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“What Could Go Wrong”: 49 Of The Absolute Worst Home Improvement Fails To Make You Cringe
If you ever feel bad about your awful home improvement skills, just remember that you're not the only one who sucks at it! Everyone has their moments. Even carpenters get brain farts.
In an attempt to restore your confidence — or to simply put a smile on your face — Bored Panda put together a list of funny renovation fails. Whether these folks skipped the planning stage, didn't have the correct tools, or bit off more than they could chew, let's make their misery our entertainment.
After all, isn't that what the internet is for?
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
A Driveway Crew Was Pouring Concrete At A New House Next To A Duck Pond. They Went To Lunch And Came Back To This
RELATED:
#2
My Dad Isn't So Great At Remodeling, So I Turned His Work Into A Work Of Art
#3
Landlords, Please Don’t Paint Over Cockroaches
#4
We Just Moved Into A Brand New House, Painters Came By To Touch Up Some Walls Upstairs. This Poor Guy Fell Down The Whole Staircase With A Full 5 Gallon Bucket Of Paint
He screamed the whole way down, I thought he was going to be hurt but thankfully he wasn't. Paint splattered all the way across the living room onto my brand new furniture.
Chris Jones 4 years ago
Top tip from a professional decorator: dispense a SMALLER amount of paint into a paint kettle (as they are called in the UK at least) and do NOT lug around the full 5 gallon container! Much less spillage when you go ar-se over t-it.
#5
My Wife Said Measure The Door, I Told Her All Doors Are The Same Size
#6
Fixing A Toilet Leak. I Took 2 Trips To Home Depot, Worked With A Hernia, Had A Hard Time Putting The Wax Ring And Screws On
Only to install the toilet and forget about the door. I'm an idiot
#7
I've Heard Of "Painting Yourself Into A Corner" But My Wife Took It A Step Further. I Don't Even Know
#8
DIY Fail
#9
There Are No Words
#10
My Landlord: Is It Ok If The Replacement Tile Is Not An Exact Match? Me: Yeah That’s Fine. The Tile:
#11
My Father Forgot To Tell Me The Renovations Would Be Taking The Stairs Out Today
#12
Brother-In-Law Repairing His Awning
#13
We Just Finished The Construction Of Our Yurt. The Fireplace Was Not Correctly Installed
#14
I'm Doing Renovations And My Roomba Found A Tiny Piece Of Sheetrock
#15
A Friend Is Renovating His House. He Also Has A Cat
#16
A Couple Years Ago, My Neighbor Decided To Paint His House Bright Orange... Then Gave Up Halfway Through
#17
Saw This On Facebook With Someone Asking For A Contractor
#18
I Picked The Ladder Up Forgetting The Paint Was On Top
#19
What Could Go Wrong If My Neighbor Uses The Longest Possible Drill Out There?
Mihai Mara 4 years ago
What was it used for? Was it used to annoy upstairs neighbors? What if they drilled right into a pipe or in something that might have exploded? WTF!!!
#20
Could Be Worse
Jan Eivroc 4 years ago
I don't know how they could make such a mistake. Was somebody drunk? or did the house shifted???
#21
Lockdown Renovations Look So Easy On Instagram
#22
A Lovely Paint Job
#23
You Can't Win If You Don't Try, Huh?
#24
Just One Spot Left To Paint Now
#25
My Mom's Garage Is Being Renovated. I Think It's Pretty Obvious That They Have 3 Dogs
Kathryn Baylis 4 years ago
If there’s some kind of durable clear coating that will fill in the footprints, and smooth and level the surface, I’d be tempted to leave it as is. Conversation piece, and a cool way to remember the dogs after they pass.
