Think renovating a space is easy? Think again. With so much to consider - from your area size, layout to all sorts of structural planning and restrictions - forget DIY, even professionals can mess things up big time!
While we don’t know whether to laugh (or cry) over these cringe-worthy blunders, one thing is for sure - a little planning and attention goes a long way! So, don't just have a laugh - here, we have added some tips to help you avoid these mistakes.
Update: In an earlier version of this article, we mentioned one renovation fail which was a dryer, placed 'upside down'. A kind reader has pointed out to us that this is in fact the correct way to place it, and many dryers these days come with this feature for saving space. We have since omitted the point in the article - our bad for making a renovation blunder ourselves here!
1. That Bathroom Tap That’s Gone Too Far (Back)
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Try washing your hands or face in this sink without having to do some acrobatics. Also, be prepared to constantly wipe up your sopping wet floors all the time.
What You Should Do:
Interior Designer: Versaform
Most sinks often come with a cut-out reference template that shows where the faucet holes should go. Use the template to see if your chosen tap is nicely aligned so that water can flow into the sink before actually installing both items.
Example of a sink reference template. (Source)
If the tap spout is too short, ask your contractor/ID to cut a faucet hole closer to the basin, or find another tap that has a longer-reaching spout.
2. Kitchen Cabinets That Should Stop Playing Around
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They thought it was a good idea to add a little ‘fun’ and ‘variety’ to an otherwise boring drawer space. It wasn’t.
What You Should Do:
Interior Designer: Boon Siew D'sign
Aligned drawer knobs can make or break your carpentry. Sure, professional contractors should have the skills and equipment to drill the right holes in the right places. But to play it safe, inspect to see if they have marked out the areas they plan to drill instead of eyeballing it. And if you’re planning to do this on your own, this helpful tutorial will help you get consistent drawer knob holes, every time.
3. Wall Corners That Will Stress Any OCD Person
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Everything looks great… until you reach the crossroads. The inner OCDs in us are jumping in frustration - why aren’t they joined at the edges?
What You Should Do:
Interior Designer: erstudio
Thankfully, small discrepancies may be patched up with a bit of drywall. Once again, do consult with your ID to see if that can be done. If not, a bit of paint in dark colours or home decor can help to mask or camouflage your uneven walls.
4. Badly Laid Tiles That Will Give You A Headache
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The worst thing to happen to your floor tiles? When it looks perfectly laid out - but a glance at the edges, and it all goes to hell with slanted or badly cut ends.
What You Should Do:
Architect: JOW Architects
Tiling is a tricky thing; unfortunately, if your floor laying is not up to standard, make sure you notice them before the keys are handed over. You will have to ask your ID/contractor to tear out and redo its entire length before it’s too late.
Interior Designer: Third Avenue Studio
DIY-ing? If you have square tiles, measure the length of your room or area that you’d like to work with, and start laying out your floor tiles in an L-shape, starting from the centre. For subway/ brick-shaped tiles, draw two parallel guidelines down an entire floor or wall length, and lay your tiles by those lines, alternating in rows. For more details, check out this tutorial here.
5. The Light Switch That's Done Being Straight
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Yes, you can argue that it still works, but nobody likes a sloppy, slanted switch like this one from the Hardwarezone forums.
What You Should Do:
Interior Designer: Artmuse Interior
There’s no excuse for getting straight switches. Besides asking your electrician to get them fixed ASAP, simply place a ruler or tape measure (like the photo) perpendicular to your walls, and make marks on to show your contractor/electrician where you’d like your switches to be placed.
6. This Ceiling Fan Also Doubles As A Chainsaw
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This ceiling fan certainly seems out of the way from other obstacles, but obviously someone forgot what happens when they open a wardrobe door.
What You Should Do:
Interior Designer: Urban Habitat
Planning your ceiling fan is a science. You don’t want it low enough to shave the top off your head, and you want a clear path for it to spin. Fret not, here are a couple of rules to follow for finding the perfect place to set your ceiling fan:
Interior Designer: Absolook Interior Design
- Try to place your ceiling fan to the centre of the room.
- Leave a space of 45 - 50 cm between the fan’s circumference and any surrounding walls.
- Your fan should be at least 2.1 meters away from the ground.
