These 40 Crazy Real-Life Construction Mistakes Are So Absurd They’re Hilarious

38. Seriously uncool

Perhaps this fan is just for decoration, and was never intended to be switched on. That’s the only conceivable explanation, because if it is ever switched on, it’s going to end catastrophically. And if it was intended to operate, well, we doubt the owners of this place will be huge fans of the electrician’s handiwork.

37. Leap of faith

Peering into this shaft is a bit like trying to complete a jigsaw puzzle somebody has used as a seat. All the pieces are there, but they don’t quite fit together. Then again, maybe the construction worker behind this dumbfounding feat was just planning to audition for American Ninja Warrior. That would explain why it looks like the perfect place to practice parkour…

36. No escape

Emergency exits are, on balance, fairly important. It’s just a shame nobody told whoever installed this one. Let’s set the scene: your office building is being consumed by fire, and you’re fleeing down the corridor with searing flames licking at your heels. The bright green emergency exit sign gleams overhead. You finally reach the door, and you open it to find… a brick wall. Someone call the safety inspector.

35. No-clue flue

Are you tired of having a great view from your balcony? In fact, are you just plain over having a balcony altogether? Then you might want to follow the awesome trend set by this canny construction worker. Yes, simply install a ventilation shaft directly through your balcony, and you’ll never have to worry about things like natural indoor lighting ever again.

34. Wrong turn

The longer you look at this picture, the more it seems like a cruel practical joke. After all, it’s not just the horrific road markings that are taunting poor drivers – even the road signs are in on it. That’s right: you can only turn left. But also, don’t turn left under any circumstances. Really, the only rational response is to shift into reverse.

33. Blush before you flush

We’re going to have to give whoever did this the benefit of the doubt. That’s because if they intentionally installed a restroom door with a window, we’d have to assume they were a seriously shady character. Instead, we’ll take a more optimistic view of the world, and chalk it up as a mistake – or perhaps the work of a closet exhibitionist.

32. Double trouble

At first glance, this looks like an absolutely absurd calamity of construction. But what if it’s not? Hear us out: in this modern world, we often find it difficult to make time for our loved ones. So why not catch up with a buddy while doing your business? Yeah, okay – we couldn’t even convince ourselves with that explanation.

31. *View may be restricted

To be honest, we’re not sure who’s at the most fault here. Is it the installer of the pillar, the seat fitter, or the seller of the ticket? This guy could feasibly blame any one of those people, but instead he seems unreasonably happy with his situation. Maybe his team is losing, and the post is actually a welcome reprieve?

30. Flight of fantasy

This staircase looks like it needs a “mind your head” sign. Or, you know, just removing altogether, because it actually leads straight into the ceiling. We can’t say we’re familiar with staircases as a decorative feature, so we can only assume this incredible gaffe wasn’t intentional. But that just begs the question: how do you make a mistake like this?

29. Bags of common sense

You don’t need to be a construction expert to realize that there’s a right way and a wrong way to use concrete. And you don’t even need to be a construction novice to know that this is definitely the wrong way to use concrete. To be fair, though, it is technically doing its job. And who knows – when it rains, maybe it’ll just mix itself?

28. They’ve duct it up

There’s an old adage that most construction problems can be solved by the careful application of one of two tools. If it should move but doesn’t, use WD40. If it shouldn’t move but does, use duct tape. Clearly, this telephone pole shouldn’t have moved, but did. Yet whoever taped it up didn’t have complete faith in the system, if that equally useless piece of rope is anything to go by.

27. Straight down the middle

If you want to experience racing around Mario Kart’s Rainbow Road in real life, just try driving down this road. After all, those off-kilter markings are destined to cause the kind of untold havoc that usually only exists in video games. And whoever was responsible for them will need more than a golden mushroom to escape the consequences…

26. Full support

Caution: this building may collapse at any moment. That’s because it’s held up with a few planks of wood, some liberally-applied “DO NOT CROSS” tape, and presumably the hopes and dreams of whoever was behind this disastrous repair attempt. Let’s just hope it was remedied before gravity got involved.

25. Off the rails

To be fair to the crew who installed these stairs, they may have simply fallen victim to regulations that required a central handrail. But surely there must have been a better solution than this? Not only does it look super awkward, but no attempts have been made to stop people from accidentally going up the middle section. Yeah, this is a total design fail.

24. Handle without care

Well, that’s one way to make sure the sign on the front of these doors is followed. After all, they definitely won’t be getting locked during rush hour if they can’t even close. The only problem is, they won’t be getting locked any other time either. Somehow, that didn’t seem to cross the mind of whoever installed these handles.

