Whether it's your landlord, or the tenant in 4B, everybody has that one person in their house who refuses to spend money. Most people think that when something is broken, you should buy a new one. But, for these inventive personalities, every tragedy is an opportunity to invent a totally useless DIY project that'll probably just make the problem worse. Check below to see our favorites, and the most ridiculous home improvements you will ever see.
Well, That's One Way To Fix A Leak
Everyone knows the best way to fix a leaky ceiling, right? You obviously have to find the root cause of the issue (where the water is coming in from), patch that up, and then you can get to repairing the ceiling and any water damage. It sounds simple enough, but this landlord had a little trouble figuring it out. Instead, he created this ridiculous contraption with funnels and pipes to run the water back outside.
This not only looks unsafe, but unhealthy. If any standing water is left in those pipes, it's going to become a breeding ground for insects and fungi of all kinds.
This Faucet Fits Perfectly, Don't Worry
It's always fun to mix and match different parts when you're doing a home improvement project. It feels like building a Lego set or something. You can select the perfect faucet handles, a gorgeous sink, and some beautiful cabinets to go with it. But, it's not going to matter how good your renovation project looks if it doesn't work correctly. And, in this situation, these people put aesthetics over function.
Can you imagine how shocked the first person to use this sink must've been? Also, we hope the person taking this picture turned the sink off right after. That could cause a lot of water damage!
Are You Saying The Thermostat Was Fake This Whole Time?
Some stingy landlords are obviously worse than others, but this guy seems like he'd be the worst! After a few months of living here, this couple realized that their thermostat wasn't actually changing their home's temperature. So, they checked the wiring behind the device and lo and behold, it was actually a fake thermostat all along. The landlord had hung a realistic-looking thermostat on a nail, and just hoped they wouldn't notice.
If you come across something like this in your residence, make sure you contact a lawyer! In certain areas, it is illegal to mislead tenants with fake amenities such as this one.
Why Install The Patio That High?
This image might have perplexed us more than any other one in the bunch. We just cannot understand why the landlord would've installed this patio if it was going to block the back door from opening. Furthermore, why is the solution to the back door not opening to dig out part of the patio? Doesn't everyone who comes here trip on their way down? This might be the most useless home improvement project we've ever seen.
Obviously, these people needed to dig out and level the existing patio before installing these bricks. Then, everything would have been flush with the bottom of the door.
We've Heard Of Mold, But This Is Another Level
Anytime a tenant brings a problem to a landlord's attention, they'd do well to work on it immediately. Without doing so, the value of the home could depreciate, and then they won't be able to make nearly as much money with their next tenants. In this picture, we see a perfect example of that happening. What started as a simple water problem has now turned into a wholesale mushroom invasion, all because of the landlord's negligence!
Before anyone else makes the joke: no, you cannot eat these mushrooms. It would be nice if you had a home garden right in the living room, but you don't want insulation mushrooms.
If It Ain't Broke, Don't Fix It
As long as something still works, you might as well continue using it, wouldn't you agree? In this case, these people had a working shower, and they were determined to keep using it (even if they didn't have a shower head). So, the inventive landlord here decided to save a few dollars and just use an old beer can. As you can see from the picture, it works! But, we're not sure it exactly smells amazing.
This feels like the kind of thing you'd see in a Hollywood movie about a fraternity house or something. It's a very clever invention, but not one we're going to be borrowing anytime soon.
This Is Illegal In A Lot Of Places
It goes without saying, but everyone should be free to live without being filmed in their own homes. In recent years, courts have even handed out some pretty hefty fines to people who were caught filming others without their permission. So, if you find one of these in an Airbnb, or even worse, in the home that you're renting, make sure to start gathering evidence, and disconnect it immediately.
On top of this being illegal in many places, it's also just very uncomfortable to think about. Why would someone want to film people in their private homes? Do they want to watch them cook? The whole thing is creepy.
What Do You Mean? There's Plenty Of Space
There's nothing worse than a cramped bathroom. You sit down to take care of business, but your knees are banging into the door, or your shoulders are pressed into the walls. It's uncomfortable! In this case, it's even worse. On top of the lack of legroom, and the lack of shoulder space, this bathroom even has a giant hole in the door. The place is so small they had to cut it out to get the door past the toilet.
