 Sometimes the machines we love can kill us, 602 00:28:28,292 --> 00:28:29,582 so act accordingly. 603 00:28:29,583 --> 00:28:31,749 [lawnmower rumbling] 604 00:28:31,750 --> 00:28:34,916 - Remember when kids were allowed to run free 605 00:28:34,917 --> 00:28:37,916 and would drink straight from the garden hose? 606 00:28:37,917 --> 00:28:41,457 Back then, what we didn't know couldn't hurt us, 607 00:28:41,458 --> 00:28:43,042 or could it? 608 00:28:44,042 --> 00:28:46,874 - [Austin] In the days before video games and cell phones, 609 00:28:46,875 --> 00:28:49,457 do you know what kids did to entertain themselves? 610 00:28:49,458 --> 00:28:51,707 They went outside. 611 00:28:51,708 --> 00:28:53,541 - [Jason] You're outside playing. 612 00:28:53,542 --> 00:28:55,207 It's a hot summer day. 613 00:28:55,208 --> 00:28:57,958 You would just refresh yourself with the garden hose. 614 00:28:59,375 --> 00:29:02,124 - [Brian] Drinking from the hose is a core memory. 615 00:29:02,125 --> 00:29:04,957 For people of my generation, it was it, man. 616 00:29:04,958 --> 00:29:08,207 You were punished for going inside your house, 617 00:29:08,208 --> 00:29:10,416 and that would be chores or some other nonsense. 618 00:29:10,417 --> 00:29:11,707 - [Dan] If you went inside, 619 00:29:11,708 --> 00:29:13,416 there was always the chance your parents would tell you, 620 00:29:13,417 --> 00:29:14,874 you weren't allowed to play with your friends anymore. 621 00:29:14,875 --> 00:29:17,332 So drinking out of a hose was a way to get a drink 622 00:29:17,333 --> 00:29:19,541 without having to risk going inside 623 00:29:19,542 --> 00:29:21,249 and having mom tell you to stop. 624 00:29:21,250 --> 00:29:23,041 - [Jason] You can still taste it. 625 00:29:23,042 --> 00:29:25,041 You crank the spigot, you lift it up to your lips, 626 00:29:25,042 --> 00:29:27,874 and you got that first sip and it was off. 627 00:29:27,875 --> 00:29:30,041 It didn't taste right, but you know what? 628 00:29:30,042 --> 00:29:33,124 You drank it anyway and you went right back to playing. 629 00:29:33,125 --> 00:29:36,541 - [Henry] Turns out that strange taste isn't the water, 630 00:29:36,542 --> 00:29:38,374 it's your hose. 631 00:29:38,375 --> 00:29:39,999 - [Martin] In late 1941, 632 00:29:40,000 --> 00:29:43,207 the Japanese military pushes toward the Dutch East Indies 633 00:29:43,208 --> 00:29:45,582 and the United States is cut off, 634 00:29:45,583 --> 00:29:48,082 almost entirely, from rubber. 635 00:29:48,083 --> 00:29:51,166 - [Dan] They had to come up with a synthetic version. 636 00:29:51,167 --> 00:29:55,332 This was called the Emergency Rubber Project. 637 00:29:55,333 --> 00:29:56,874 - [Martin] What this project produces 638 00:29:56,875 --> 00:29:59,332 is a synthetic alternative to rubber. 639 00:29:59,333 --> 00:30:00,707 The only problem is that 640 00:30:00,708 --> 00:30:03,792 what makes this material malleable is lead. 641 00:30:05,542 --> 00:30:07,541 - [Dan] After the war, this rubber substitute, 642 00:30:07,542 --> 00:30:10,416 which is called PVC, becomes this universal material 643 00:30:10,417 --> 00:30:13,457 that's used in all kinds of things, including garden hoses. 644 00:30:13,458 --> 00:30:15,916 And when one of these synthetic hoses 645 00:30:15,917 --> 00:30:17,749 sits out in the sun for days or weeks 646 00:30:17,750 --> 00:30:21,041 or whole summers on end, they break down, 647 00:30:21,042 --> 00:30:23,332 and those chemicals that are in the PVC 648 00:30:23,333 --> 00:30:25,874 leach into the water that's inside the hose. 649 00:30:25,875 --> 00:30:28,499 - It's more than just a disgusting flavor. 