When DIY Goes Wrong: 30+ Tales Of Home Renovation Fails

We all love trying out inexpensive DIY projects and fixes around the house. Whether it is furniture, TV setups, or gym equipment, there are some cases where fixing or building something seems so simple that anyone could do it. And with a couple of manuals and a plethora of videos on YouTube (sometimes with conflicting information), some people think to themselves, “Hey, I can totally nail this.”

However, unless you are an engineer, you should always be honest with yourself and play safe with DIY projects. If not, you might end up like these frugal folks who thought they would save a few bucks by not hiring a professional. Scroll on to see DIY fails that are simultaneously cringe-worthy and utterly hilarious.

Kitty Door

Pets are the most lovable creatures, and we pet owners will go to any lengths to make them feel loved and comfortable. That is why things like “kitty doors” were invented. This lady decided to DIY one for her cat.

She probably thought, “How hard can it be to put a hole in a door?” She uninstalled the door and made a kitty door, only to realize she had made the cut at the top of the door instead of the bottom. It still might work, though- depending on how high the kitty can leap!

A Job not well done

This guy wanted to save a few bucks trying to install a microwave but ended up breaking the glass stove as well! He will definitely end up paying way more than he wanted to save while trying to install the microwave.

His wife must have been furious! At least they can still eat microwavable food for a few days for dinner. She probably wishes she could have stopped him; now the deed is done. There will only be more repairs to make and more bills to pay. 

Holding it together

Warning!!!!!! Do not do this at home. Conduction and convection are two theories that one should know while doing an electrical job. This guy decided to just jab a pair of scissors in an electrical socket to hold the socket together.

This is probably the worst idea we have seen in this entire list. This guy could very easily be electrocuted. Not all DIYs are successful, and some can even end up being really, really dangerous. So, keep that in mind the next time you try out something this unconventional.

Hanging a Painting

Honestly, how difficult can hanging a painting be? Somehow, this person tore up the entire wall while trying to find the stud. Since they just kept on going, the whole wall got destroyed, and now all you can see are studs!

At least now they can hang their precious picture on the wall. We are sure the rest of the family members must have laughed and cried at the same time, looking at the state of their home. Professional help would be best the next time.

A carpenter’s work not done

How tough can it be to install drawers in your own kitchen? Measure the space. Buy a drawer, install a handle, and just slide it in. That is what this person thought until they installed the most annoying drawer in the world.

One drawer blocks the other one and can never open fully! The entire point of having drawers stands defeated. We are unsure what they had in mind when they started their kitchen remodeling adventure, but it was certainly not this. 

Paint, paint everywhere

Imagine that you had decided to paint the house and subsequently bought two huge cans of paint. After the purchase, you put the paint in the back of your car, but pandemonium has ensued by the time you reach your house!

There is paint everywhere. You quickly realize that not only has your paint been wasted, but your car is also in a bad state and needs a valet stat! This does not seem like a good omen of the painting work to come. 

A DIY Flat-screen TV

Before the flat-screen era, television sets were usually shaped like huge boxes. It took people time to adjust to and buy the new flat-screen TVs. Many still had those box TVs and refused to get with the times. Apparently, some decided to improvise with DIY. 

This person, for example, had a truly ingenious idea. He created a giant hole in the wall and just wedged the back of the TV in it. From the front, it looks like the TV is a flat-screen, but from the back, everything is just a disaster.

Put the Seat up To this Toilet

A toilet seat has a pretty standard design; everyone knows which side is which. As such, you would think screwing it up would be difficult. Oh, how wrong you would be. Our next overachiever installed the seat cover upside down!

He should definitely put the seat up for this one, or else he will have a very unpleasant outcome! Like in the previous slide, whoever did this was obviously distracted. Now, he will have to suffer the ugly consequences and embarrassment of having an inverted toilet seat cover.

A Funny DIY Pickup

As an adult, there will probably come a time when you need a pickup car or truck. If you do not own one of these, carrying huge things around the city becomes quite tricky. When this guy found himself in that situation, he decided DIY was the way to go.

So, he attached a wooden box at the back of his truck to carry things around. Well, we think it might work for a while, but it can end pretty badly if he uses it for too long. Additionally, it looks like a traffic offense nightmare waiting to happen.

Recessed lighting on a budget

Have you been to one of those houses where the entire interior shines bright with a warm yellow glow? That is probably because of recessed lighting. This guy also wanted lights all over his house, but he had budget issues.

So he put up lights on his ceiling to replicate the glow from the recessed lighting. Well, for one, this looks pretty bad, and second, we are not sure it will have the effect he was going for. But we’ll give him an A for effort!