To be fair, this is an inventive solution. But, we're not going to be renting from a landlord that cuts corners (or doors) like this.
That's Not Actually How Gates Work
It's always nice when a landlord listens to their tenants and puts in improvements that they asked for. But, it doesn't help if the landlord doesn't understand the actual issue or only does half the job. In this case, the tenants needed a gate to keep their new puppy in. And, to their credit, the landlord actually built a very nice gate. They just forgot to finish the fence that would actually keep the puppy in the yard!
We guess that the tenants could solve this themselves with some chicken wire and zip ties, but still– if you're going to do something, do it right! If this landlord had added that fence, it would've made the whole property safer.
Not All Paper Is Wallpaper
If you're a first-time homeowner (or if your landlord is a first-time homeowner) chances are there are a few things you're going to need to learn. Lesson one: wrapping paper cannot be used as wallpaper. Even if it's very pretty, and you bought way too much during Christmas time, it's just not going to work. Look at the state of this room if you don't believe us. The paper is practically falling off the walls.
To be fair, everyone is allowed to decorate their homes how they'd like. Still, we can't really understand what would lead someone to put mint green wallpaper all over the place like that.
We Would Never Have Rented This Flat
A crack in the ceiling can spell serious trouble, and should be looked at immediately. You might not realize it, but the beams in the ceiling above your head have to support your entire roof from collapsing down, which is an enormous task. So, if you see a crack starting to form, chances are there are bigger issues at play. In this case though, the landlord didn't even attempt to fix the problem! They just slapped a bandaid on it.
Spoiler alert, that plank of wood isn't going to hold anything. Soon, that crack will run past the edges of the board, causing the wood (and a bunch of ceiling insulation) to come crashing down.
Who Needs Faucet Handles Anyway?
A lot of the time, people have to live in their homes while they're being renovated. This means waking up and finding things in a state of disrepair more often than not. In this case, the people had gotten their new sink installed, but there was a catch. The company forgot to deliver the handles for the sink! So, they had to use a set of vice grips instead just to be able to wash their hands.
This honestly looks like the type of thing that you'd see in a hipster cafe. And, if it works, it can't be the worst idea ever, right?
Maybe The Moldiest Ceiling We've Ever Seen
We get it, keeping water out of a home can be one of the most challenging tasks a homeowner has to face. But, the consummate landlord knows that they have to be brave, and tackle any water infiltration issues head-on, at the absolute start. Unfortunately, this landlord didn't get that memo. Instead, they decided to let this water damage fester and grow until, eventually, an entire colony of mold had broken out in the corner of this bedroom!
Once things have gotten this bad, chances are there's rot in the actual beams supporting the house. By being negligent with the water damage their tenants reported, this landlord landed themselves in a whole world of trouble.
If You Bought It, Might As Well Use It
We go back and forth about whether molding on walls looks pretty or not. Some landlords and contractors love it, while others prefer a flat facade. Still, if you're going to be using molding, you probably want to place it at a different height than the light switches. If you don't, you'll wind up with a funky setup just like this landlord did. Why would someone even go through the trouble of adding that last piece anyway?
As long as the light switch works, we guess there's nothing wrong with this. Still though, wouldn't it be nicer if the molding was just in one, continuous piece?
Does Everything Run On A Subscription These Days?
Landlords are known to pinch pennies, but different landlords have different ways of going about it. Some charge too much for the heating bill, some try to get people with the security deposits, and others do stuff like this: creating subscription services for the elevator. Can you imagine if there were elderly tenants in this building who then had to start using their pensions to use the elevator and get up to their apartments? It's disgraceful!
The fact of the matter is that when you sign on to live in a building, all of the fees and costs associated should be disclosed. In this case, this landlord tried to pull a fast one on their tenants, which is totally uncool.
That Seems Like It Would Be A Long Reach
If your bathroom isn't in working order, it can cause trouble in more ways than one. You need that shower to be working well so that you can get ready for work in the morning, and the toilet obviously has to be working so you can relieve yourself. You're also going to want some shelves and places to put things, otherwise, you'll wind up like this person. Their bathroom is so cramped that they're keeping the toilet paper in the soap holder!