650 00:30:28,500 --> 00:30:31,749 This hose water contains up to 651 00:30:31,750 --> 00:30:35,791 100 times the safe level of lead. 652 00:30:35,792 --> 00:30:37,707 You're actually ingesting the stuff 653 00:30:37,708 --> 00:30:40,166 that goes into literal bullets. 654 00:30:40,167 --> 00:30:41,957 - [Rebecca] Lead is a neurotoxin. 655 00:30:41,958 --> 00:30:43,499 In other words, it destroys neurons 656 00:30:43,500 --> 00:30:47,207 and you actually can have not just cognitive defect, 657 00:30:47,208 --> 00:30:49,082 you can lose your mind, effectively, 658 00:30:49,083 --> 00:30:53,332 because of chronic exposure to lead in small amounts. 659 00:30:53,333 --> 00:30:56,250 - I thought it was the copper end of the hose, 660 00:30:57,542 --> 00:30:59,332 the taste of the copper coming in my mouth. 661 00:30:59,333 --> 00:31:02,125 As it turns out, it was the taste of poison. 662 00:31:03,542 --> 00:31:06,457 - [Henry] After a series of damning Consumer Reports, 663 00:31:06,458 --> 00:31:10,166 hose manufacturers finally upgrade their formula. 664 00:31:10,167 --> 00:31:12,207 - [Austin] It's kind of too little, too late. 665 00:31:12,208 --> 00:31:14,707 By the early 2000s, consumers are, 666 00:31:14,708 --> 00:31:16,874 one, wary of their municipal water 667 00:31:16,875 --> 00:31:20,374 and, two, more likely to buy bottled water. 668 00:31:20,375 --> 00:31:21,500 On top of that, 669 00:31:21,667 --> 00:31:24,457 kids are more likely to be playing video games 670 00:31:24,458 --> 00:31:26,541 or chatting with their friends indoors. 671 00:31:26,542 --> 00:31:31,000 Drinking from the hose is sort of over and it's sort of sad. 672 00:31:31,958 --> 00:31:33,541 - [Brian] I wouldn't go back in time 673 00:31:33,542 --> 00:31:35,041 and not drink from the hose. 674 00:31:35,042 --> 00:31:36,332 I think I gained more 675 00:31:36,333 --> 00:31:38,749 from being outside drinking from the hose 676 00:31:38,750 --> 00:31:42,292 than I lost with whatever health problems I'm gonna develop. 677 00:31:44,042 --> 00:31:46,582 - Today, we worry about toxins, 678 00:31:46,583 --> 00:31:50,707 but back then, we just grabbed the hose, took a long sip, 679 00:31:50,708 --> 00:31:52,583 and went right back to being kids. 680 00:31:56,708 --> 00:31:58,332 - Back in the '50s and '60s, 681 00:31:58,333 --> 00:32:01,291 homeowners were delighted by the innovative new appliances 682 00:32:01,292 --> 00:32:04,124 that were suddenly available everywhere. 683 00:32:04,125 --> 00:32:07,207 Our houses with their old electrical wiring, 684 00:32:07,208 --> 00:32:09,957 they were less enthusiastic, 685 00:32:09,958 --> 00:32:12,542 and they had ways of letting us know it. 686 00:32:14,500 --> 00:32:18,082 - [Austin] In September 1882, Thomas Edison pulls off 687 00:32:18,083 --> 00:32:20,124 what appears to be a magic trick. 688 00:32:20,125 --> 00:32:22,749 He illuminates a cluster of homes 689 00:32:22,750 --> 00:32:25,874 in Manhattan with electricity. 690 00:32:25,875 --> 00:32:28,832 The dream of an electrically illuminated home 691 00:32:28,833 --> 00:32:30,791 is just around the corner. 692 00:32:30,792 --> 00:32:33,999 - [Jason] For centuries homes, have been lit by an open flame, 693 00:32:34,000 --> 00:32:38,041 candle, a lamp, so house fires are rampant. 694 00:32:38,042 --> 00:32:40,208 So electric light is going to put a stop to that. 695 00:32:41,500 --> 00:32:43,374 - [Lance] By 1920, still only about 696 00:32:43,375 --> 00:32:46,082 one in three houses in America has electricity. 697 00:32:46,083 --> 00:32:48,999 And between 1920 and 1950, 698 00:32:49,000 --> 00:32:53,167 that will go from about 35% to about 90%. 699 00:32:54,875 --> 00:32:56,207 - [Jason] These early electrical systems 700 00:32:56,208 --> 00:32:58,457 are called knob and tube wiring, 701 00:32:58,458 --> 00:33:00,624 and they're really only designed to take on 702 00:33:00,625 --> 00:33:03,999 the load of houses' electrical lights. 