#26
You Had Just One Job, Just One
#27
I May Have Used Too Much Spray Foam Insulation To Fill A Hole On The Other Side Of This Wall
#28
This Is Why You Don't Hire Contractors Who Secure Cabinets To Dry Wall Only. Thousands In Damage Last Night
#29
My Mom Had Her Guest Bathroom Remodeled While She Was Out Of Town
She wanted the shower head up high so tall people didn't have to crouch or lean way back. Came home to find this, which shoots the water straight across to the opposite wall
Anna Banana 4 years ago
What a weird cultural difference: practically all showerheads are adjustable height where I live... This would only be seen in a swimming pool or something. (I dig how those tiles meet in the corner though. It shouldn't work, but it does.)
#30
How These Pipes Were Installed
#31
My Lovely Wife Bought A New Screen And A Cat Door To Go In It. Took A Few Hours And She Was So So Proud Of Herself
#32
"That's Not Going To Hold Without A Stud," My SO Said. "Don't Worry," I Replied. "I've Got Half Inch Toggle Bolts"
#33
GF And I Have Covid. Heater Went Out, Technician Can't Come Out Due To Quarantine. Decided To Try And Fix It Myself. Tripped Over A Pipe And Fell Through The Ceiling
#34
New Neighbors Painted Their Fence Yesterday, Now Our Car Looks Like This. All Over
#35
Askew Angles
#36
True Story: So I Tried To Open The Door To See How The Installation Was Going. Tried
#37
Was Going To Paint Today And Found This Surprise
#38
Neat Fan Installation
Hermien Greeff 4 years ago
Long-term goals - once the roof falls in there will be natural ventilation.
#39
Having My Bathroom Remodeled And They Installed My Shower At Less Than Knee Height
#40
I Installed My Own Microwave Today And Saved $150 In Install Fees
#41
Contractor Got Angry And Left The Job When We Asked Him To Use The Spacers We Bought For The Backsplash
#42
I Mean, You Could've Rotated The Toilet, But Whatever
#43
We Got Our Doors Painted During A Remodel And The Painters Forgot To Put The Plastic Covering On The Ground
#44
"June, We Don't Need No Handyman, These Are Easy To Put In"
Leah zzstu Merritt 4 years ago
Did somebody make those gashes in the wall, or were they made by the fan?
#45
Someone Installed A Projector With 40+ Cm (15+ Inches) Screws Up To My Apartment. And As It Wasn't Bad Enough, I Have To Pay For The Floor
#46
Got Funky While Building My First Staircase
#47
Fiancé Was Being Thoughtful And Taking The Paint Cans To The Basement. Turns Out He Tried To Carry Too Much At Once (Also We Just Bought This House)
#48
You Only Had One Job
Chucky Cheezburger 4 years ago
Do the rungs on the ladder adjust? Cuz they look like they adjust.
#49
The Construction Workers Painted Over A Lizard On Our Awning
#50
Noticed Some Bubbling In The Paint. Called A Painter, His Eyes Got Wide. Turns Out The Builder Forgot To Caulk A Vent On The Roof And Rain Has Been Getting In For 9 Years
Mold and rot in 3-story wall.
#51
Maybe Consult Professionals Before Major DIY. Just Maybe
#52
These Stairs Must Be For Pets And Children Only
#53
I Recently Had My Kitchen Renovated. Don't Know What To Think
#54
I’m A Genius. Was Amazed How Quickly I Repaired My Entry Door From The Garage
TomBeingPushed 4 years ago
A very good beginning. Now go ahead and twist the rest of the house by 180 degrees.
#55
Renovation From Upstairs
#56
Dropped My Phone In Industrial Paint Today
#57
Was Finishing The Last Part Of My DIY Basement/Bathroom Project I Started At End Of 2020. Door Didn’t Want To Cooperate
#58
Good Thing I Hired Professionals For A Big Kitchen Renovation
#59
Umm, Okay
TomBeingPushed 4 years ago
When your electricity provider starts to switch business to selling concrete...