This just kind of grosses us out. What if the roll starts to unfurl and the toilet paper gets wet? That's not going to be any fun for anyone.
Is This Landlord Looking For A Court Case?
If you own your own home, then you're responsible for buying a fire extinguisher, for not parking in front of the fire hydrant, and for generally keeping your domicile safe from harm. But, if you live in an apartment building, that is going to be your landlord's job. And, in this case, the landlord seems to be doing an exceptionally poor job at protecting their tenants from harm. How is this going to stop a major fire?
The fact that this water bottle is being held behind a padlock is the worst part of the whole thing. If you're moving into a new building, make sure they have better fire safety procedures than this one before signing your new lease.
The Worst Parking Lot We've Ever Seen
So here's a question for all of you: would you rather park your car in a giant pothole, or on top of a septic tank? If you're living in this building, you don't have a choice for one or the other, it's automatically going to be both. The landlord here hasn't listened to any of their tenants' concerns and has let this parking lot just continue to deteriorate over the years, to the point that it's barely usable anymore!
Realistically, you could maybe fit four cars in this lot, but after that, maneuvering any of them to get out would be impossible.
The Landlord Waited Just A Tad Too Long Here
If you see something like the image on the left in your home, be sure to contact your landlord ASAP. This looks like some major water damage, and maybe even something worse that could affect the structural integrity of the home. Also, if the landlord isn't too keen to fix the damage themselves, keep after them to hire somebody to take care of it! Otherwise, you'll wind up with a bathroom that looks like the image on the right.
This image actually made us laugh because the broken pipe almost looks like a periscope, no? This could be turned into a really cool, themed, children's bathroom with a porthole going out the roof!
That's Definitely Not How To Secure An Outlet
If your landlord is installing new electrical outlets in your home, you're going to want to make sure that they do it right. An electrical mistake can cause a short circuit, and burn your entire house down. So, if you see your landlord going after an outlet with a caulk gun like this guy did, stop them immediately and get a real electrician. This whole situation is a house fire waiting to happen.
We can't believe someone was brave enough to even try plugging something in here. We would be super worried that a spark would send the whole thing up in flames!
The Classic Bathroom Explosion, From The Ceiling This Time
If you've never heard the slang phrase: "Someone blew up the bathroom," then you've probably been living under a rock. This obviously means that someone used the toilet, and left the bathroom in a state of disrepair. But, have you ever heard of that happening because of a landlord's negligence? We introduce to you: bathroom explosion volume 2, ceiling collapse edition! It's going to be hard to get any privacy with a hole that big in the ceiling though.
This was probably caused by water damage, as you can see that there's a lot of rot in the wood that's fallen from the ceiling.
Two-Tone Countertops Are All The Rage These Days
The kitchen counter is an important part of any home. It's where all of the food prep happens, and for that reason, you're going to want it to be made of an easy-to-clean material. In this case though, half of this person's countertop is made of wood, which will eventually rot and mold after too much exposure to water. Also, can anyone explain why the countertop is split in the middle?
This whole kitchen looks like it's in need of a remodel, to be honest. There's no handle on that bottom cabinet, the counter is in awful shape, and that stove looks to be about thirty years old.
So That's Why The Outlet Wouldn't Stop Sparking
If you've got a wall outlet that's misfunctioning, get that fixed sooner rather than later. If the outlet is throwing sparks and not responding when you plug things in, chances are that you've got an electrical issue inside the walls that could become a serious fire hazard. In this case, that fire hazard couldn't really get any worse. This person found so much lint shoved behind their outlet, it's a miracle their house is still standing!
This is either lint, or wall insulation, but either way it's pretty rotted out. Electrical wires should be contained within a box behind outlets, and should never come into contact with materials like the one you see here.
How Many Renovations Does One Bathroom Need?
Usually, if someone is going to renovate a bathroom, they'll at least have the common decency to replace the old fixtures before moving forward. However, in this case, instead of responsibly going about their bathroom remodel, this landlord decided just to plaster over all the old work and put a whole new shower in. But, when that shower broke, it meant they were left with double the trouble to try and clean back up.