Hang in there

Have you ever experienced an unfortunate situation when one of your car’s parts falls off, but you really need to get somewhere? Well, that is what happened to this guy. Instead of getting it fixed, he attached a hanger to the bottom of the car so he could suspend the loose part!

Though this is a creative solution, it will likely not work for too long, if at all. Maybe he did not have access to a mechanic and thought of fixing it himself. If that was it, kudos for the on-the-spot thinking!

A door with no purpose

A door coming off its hinges can be tough to navigate through. In some cases, you might not have access to a carpenter. In these cases, a drill might come in handy. However, it is not as easy as it looks.

Here, they have installed a door upside down! The handle is facing the wrong way completely. Now, if they had paid a little attention, then something like this would not have happened. Professional help is needed to straighten this out.

A welcome treat for guests

A doorbell is an essential part of the house. Without it, you would never know when someone is at the door. The doorbell in this house got busted, but instead of calling an electrician, the owner decided to solve the situation with DIY. Only the brave dare to visit this home!

This looks pretty dangerous. Half the guests probably just decide to go away and call on someone else rather than get electrocuted on arrival. This guy just needs to call in a pro and get this remedied because it’s a hazard!

A Shower Can

A shower is one of the most essential requirements of a house. If the showerhead gets blocked or can’t heat water, it can end up ruining your whole day. This guy wanted to get clean so badly that he decided to DIY a showerhead.

Instead of replacing the entire attachment, he decided to install a can with a few holes punched in it! How is that even functional, much less hygienic? This has all the markings of a terrible idea. Like the previous entry, we would also call this one a hazard.

A Roof over your head

The roof of a house is one of the most overlooked areas. That said, it can drastically alter the appearance of the whole place. As you probably know, changing your roof can cost quite a bit. Knowing that, this lady thought up an “ingenious” idea.

Instead of installing new roof tiles, she decided to just put wallpaper over her existing tiles. The idea in itself is not so bad until the “roof” flies away with a strong gust of wind! Well, as long as the day is non-windy, it should work fine. 

A Stairway to Hell

One look at this photo, and you know something terrible must have happened here. This house should come with a warning sign, especially this room. If someone had to design a room for a person they really hate, this would be it. It’s a stairway to hell, literally.

The door and stairway placement is an accident waiting to happen. Based on this, we’d say this house is in desperate need of an architect to revamp this entire scenario. Otherwise, a trip to the emergency room is inescapable. Honestly, we hope no one stays there.

A Chair with no seat

How difficult can it be to put a chair together? After all, it just has four legs and a back. But somehow, this person put together an upside-down chair! Half of the chair’s legs are on top, making this the perfect example of a DIY disaster.

The person who did this was clearly not concentrating on the task. This is a total embarrassment to DIYers everywhere. The chair can’t function as a table or be repurposed as anything in the house. It has to be rendered useless. 

A DIY Phone Wire 

Everyone has had this happen at least once: discovering an exposed wire on one of your appliances. It may be your air conditioner, phone wire, or laptop charger. It is crucial to replace them as soon as possible or cover up those exposed wires with some electrical tape.

This guy chose another solution. Instead of using electrical tape, he covered the wires with a shoelace and lots of superglue. It might look okay now, but his phone wire is ruined forever. We would not recommend this DIY fix at all. 

Foundation Repair 101

A house’s foundation is what makes it sturdy. This person’s foundation started to buckle underneath the pressure, and deep cracks began to form through the plaster, but instead of getting professional help, they decided to DIY it. This is not something anyone should be DIYing!

They just covered the cracks with some form of filler without addressing the structural issues at the root of this problem. It looks as bad as it is unsafe. The people living in this house should be scared, very scared, because it looks like it could collapse at any moment.

Getting stoned

Everyone likes to change things up at home from time to time. Rearranging a piece of furniture or painting the walls are all ways of sprucing up your existing space. This lady wanted to personalize her bathroom by giving it a natural outdoor look.

But she went a bit overboard in the “stone” department. She literally covered every single thing with pebbles! It is all a bit much and probably not very comfortable to use- not to mention impossible to keep clean and hygienic.

Add Medical Costs to your DIY Bills

Sometimes, our parents are so hell-bent on hanging up all the Xmas lights that they do not even care if they don’t have the right equipment. This man did not have a ladder tall enough to get to where he needed to be.

After stacking up random things on top of each other, he finally managed to reach where he wanted to. However, any passerby may say that this will not end well. A little slip and this man will come tumbling down!

Women live longer than men..101

Men can make some stupid decisions at some point in their lives. Look at this amateur mechanic who has balanced the car’s entire weight on the telephone line and over a tree branch and is happily working right under the car! Well, at least he has got his red safety shorts on.

Seriously, why anyone would do that is beyond us. This is DIY taken too far and could cause serious injuries. Honestly, it is a miracle if he makes it out of this scenario in one piece. Someone stop him, please!