703 00:33:04,000 --> 00:33:05,707 But once electricity takes off, 704 00:33:05,708 --> 00:33:07,457 inventors see the opportunity 705 00:33:07,458 --> 00:33:10,999 of a whole new era of electrical appliances. 706 00:33:11,000 --> 00:33:13,374 - ♪ What a thrill to be so free ♪ 707 00:33:13,375 --> 00:33:17,333 ♪ When you live electrically 708 00:33:18,375 --> 00:33:19,707 - [Austin] Suddenly everything's electrified. 709 00:33:19,708 --> 00:33:22,291 There's electric irons. There's refrigerators. 710 00:33:22,292 --> 00:33:24,582 There's stoves. There's washing machines. 711 00:33:24,583 --> 00:33:26,291 Everything is electrified. 712 00:33:26,292 --> 00:33:27,499 - [Jason] These new appliances, 713 00:33:27,500 --> 00:33:29,207 they draw far more power than the lights 714 00:33:29,208 --> 00:33:31,041 these systems were designed fo, 715 00:33:31,042 --> 00:33:33,374 and it creates widespread problems. 716 00:33:33,375 --> 00:33:36,207 - [Reporter] Home becomes more dangerous than the highway. 717 00:33:36,208 --> 00:33:38,207 Although it has fewer fatal accidents, 718 00:33:38,208 --> 00:33:40,291 it's the scene of four million more injuries 719 00:33:40,292 --> 00:33:42,416 than result from traffic. 720 00:33:42,417 --> 00:33:44,166 - [Lance] Most people are still living in houses 721 00:33:44,167 --> 00:33:46,916 that were built in the 1920s or before 722 00:33:46,917 --> 00:33:48,249 and so whatever wiring's in there, 723 00:33:48,250 --> 00:33:50,541 it's meant not to hold a lot of power. 724 00:33:50,542 --> 00:33:52,624 It's just gonna power a few light bulbs. 725 00:33:52,625 --> 00:33:53,624 [can opener whirring] 726 00:33:53,625 --> 00:33:54,957 - [Natalia] Older homes can't handle 727 00:33:54,958 --> 00:33:56,374 all these newfangled gadgets 728 00:33:56,375 --> 00:33:58,666 because they're not wired for that much wattage. 729 00:33:58,667 --> 00:34:02,541 I mean, just one toaster oven needs like 1,300 watts 730 00:34:02,542 --> 00:34:06,582 and the average house can only handle 1,440 or so total. 731 00:34:06,583 --> 00:34:09,249 - [Austin] Some of these homes only had four circuits 732 00:34:09,250 --> 00:34:12,374 with a very small fuse box to keep it all safe. 733 00:34:12,375 --> 00:34:14,249 As people add appliances, 734 00:34:14,250 --> 00:34:16,207 they're overloading these circuits 735 00:34:16,208 --> 00:34:18,167 and the fuses are going to pop. 736 00:34:19,083 --> 00:34:20,624 - [Henry] With the house in the dark, 737 00:34:20,625 --> 00:34:23,999 it is usually DIY dad to the rescue. 738 00:34:24,000 --> 00:34:25,499 - This is still an era 739 00:34:25,500 --> 00:34:28,041 where people really did their own repairs on things. 740 00:34:28,042 --> 00:34:30,082 So they started doing their own upgrades 741 00:34:30,083 --> 00:34:31,541 to their electrical systems, 742 00:34:31,542 --> 00:34:33,458 whether they understood them or not. 743 00:34:34,792 --> 00:34:36,666 - [Martin] What American dads quickly figure out 744 00:34:36,667 --> 00:34:40,374 is that you can defeat that safeguard 745 00:34:40,375 --> 00:34:42,707 by backing the fuse out, placing a copper penny, 746 00:34:42,708 --> 00:34:46,624 then you thread the fuse down on top of the penny. 747 00:34:46,625 --> 00:34:48,374 Then that circuit's never gonna pop, 748 00:34:48,375 --> 00:34:50,707 but you have also removed the one guardrail 749 00:34:50,708 --> 00:34:52,750 that's there to prevent the house from burning down. 750 00:34:55,250 --> 00:34:59,166 - In some ways, this is worse than the age of oil lamps 751 00:34:59,167 --> 00:35:01,207 and candles because the source of danger, 752 00:35:01,208 --> 00:35:04,874 the wires, are hidden behind the walls. 