#60
Dropped A 1/2 Gallon Of Paint Down The Stairs
TomBeingPushed 4 years ago
This looks similar to when this smurf exploded falling down the stairs 😬
#61
Was Painting The Edges Of The Floor And Dipped The Brush In A Fresh Cup Of Coffee
#62
The Family I Work For Just Renovated Their Home And This Was The Can Light Configuration They Ended Up With That I Get To Be Annoyed By Every Day
#63
Putting Down A New Floor And Almost Had Enough, Almost
#64
My Shower Was Leaking So I Tried To See If I Could Fix It. I Broke It Instead
#65
Just Had Mosaic Tile Floor Installed
#66
The Contractor Painted Over A Leaf In Our Master Bedroom
#67
Just Finished Painting My Kid's Playroom Yesterday
#68
Installed The Hob Boss
#69
Guess Who Ran Out Of Paint
#70
DIY Plumbing, Apparently Anyone Can Do It
#71
We Just Built A Big 18x36 Foot Pergola Over Our Back Patio For Extra "Shade"
Roxy Eastland 4 years ago
Well, it obviously depends where the sun is in the sky as to where the shade is going to fall. When it's directly overheard the canopy will function, plus when it is over the house. If this is east facing and you thought it would shade you for your breakfast, or west facing and you thought it would shade you for your evening beer, then you are a nit.
#72
I Spilled The Detergent. 2 Hours Later, She Spilled The Paint. It's Going To Be A Quiet Night I Think
#73
You Had One Job
#74
How Do You Guys Like My New Shower?
#75
In My Student Dormitory The Kitchen Was Renovated And They Forgot The Faucet On The Sink
#76
Whoever Renovated Our Home Last, You Are The Worst
#77
When You Use Every Drop Of Foam Sealant To Fix A Leak
#78
I Fell Through My Ceiling In My Recently Purchased Home While Trying To Install Some New Lighting
#79
Drilled Into A Sprinkler Pipe And Soaked Every Apartment From Mine 4th Floor Down
#80
I Told My Neighbor His Mortar Needed Fixing. Found This The Next Week
#81
This Is Why You Plan A Kitchen Renovation
Kathryn Baylis 4 years ago
Yep. Seen, and lived with a ton of these. Also had a landlord replace a stove—-with a stove about six inches deeper than the one being replaced, which itself used to sit about three inches in from the edge of the counter. So now, the new stove juts out three inches, and blocks a drawer and cabinet next to it, which opened just fine with the old stove. Measurements are important, people.
#82
Left My Husband Alone For 5 Minutes While Painting
#83
Painted My Sister's Room. Stepped Over The Paint Bucket And Spilled A Whole Gallon Of The Void On The Carpet
#84
An Attempt Was Made
#85
Painters' Tape That Rips And Takes Paint Off. Lovely
#86
I Told My Brother-In-Law To Pull From Different Boxes When Installing The Flooring
#87
Bathroom Renovation, The Man That Put The Tiles In The Shower Managed To Put The Same 4 Tiles Next To Each Other
#88
Why You Never Pay Family To Remodel Your Kitchen
#89
You’ll Be Bathing In Your New Tub By Sunday. The Contractor Said Last Wednesday
#91
When I Just Wanted A Luxurious Shower Head And This Is What I Got
#92
When Your Husband Say "Only Test Patch In A Small Area". Note To Self: Husband Is Sometimes Right
#93
The Way These Walls Come Together In This Brand New Construction I’m Working In
#94
Contractor Let His Laborer Install The Hardware (The Whole Kitchen Looks Like This)
Kel_how 4 years ago
When I moved into my house, the kitchen cabinets had no handles. I went to Lowe's and found a cabinet handle guide -- a plastic square or triangle you hook to a corner and choose the hole location you want to use. Didn't take too long and all the handles are straight. I maybe spent $10.
#95
Note To Self: Read The Weather Forecast Before Casting Concrete Steps (It's -4 Today)
M O'Connell 4 years ago
Honestly, it doesn't look like it would have been that good of a step anyway. Another try is in order.
#96
New Home Construction In Philadelphia
Kathryn Baylis 4 years ago
Measurements are hard for some people. He probably also thinks he has a 10 inch d**k.