That pink tile isn't actually a bad shade either, so we're surprised someone covered it up. It looks much nicer than that awful, eggshell white plastic cover.
Is This A Showerhead Dealership?
It's always fun to troll around the home improvement stores and look at all the different paint colors, and models of sinks, and varying cabinet knobs. But, the most fun thing of all to shop for is a showerhead. After all, who doesn't love to shower? That's why this image below would probably excite a bunch of people– until they realize one of those showerheads isn't actually working. THis is just a case of a landlord being lazy!
According to the tenant, when one showerhead stopped working the landlord just decided to put in a second, as opposed to fixing the first. Now, the tenant has an even more crowded shower, and an unusable set of pipes rusting away in their wall.
The Home Was Advertised With A Half-Bath
In real estate nomenclature, a half-bathroom is a bathroom that does not include a shower or bath. A full bathroom does. However, when this person showed up to a listing that included two and a half bathrooms, they were not expecting to see this. It looks like someone has put a wall over an existing toilet, without removing any of the prior plumbing or structures. How is someone even supposed to sit on this toilet?
The fact that we don't see a sink in this picture is worrying us as well. This whole bathroom experience does not look like a good time.
C'mon, Let The Tenants Use The Thermostat
Living in a cold house is just the worst. Although, living in a house that's too hot is pretty equally as bad. Still, the worst of all is when you live in a house where you're not allowed to set the temperature. These tenants in London had to deal with a really stingy landlord who wouldn't even allow them to warm up the house. We'd expect to see a thermostat like this in a government building, not a home!
We hope the people living here found a workaround to this nonsense. It just doesn't seem fair not to let someone control the air conditioner and heater in their own home!
Is It Functional? Yes. But Is It Pretty?
This shelf works well enough. It keeps the soap from falling down, and looks sturdy enough to hold a big bottle of shampoo if you need. But, is it a good-looking shelf? We don't think so. This is just a broken piece of tile smacked against the wall. They could've at least put some effort in and painted it white or something. But instead, it blends in with the rest of the room.
That tile also looks a little sharp to be honest. We definitely wouldn't want to trip and fall in the shower and wind up running into that thing.
That Looks Solid, It Will Definitely Hold
Here's a tip for any DIY enthusiasts out there: don't mess around with load-bearing walls and beams. Your house was built the way it was for a reason, and tearing the whole thing apart is only going to cause trouble. This especially is the case when it comes to putting thing's back up, too. In the picture below, you see a perfect example of someone doing this wrong– they're trying to fix their balcony with a bucket, and a two-by-four.
Needless to say, this isn't going to hold any weight, and puts anyone walking below the deck in serious danger. We just can't believe this landlord let things get this bad!
This Must've Been A Rough Wake Up Call
Let us paint a scenario for you. Imagine you're sleeping soundly in your bedroom, and your landlord has just finished renovating your new kitchen. Then, all of a sudden, you hear a giant bang, and glasses start to break. No, it's not robbers– your landlord just didn't mount the cabinets properly, and now all of your glasses, dishes, plates, and mugs are broken. That's got to be one of the worst ways to start a day.
The most common mistake people make with their cabinets is that they wind up using drywall screws instead of cabinet screws. There's a specific tool for this purpose, so make sure you use it!
At Least You Never Have To Remember Your Keys Again
Home renovations come in all shapes and sizes, and you can even do some smaller projects on your own without the help of a contractor! For example, if you want to spruce up your front entryway, you could think about installing a new front door, as these people did. They just had one problem after the fact: they hung their door up backward! Now, people on the outside can lock the homeowners in, and they can't lock anybody out!
Doors can be tricky, so we've seen this happen a few times before. Once, we even saw someone who cut a cat flap into their door, but failed to realize they'd put it by the ceiling.
That's One Way To Lift Up A Table
Most people can get by without that much furniture in their homes. But, if you're taking a lot of Zoom calls and working from the house, then you're going to want a nice desk to do your work on. It doesn't have to be made of the best material, but it probably should be the right height. That's the conversation this tenant had with their landlord. But, instead of buying a desk that was the right height, this landlord made this awful modification.