753 00:35:04,875 --> 00:35:08,791 Today, modern electrical wiring is sheathed in insulation, 754 00:35:08,792 --> 00:35:13,124 but back then, it's just a copper wire covered in fabric 755 00:35:13,125 --> 00:35:15,249 and they're gonna get hot. 756 00:35:15,250 --> 00:35:18,499 So by the time you figure out there's a problem, 757 00:35:18,500 --> 00:35:22,375 the fire is already raging within your walls. 758 00:35:23,542 --> 00:35:26,624 - [Henry] By 1959, there is an electrical fire 759 00:35:26,625 --> 00:35:29,499 every seven minutes in America. 760 00:35:29,500 --> 00:35:30,541 - [Lance] In the years that follow, 761 00:35:30,542 --> 00:35:31,791 the problem just keeps getting worse 762 00:35:31,792 --> 00:35:34,332 because people are plugging more and more 763 00:35:34,333 --> 00:35:37,499 into more and more outdated homes and electrical systems. 764 00:35:37,500 --> 00:35:41,541 That is a hazard. That is a terror. 765 00:35:41,542 --> 00:35:43,457 - [Martin] That was my childhood in the '70s. 766 00:35:43,458 --> 00:35:45,457 We'd have a regular electrical grid 767 00:35:45,458 --> 00:35:48,082 inside the house that, during the holiday season, 768 00:35:48,083 --> 00:35:49,749 we would completely overload. 769 00:35:49,750 --> 00:35:50,916 We might die on Christmas, 770 00:35:50,917 --> 00:35:52,666 but at least let's get through it. 771 00:35:52,667 --> 00:35:53,916 - [Lance] Finally, authorities start 772 00:35:53,917 --> 00:35:55,416 to realize something's wrong. 773 00:35:55,417 --> 00:35:58,499 In 1974, they pass the Fire Safety and Prevention Act, 774 00:35:58,500 --> 00:36:01,541 and at least for new construction, houses are built 775 00:36:01,542 --> 00:36:03,457 so that they can handle much more power. 776 00:36:03,458 --> 00:36:05,416 Instead of coming through a fuse box, 777 00:36:05,417 --> 00:36:06,707 you're gonna have a breaker box 778 00:36:06,708 --> 00:36:09,207 so you can control a lot more power. 779 00:36:09,208 --> 00:36:10,749 - [Austin] Home insurance companies now ask 780 00:36:10,750 --> 00:36:14,207 for inspections, and modern dads figure 781 00:36:14,208 --> 00:36:15,624 it's probably better off 782 00:36:15,625 --> 00:36:17,749 to pay a couple bucks to an electrician 783 00:36:17,750 --> 00:36:20,999 rather than burn the house down on Christmas Eve. 784 00:36:21,000 --> 00:36:24,457 But we sort of lost something in a comforting era of, 785 00:36:24,458 --> 00:36:26,708 "Oh, Dad'll go fix it." 786 00:36:29,542 --> 00:36:32,916 - Today, we flip a switch without a second thought. 787 00:36:32,917 --> 00:36:37,624 Gone are the days when every new appliance was an experiment, 788 00:36:37,625 --> 00:36:40,292 and not every house passed that test. 789 00:36:44,250 --> 00:36:45,541 - In the post-war years, 790 00:36:45,542 --> 00:36:46,707 families discovered the potential 791 00:36:46,708 --> 00:36:50,166 of a whole new room in the house, the basement. 792 00:36:50,167 --> 00:36:52,499 It stopped being a dark storage space 793 00:36:52,500 --> 00:36:54,291 where the furnace lived. 794 00:36:54,292 --> 00:36:57,874 It became a place for ping pong, board games, 795 00:36:57,875 --> 00:36:59,874 the suburban rec room. 796 00:36:59,875 --> 00:37:03,291 But beneath the old sofa and shag carpet, 797 00:37:03,292 --> 00:37:05,500 something lethal was lurking. 798 00:37:07,292 --> 00:37:10,666 - [Jason] Before the 1960s, most basements were unfinished. 799 00:37:10,667 --> 00:37:13,041 Basements were just where you stored gardening equipment, 800 00:37:13,042 --> 00:37:16,374 sometimes canned produce that you would make yourself. 801 00:37:16,375 --> 00:37:19,041 - But by the 1960s, times are changing. 802 00:37:19,042 --> 00:37:21,541 The baby boom is in full swing 803 00:37:21,542 --> 00:37:23,749 and families need more space. 