- If you’re adding a fan to an existing room, open all doors (including your wardrobes or drawers) by 45 degrees to find out how much usable ceiling space is available for installation. Once again, do give a leeway of at least 45 cm from any obstructions.
7. The Kitchen Hood That Must Have Felt Like Cinderella's Stepsister
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We can totally understand blogger Charles Benedict’s horror (and frustration) upon finding out that an entire kitchen’s top cabinetry wasn’t able to fit in the cooking hob hood.
What You Should Do:
Interior Designer: Icon Interior
Nevertheless, his experience is something we can all learn from. Always check the measurements of your cooking hood, and then add half an inch on both sides to give extra leeway for errors.
Interior Designer: Architology Interiors
Especially if you’re buying the hood from a third party, check that this length is communicated properly to your ID/contractor, and that the right amount of space is allocated before starting works on mounting the cabinetry.
8. Short On Space? Just Squeeze.
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Even if you do have a tiny, cramped kitchen - that’s no excuse to come up with this mess of a layout (which - even worse - is highly inefficient).
What You Should Do:
Interior Designer: Aart Boxx Interior
Refrain from placing a refrigerator and hob side by side. Not only does heat emanating from the stove make your refrigerator work harder to cool down (thus using more energy), the handles might obstruct one another from fully opening.
Interior Designer: Voila
Instead, keep them apart on both ends by wedging a countertop in between the space, or if it’s a standalone unit, place it by a wall, leaving some space in between that and a refrigerator.
9. A Sink Tap That's Got It All Wrong
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Just because it fits, doesn’t mean it works. Besides looking like a complete eyesore, this overly huge tap doesn’t even serve it’s purpose.
What You Should Do:
Interior Designer: Habit
Once again, all it takes is a little common sense. Measure the length of the tap’s spout against the basin’s width - it should not go past more than half the width of the sink (or the sinkhole).
Interior Designer: Bowerman
Also consider the angle of the tap. Is it set down straight down, or is the water flow angled towards the user? All that can affect whether the water jets would land correctly into the sink (and not your bathroom floor).
10. A Home Can Have Too Many Drawers
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We are all for squeezing in more storage space into your home, but when more drawers means less usable room - it’s time to stop doing and start thinking through your plans.
What You Should Do:
Interior Designer: Aerialwerkz
Don’t go trigger happy in adding drawers upon drawers to your kitchen cabinet, just because. To prevent drawers from blocking one another, consider getting push-open drawers without any handles.
Interior Designer: ID Gallery Interior
Otherwise, replace one end of drawers with other compartmental solutions, such as sliding doors, or swinging cabinet doors that open away from the drawers.
11. Always Install Your Doors Before Your Toilet Bowl
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Imagine the moment of terror upon realising that their enclosed toilet area isn’t as private as it seems - and it’s all too late.
What You Should Do:
Interior Designer: Linear Space Concepts
Don’t just account for the amount of space you have to install a toilet bowl - if you’re working on tight square footage, also consider the swing area for your bathroom doors. Your toilet bowl should be clear from this path - you can mark it with tape on your floors.
Interior Designer: Fifth Avenue Interior
Of course, you don’t necessarily need a traditional swing door all the time. Other door types, like sliding, bi-fold or folding doors can help minimise the swing area and leave more space for placing your golden throne.
12. The One Power Socket That You’ll Never Use
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Always remember this rule about power sockets - assume that your appliances are ultra inconvenient and have short cables.
What You Should Do:
Interior Designer: 82
Visualise where you would place certain electrical devices or appliances, and how many of them will you use in each room. Mark out potential spaces on your walls, so you can imagine them in a realistic context.
Interior Designer: Fifth Avenue Interior
Considering most appliances will either be standing on the ground, or placed on a propped countertop, try to plot your sockets closer to these surfaces, so your appliance won’t have to end up hanging by a string.
13. This Is Why You Shouldn’t Install Door Handles By Yourself
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No doubt - if your door handle is protruding out of a door, just get your toolbox out again, or simply call a professional already.
What You Should Do:
Interior Designer: Icon Interior
Take note of where your handles are turning before screwing it in. They should be turning down in aligned fashion, and horizontally parallel to your doors. For a dummy-proof tutorial, check out this website here.
No renovation blunders here.
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