This desk looks like it's going to fall over at any second. That's no way to treat your tenants!
How Do You Close A Pool Indefinitely?
If you're lucky enough to have a swimming pool in your apartment complex, you're probably going to be out there every day during the summer just tanning, swimming, and having a good time. But, if you live in this apartment complex, with this stingy landlord, you're not going to have that luxury. We're not sure exactly why, but for some reason, this pool has been closed indefinitely! Is that a bummer or what?
What do you think could have caused this? Maybe the pool cleaner quit? Maybe somebody used the bathroom in the pool? We just have so many questions!
That Shower Cannot Be Comfortable
Some people prefer to have a combination bath and shower in their homes, while others are fine with a simple shower stall. In this case, though, we can't figure out which one to call it. It's a bathtub, and it has a shower head, but the shower head is mounted at practically the same height as the bath faucet! There's no way that anyone could stand up while showering there, not even a child.
The only thing that we can think of is that maybe this is a custom foot washer for someone with very smelly feet. Otherwise, we can't figure out why the shower head would be so low.
Stepping Up To The Porcelain Throne
If you're sitting on this toilet, you probably feel like a King looking out over their subjects. After all, maybe that's why they nicknamed the toilet: The Throne. Still, though, this almost looks like a dangerous place to do your business. What happens if you slip and fall on the way up or down? If it were us, we'd much rather have a regular toilet, bolted into the ground. All of this StairMaster nonsense is too much for us.
Maybe they built this thing in order to compensate for some tricky plumbing. Or, maybe they just wanted a new project. Still, we don't think we'll be renting this house anytime soon.
Water Damage Strikes Again
When pieces of drywall and ceiling tile get wet, they get soggy, just like anything else. Then, they lose some of their strength, and they become liable to collapse. That's exactly what happened here, where a landlord decided not to listen to their tenants, and let water damage run rampant in the ceiling. The result? Giant chunks of the ceiling started falling down in the house, and the landlord had to pay a boatload of money for repairs.
This just goes to show that if you listen to your tenants, things will probably be much easier for you in the long run.
Let's Get Almost The Whole Bathroom Redone
Remodeling can be so exciting! All of a sudden, your home goes from the same old same old, into a brand new, exciting space. But, just make sure that your contractors are going to finish the job. In this case, these people had their bathroom beautifully redone. But, when it came time to set the floorboards around the toilet, a few corners were cut. It would've been just as easy to stain those boards too, but oh well.
Maybe this wasn't even a total renovation, and just those boards needed to be replaced, but still. How about finishing the job?
Time To Have A Nice Microwaved Meal, Or Not
Getting new appliances is always exciting. You can start cooking new dishes and generally make your life easier with the help of that new technology. But, it doesn't help anyone if your landlord comes in to install an appliance and leaves before they check if it's working. That's how you wind up in a situation like this guy, with a beautiful microwave set into the wall that can't be opened on account of the other wall.
It might not even be the wall that's holding this guy's microwave closed here. It could just be that ugly, aftermarket stick-on wall tile.
One Of These Screws Will Hold, Right?
If you've ever worked with drywall, you know that she can be a fickle mistress. Sometimes your nails will catch, and sometimes they won't. Sometimes the drywall will be sturdy, and sometimes it will crumble. It's just the nature of the medium! But, there are workarounds you can use, like toggle screws and other things of that nature. Still, if you're too lazy to do the proper research, you could always do what this person down below did.
It looks like this guy just started throwing screws at the problem until the light switch stopped coming off the wall. But, with all those screws poking out, we're shocked they didn't break the lights too.
Who Wants To Go Swimming?
The whole point of paying your landlord for things is so that you have the opportunity to use them. If you're paying for heat, you should be able to warm the house up in the winter. That seems pretty obvious, right? So, if you're paying for a pool, it would make sense that the landlord should clean the pool every now and again. Otherwise, no one is ever going to be able to swim and use the amenity!
We've definitely seen worse pools than this one, but we still don't think we'll be swimming in there anytime soon. It really looks more like a pond than a pool, anyway.