804 00:37:23,750 --> 00:37:25,874 - [Jason] They realize, okay, maybe that old cellar, 805 00:37:25,875 --> 00:37:28,916 that old basement, we can repurpose that. 806 00:37:28,917 --> 00:37:30,625 Now enter, the rec room. 807 00:37:32,542 --> 00:37:34,207 - [Negin] Everyone who had a basement rec room 808 00:37:34,208 --> 00:37:36,874 knew that that's where the actual fun is. 809 00:37:36,875 --> 00:37:38,457 That's where you let loose. 810 00:37:38,458 --> 00:37:39,999 That's where you get a little dirty. 811 00:37:40,000 --> 00:37:43,582 No one cares about what that looks like, so it's fun. 812 00:37:43,583 --> 00:37:47,416 - We had a basement kind of rec room vibe when I was a kid 813 00:37:47,417 --> 00:37:48,999 and I always liked it. 814 00:37:49,000 --> 00:37:51,791 It's where I would go and I'd watch TV and lay on the floor. 815 00:37:51,792 --> 00:37:55,207 My parents had this old kind of shag carpeting down there 816 00:37:55,208 --> 00:37:57,249 that was really period correct. 817 00:37:57,250 --> 00:38:00,082 It's funny because you're 10 feet away from everybody else. 818 00:38:00,083 --> 00:38:01,374 You're in the basement, 819 00:38:01,375 --> 00:38:02,957 but it feels like a totally different spot. 820 00:38:02,958 --> 00:38:04,457 - [Henry] But by the 1980s, 821 00:38:04,458 --> 00:38:07,416 families discover that the most fun room in the house 822 00:38:07,417 --> 00:38:09,541 hides an invisible threat, 823 00:38:09,542 --> 00:38:12,582 one that no one ever thought to look for. 824 00:38:12,583 --> 00:38:14,541 - [Martin] It's 1984. 825 00:38:14,542 --> 00:38:17,082 Stanley Watras, who lives in Boyerstown, Pennsylvania, 826 00:38:17,083 --> 00:38:20,457 is reporting for work at the Limerick Nuclear Power Plant. 827 00:38:20,458 --> 00:38:22,999 But as he reports to the nuclear power plant, 828 00:38:23,000 --> 00:38:25,707 he sets off the sensors that detect radiation. 829 00:38:25,708 --> 00:38:28,207 [alarm blaring] [Geiger counter ticking] 830 00:38:28,208 --> 00:38:29,416 - [Rutledge] It's never been set off 831 00:38:29,417 --> 00:38:31,582 by a person coming in before, 832 00:38:31,583 --> 00:38:34,541 which means he's radioactive. 833 00:38:34,542 --> 00:38:36,832 - [Martin] They begin tracing his steps 834 00:38:36,833 --> 00:38:39,791 and all of the arrows point back to his home. 835 00:38:39,792 --> 00:38:42,874 The levels of radiation in Stanley's basement 836 00:38:42,875 --> 00:38:47,917 are 675 times higher than the safe threshold. 837 00:38:48,917 --> 00:38:51,666 An equivalent of a chest x-ray every 20 seconds. 838 00:38:51,667 --> 00:38:52,874 [Geiger counter clicking] 839 00:38:52,875 --> 00:38:54,416 - [Rutledge] So there's poor Stanley, 840 00:38:54,417 --> 00:38:56,749 who's basically, just glowing at this point 841 00:38:56,750 --> 00:38:59,207 like he's been bathing at Chernobyl. 842 00:38:59,208 --> 00:39:00,582 But then they start to realize like, 843 00:39:00,583 --> 00:39:02,999 oh, this isn't just a Stanley problem. 844 00:39:03,000 --> 00:39:05,791 - [Henry] The source of the radiation in the Watras home? 845 00:39:05,792 --> 00:39:08,041 it's something natural that's been hiding, 846 00:39:08,042 --> 00:39:10,207 under their house for millennia 847 00:39:10,208 --> 00:39:13,625 and it's not just Stanley's home that is contaminated. 848 00:39:14,833 --> 00:39:16,999 - [Hakeem] Radon gas is naturally occurring. 849 00:39:17,000 --> 00:39:18,249 It's emitted from the ground 850 00:39:18,250 --> 00:39:21,082 and it's a byproduct of uranium decay. 851 00:39:21,083 --> 00:39:23,957 - [Austin] So usually the radon just escapes 852 00:39:23,958 --> 00:39:26,874 into the atmosphere where it's diluted harmlessly. 