#97
So Apparently Homes Are Now Being Sold With Built-In Stairmasters 4300’s
#98
Wanted To Save Money By Repairing The Microwave Myself. It Slipped My Hands While Unmounting, And Broke The Glass Top
#99
I Was About 90% Done Painting, When The Wallpaper The Previous Owner Painted Over Started Peeling. Now I've Got To Scrape It All Off And Start Over
Kathryn Baylis 4 years ago (edited)
If it’s a really old house, it would be interesting to see all the paint colors and wallpaper styles people who lived there decades, or centuries, ago chose. Might decide you like one of them enough to try and replicate it. Or frame a section of really pretty or unusual wallpaper, if it comes off nice and clean enough (like lovely hand painted wallpaper or a beautiful antique print).
#100
Someone Had To Come Home To This
Kathryn Baylis 4 years ago
That’s one of those individual room air conditioners systems, isn’t it? Nice idea, but yeah, gotta be mindful of high storage cabinets and closet doors.
#102
It Wasn’t Supposed To Rain Today. Guess I’ll Be Painting It Again
#103
Someone Fell Through Our Bedroom Ceiling While He Was Renovating The Apartment Above Us
#104
I'm Moving Into A New House And One Of The Workers We Hired Dropped A Dresser Down The Stairs And It Went Through The Wall
#105
Our DIY House Renovations Are Going Not Great
#106
Slav Engineering?
#107
My Dad's Fail At Installing A Door Stop, He's Now Permanently Left It This Way
#108
The Entire Wall Was Painted Except For One Spot
Kathryn Baylis 4 years ago (edited)
And why not that one spot, pray tell? Looks like a pretty uniform shape. Was something like a sign or handle or something attached there that has since been removed?
#109
Finally Got In The Groove Painting My Basement When My Earbud Decided To Pop Out And Take A Sticky Swim
Roxy Eastland 4 years ago
I stopped wearing wireless earbuds after one popped out while I was bending over to pick up the dog's poo. Yes. Yes it did. Back to wires for me.
#110
Gotta Love The Renovated Kitchen
Kathryn Baylis 4 years ago (edited)
A less chunky towel rack or handle would solve this problem, if it’s possible to replace it. Same with the extended overhang of the drawer front.
#111
If You Put Enough Holes In A Wall You Will Find A Stud
#112
Just Putting The Last Touches On A Kitchen Renovation. New Dishwasher And Fridge Are Great
Kathryn Baylis 4 years ago
Should’ve bought a fridge that wasn’t as deep as this one. Again, measurements are important.
#113
I Never Bothered To Check If The Original Light Was Properly Centered, And I Put The New One Up Right Over The Original Hole
My wife wanted a rustic DIY light fixture to replace the old 90's one over our pantry door
Kathryn Baylis 4 years ago (edited)
Edison bulbs look really cool, but the clear glass makes for a pretty harsh, and tbh hot, looking light.
#114
They Ran Out Of Paint
Emmett O'Brian 4 years ago
It may have been that they replaced that top panel due to damage and no longer had that paint.
#115
Epic Renovation Fail
#116
Can't Promise This Won't Happen Again
#117
DIY Bathroom Renovations Created This Monster
Emmett O'Brian 4 years ago
It looks like they had a wet saw. There's no reason for this. I've seen a lot of "installers" doing cuts like this. They'd tell me cutting out the center of a tile is impossible. I'd just smile, roll up my sleeves and do something impossible.
#118
But It Looks Beautiful
Kathryn Baylis 4 years ago (edited)
Put. The. Old. Handles. Back. On. The. Drawers. They were like that for a really good reason, which you now know.
#119
We Rented A House And Didn’t Notice At First That Whoever Rented It Before Used Two Different Glosses Of Paint
#120
Landlords Decided To Renovate The Bathroom
#121
I'd Call This Art
#122
Installed A New Light Fixture. Was Pleased With How Easy It Was And That It Worked On The 1st Try. Got Too Excited Too Fast
Aidan Pite 4 years ago
I'm not sure what's wrong here? I mean beyond the fact that it's super ugly.
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