Handling with Care

A door handle is a pretty straightforward tool. But judging by what we see here, it appears someone got really confused and installed it upside down! The one good part of it is that they will never get locked out.

This DIY project definitely didn’t work out according to their plan, and they will have to start all over again. Most of the jobs around the house seem easy in our heads, but when we go to install it, it’s a whole different story.

Smallest Handrail Ever

Imagine that there is a doorway that leads to a staircase. Now you have thought about installing a handrail to the same, and while you got the job done, it looks a bit odd. One look at this photo, and you will understand why.

Honestly, this was probably installed because someone was just too bored sitting in the house. Inventing work around the home just to keep yourself busy is excellent, but this handrail is of no use at all. Next time, maybe they can just resort to cleaning the house.

A DIY water tap

When a water tap stops functioning, it can be quite troublesome. But, if you are the king of DIYs, then there is nothing a little Do-it-yourself can’t fix. Although, he must have lost the tap’s handle, too, and decided to get creative about it. 

We must say, the way he thought of fixing the key on the tap is ingenious. And we are pretty sure it works too. Of course, this fix must be temporary and will give away after a while. Still, we are impressed by the out-of-the-box problem-solving.

Finding the evasive stud

It can be a bit embarrassing to call for help when all you need to do is hang one painting. Though it is easy to do the installation, the hardest part is finding the previously nailed stud where you have to install the nail! 

Someone tried to hang their TV on the wall, but clearly, they faltered, and not just once! The number of holes in that wall means that they should probably ask for some help the next time. Luckily for them, they were eventually successful.

Fixing the Taillight

A car’s taillight is the quickest and easiest part to break if you are in a car accident. The glass shards spill everywhere, and it becomes difficult and costly to fix the light. This guy came up with a creative solution, though.

Instead of glass, he fixed the light with cling wrap and a basketball. Yes, you read that correctly. Although this DIY fix is only ornamental, it is pretty clever. We are impressed that anyone would think to do that at all. It almost could pass for a tail light from afar. Very McGyver indeed!

Paint or no paint

Just for gags, this gal decided to paint the kitchen floor. Everything was going well until she realized that she had left the paint tin on the other side of the floor that she just painted! Now, that is some bad luck.

The result is footprints on a newly painted floor! Well, this had to happen if she was painting the floor the first time. This is why they say, leave it to the professionals! Yup, some things just aren’t worth doing by yourself. 

A door that is not door-ing?

Let’s be clear- what is the purpose of a door? It creates a barrier of privacy between one room and another. This guy wanted to install a door himself and fit it to the frame he had previously measured. It almost went well until…

…he realized that the door size was all wrong! The door did not even reach the other side, and there was a considerable gap. Well, he will obviously have to redo his measurements and go back to the drawing board. 

A Built-in ladder

Probably one of the most difficult DIY projects to undertake is to build an awning! Still, many people take on this huge challenge and are usually successful if they have some help. However, this guy barely had the woodwork up and had already made a big oopsie.

He somehow managed to get the ladder stuck within the wooden framework! Maybe he can try to pass it off as a new “built-in tool ” architectural style? Anyway, he definitely had to undo all his hard work, free the ladder, and start building all over again.

A not-so-emergency Emergency Button

The whole point of installing an emergency button is so that people can easily reach it in times of…well, an emergency. However, this clever lad decided to put a lock on the emergency button! What on earth was he thinking?!

Will someone go searching for a key to open the lock and then push the emergency button? By that time, a lot of calamities might have already happened! Someone needs to tell him the whole point of an easy-to-access emergency alert.

Some Spray Foam might fix it

Anyone who knows anything about architecture knows that brick and mortar and spray foam are two completely different things. Entire houses are built on the foundation of brick and mortar. Still, this person decided to try to use spray foam instead!

Though it might look as if the spray foam might work in this scenario, it is neither a stable nor robust permanent fix. This product is not a good alternative for mortar. A weak foundation might just spell disaster later on and is never a good thing. 

Not a fan of this DIY

Installing a ceiling fan seems pretty straightforward. The only thing you have to keep in mind is that the fan should be in the center of the ceiling and not close enough to the edges that it can break walls! Just look at this picture. The owner must be banging his head against the wall!

Instead of saving money, he has now destroyed two things with one fateful DIY project! The wall and the fan are totally ruined, and the entire room looks pretty bad now. Some projects should just be avoided at all costs. 

An Inverted Lightswitch

An electrical job is not as easy as it looks. Some people delude themselves into thinking it is just a couple of wires welded together and bam! It works. One such gentleman tried to install a light switch, and one look at this photo can tell you how it went.