853 00:39:26,875 --> 00:39:29,999 Now that what they find is the radon is seeping 854 00:39:30,000 --> 00:39:31,832 from the uranium through the bedrock 855 00:39:31,833 --> 00:39:34,249 into your basement where it accumulates. 856 00:39:34,250 --> 00:39:36,749 It can't escape and it is irradiating 857 00:39:36,750 --> 00:39:39,332 where you and your family play Twister. 858 00:39:39,333 --> 00:39:41,374 - [Lance] This is truly the atomic age. 859 00:39:41,375 --> 00:39:43,541 The lava lamp is not the only thing 860 00:39:43,542 --> 00:39:46,207 glowing in your rec room. 861 00:39:46,208 --> 00:39:47,416 - [Hakeem] Now, with this incident 862 00:39:47,417 --> 00:39:49,082 with Stanley and his family, 863 00:39:49,083 --> 00:39:52,249 America learns that average American households 864 00:39:52,250 --> 00:39:53,749 have to worry about this. 865 00:39:53,750 --> 00:39:56,541 - [Henry] When the Watras incident hits the news, 866 00:39:56,542 --> 00:39:59,541 it causes a radon panic. 867 00:39:59,542 --> 00:40:02,541 - EPA investigations show that one in 15 homes 868 00:40:02,542 --> 00:40:06,541 has dangerous levels of radon, but it occurs randomly. 869 00:40:06,542 --> 00:40:08,416 So the only way you can know 870 00:40:08,417 --> 00:40:10,541 if your basement rec room is trying to kill you, 871 00:40:10,542 --> 00:40:12,541 is to get the air tested. 872 00:40:12,542 --> 00:40:14,416 - [Negin] So you could be sitting in your rec room 873 00:40:14,417 --> 00:40:17,332 watching a movie about nuclear annihilation, 874 00:40:17,333 --> 00:40:19,332 and then an ad comes on that's like, 875 00:40:19,333 --> 00:40:22,207 "You might have radon in your basement." 876 00:40:22,208 --> 00:40:23,542 It's terrifying. 877 00:40:24,958 --> 00:40:27,791 - [Rebecca] After years of research, we found out 878 00:40:27,792 --> 00:40:30,416 that the second most common cause 879 00:40:30,417 --> 00:40:34,167 of lung cancer is actually radon exposure. 880 00:40:35,167 --> 00:40:38,374 - [Henry] The level of exposure that the Watras family has, 881 00:40:38,375 --> 00:40:39,791 it's equivalent to smoking 882 00:40:39,792 --> 00:40:43,167 more than 100 packs of cigarettes per day. 883 00:40:44,167 --> 00:40:47,707 - [Austin] Congress institutes the Indoor Radon Abatement Act, 884 00:40:47,708 --> 00:40:51,916 which incentivizes homeowners to seal those cracks 885 00:40:51,917 --> 00:40:55,458 and, essentially, radon-proof their basements. 886 00:40:56,458 --> 00:40:57,874 - [Negin] So it was that easy. 887 00:40:57,875 --> 00:41:00,499 Seal your basement and get rid of the radiation 888 00:41:00,500 --> 00:41:02,624 coming up from your shag carpet. 889 00:41:02,625 --> 00:41:04,832 In the end, these radon remediation companies 890 00:41:04,833 --> 00:41:06,749 got really rich and the rest of us 891 00:41:06,750 --> 00:41:09,582 got rec rooms that weren't radioactive. 892 00:41:09,583 --> 00:41:11,541 I don't think American rec rooms 893 00:41:11,542 --> 00:41:13,541 ever really came back from that. 894 00:41:13,542 --> 00:41:16,499 The salad days of rec rooms are over. 895 00:41:16,500 --> 00:41:18,541 [TV clicks] 896 00:41:18,542 --> 00:41:20,582 - Thinking back on the dangers 897 00:41:20,583 --> 00:41:22,791 that lurked around our houses, 898 00:41:22,792 --> 00:41:25,082 from the unassuming garden hose, 899 00:41:25,083 --> 00:41:26,874 to the toxic bug treatments, 900 00:41:26,875 --> 00:41:29,791 to freezers that could trap us inside, 901 00:41:29,792 --> 00:41:32,832 sometimes peril came with the territory. 902 00:41:32,833 --> 00:41:35,249 But no matter what the problem 903 00:41:35,250 --> 00:41:37,499 throughout our hazardous history, 904 00:41:37,500 --> 00:41:40,041 there was no place like home. 905 00:41:40,042 --> 00:41:42,167 [dramatic music]