It is obviously not even in working condition as it has been installed upside down! Maybe his instruction manual was upside down, too. It is truly a mystery how the light switch ends up in this way. He should have called the electrician for help, for sure.

Just go for a table fan the next time

Another ceiling fan story gone wrong. We are seeing a trend here and can only conclude that installing a fan yourself can not only be hazardous but extremely dangerous as well. One should proceed with caution; otherwise, the end result will look like this.

The broken table and glass shards look pretty dangerous. There are some things that you should just not do yourself. If there is an urgent need, then getting a professional to help you install the fan is the only way to go. It is safer even though it is not as convenient. 

A fresh new look

Painting your closet is never a bad idea. That is until you forget that you have clothes hanging inside the closet, and they will be getting a coat of paint, too, if you are too lazy to remove them first! At least, she realized before she painted the entire closet.

This is the perfect example of more money wasted than saved. Not only have all her clothes been ruined, but she will have to start the painting all over again. She will always keep this in mind the next time she attempts a DIY.

A Malfunctioning Drainage System

A proper drainage system is extremely important in a bathroom. This person decided to install the shower doors himself, and while everything looks great at first glance – there is one glaringly obvious mistake after you take a longer look.

The drainage hole is outside his designated shower area! One should put the drain where the water goes and not elsewhere. He must have discovered the mistake when he wanted to take a shower. Calling the plumber is the only solution here. 

A lop-sided attempt

Every once in a while, people like to redecorate their houses with the help of vintage lights and such. That’s what this guy’s wife wanted: a vintage light above the door. So, he decided to just put the light right above the one that was there earlier.

Now, the light is lopsided, and it does not look like a job well done. We just hope that no one has OCD in this household because the fact that it’s not centered would make looking at this quite uncomfortable. He will have to do this all over again just to make it look decent.

DIY Oven

When it is cold outside, an outdoor oven can be of great benefit. Cooking outside on a barbecue is definitely one of life’s finer pleasures. That is what this guy thought too. He decided to spend weeks trying to make an outdoor grill.

On the night he inaugurated it, the entire oven broke into flames! He used the wrong mortar that just couldn’t hold up against the intense heat. This should go in the “That looks easy, I can build it myself” gallery of funny DIY Fails.

Wiring a Plug, Unsuccessfully

There comes a time in everyone’s life when they have to do something they have never done before. Whether it is washing your own clothes, scrubbing utensils, or wiring a plug – it is always a bit difficult the first time.

This 44-year-old guy had gone all his life without having to wire a plug. He tried his level best, but, unfortunately, he was still not successful. Wiring a plug can be pretty tricky if you have never done it before.

A Drilling Situation

Drilling a hole isn’t too difficult if you own an electric drill. This fellow below decided to start a project for his deck, and after he drilled the first hole, the entire drill bit came off! Perhaps the drill had a problem, or it was probably just human error. Maybe he didn’t attach it correctly.

Now, he will have to start all over again and maybe buy a new drill. This might be more expensive than what he had thought would go into building a deck. That’s the thing with DIY projects; you never know where they might lead you. 

A DIY with an unexpected ending

How difficult can installing two lamps be when you stop to think about it? Wanting warm lighting in the room is not a bad idea; it makes the room cozier and adds a warm ambiance. But it can be jarring when the lights look like something else!

This person certainly did not want this effect in his room. The only way to fix this would be to remove at least one of those lamps from the ceiling. No one would appreciate something like this over their head!

Maybe the outdoors should remain outside

We know there is this fascination with trying to incorporate the outdoors inside by using things like floor-to-ceiling glass windows and house plants. Though we’re certainly fans of this kind of interior design, some lines shouldn’t be crossed. However, this time the outdoors is best left where they are.

When done tastefully, the results are usually fantastic. However, going overboard like this guy will undoubtedly make you the laughingstock of your neighborhood and, subsequently, the internet. Can you imagine constantly feeling like you must follow the path when you need something in the fridge? Hilarious yet mildly infuriating.

A DIY fail

This man decided to assemble a bed himself. That in itself is a big task to undertake, but he thought he could do it. Halfway through the process, he realized that he was stuck with just the end posts and could not, for the life of him, figure out what he did to the ladder!

Even his dog looks perplexed by his extraordinary feat! The guy slowly started to realize that he needed to undo half of what he had done, free the ladder, and start again. We suspect his wife has no idea that he threw out the instructions!

Filling the gaps

One look at this photo and no further explanation needs to be given. In fact, it speaks for itself, as it is an eyesore from every angle! This person used killer filler, and it looks like the can exploded all over the tub. 

The bath has less bath and more of the filler. They are clearly new to fixing plumbing issues and need to learn how to handle this stuff correctly. The whole scene looks horrible, and he should definitely not attempt something like this again.