23. Open door policy

Apparently, testing the lock after installation wasn’t part of this builder’s remit. If it was, they’d surely have noticed that they’d screwed it in upside down. Or maybe they did notice, but they simply decided they weren’t getting paid enough to care. Either way, it means that privacy is practically an alien concept in this restroom.

22. Also not cool

Picture it: you’ve designed and built your dream kitchen, only to realize that you forgot to make room for the fridge. Nightmare. Thankfully, there’s a solution. Yes, all you have to do is build a completely new room inside your brand new kitchen, and pop the fridge in there. It really couldn’t be simpler – or more insane.

21. Pillar of wisdom

Imagine performing your job so unquestioningly that you install a shower around a huge concrete pillar. What must this construction worker’s own home look like for this to be completely normal to them? Presumably they just have random concrete pillars jutting out of every corner, around which they arrange their entire life.

20. Mis-step

Apparently, wheelchair-bound people only need help with the first five steps. We’re sure they can manage the rest on their own, though, right? We wouldn’t want to be in this architect’s shoes when the city council finally figures out what’s wrong.

19. Tree-mendous

We suppose this wouldn’t be too bad, as long as you drove a motorbike. Or a really, really thin car. Yeah, okay, this is just plain awful. However, maybe the homeowner just really couldn’t bear to cut down his favorite tree.

18. Pole position

Good luck avoiding this stupidly-placed telephone pole if there’s any traffic on the road. Maybe there was a breakdown in communication within the construction team. Unfortunately, though, it’s one that could spell disaster for drivers.

17. Mind your step

We really hope that’s not the front door – or, more accurately, it might be the exit, as that’s probably the only thing you’ll be doing if you go through it. On the other hand, perhaps it’s just an ill-thought out security measure…

16. View without a room

Call us crazy, but we think the construction crew may have forgotten something important when building this balcony. Like, you know, getting onto it without having to abseil down from the floor above. As interesting as that might be, of course.

15. Step up to the challenge

What’s life without a bit of adversity? Everyone likes a challenge, of course. At least, that must have been the rationale of whichever clever clogs thought a step at the bottom of an access ramp would be a good idea.

14. Drawer flaw

“And if we take a look in the kitchen, you’ll see we’ve got some wonderfully conceptual drawers. No, they don’t open. It’s like art. Or something.” Yeah, we really don’t envy whoever has to try to sell this place.

13. Up, up and… where?

We’ve heard of a stairway to heaven, but a stairway to nowhere seems like a bit of a downgrade. Or maybe it’s just the world’s shortest, most pointless viewing platform. Either way, it doesn’t even look particularly safe. Great job, guys.

12. Going nowhere

Some escalators are so long that often you can’t see exactly what’s at the top when you get on. That probably explains the bamboozled looks on these unwitting travelers’ faces. Why else would they have taken the escalator to nowhere?

11. Dazed glazier

Maybe this construction crew simply ran out of windows and figured a door wouldn’t look too out of place. Apart from being completely wrong, of course, we sure hope they at least barricaded the other side…

10. On the level

Really, you can’t blame the guy who installed the door – just look at the haphazard placement of those basement windows along the bottom. There’s not even an ounce of symmetry involved there. The door guy was probably just as exasperated as the rest of us.

9. High security

Even tall people need to use ATMs. And by tall people, we mean clowns on stilts. Hey, at least this way nobody’s going to see your PIN number, right? You can never be too secure when it comes to your finances, you know.

8. Off track

Oh, don’t worry. We’re pretty sure the train can just go around that concrete block. Right? It’s not like the wheels need to be on the track, after all. Sometimes you just have to wonder what was going through people’s minds…

7. Don’t walk

It doesn’t take an engineer to figure out that this footbridge may in fact be slightly misaligned. Though why the construction crew thought it was acceptable to just leave it as it is we’ll never know. Maybe they thought people could just jump across.

6. Limited access

You can go down the ramp. And you can even go back up it, if you start from the bottom. But once you’re on the ramp, you can be damn sure you’re never, ever leaving it. The word “accessibility” must seem like a foreign language to some builders.

5. Are you sitting comfortably?

Finally, a bench designed exclusively for ghosts. It’s been a long time coming. More seriously, though, why is there even a random railing at that particular part of the low deck but nowhere else along it? This entire situation is beyond baffling.

4. Inconvenience

Bathrooms don’t come much more compact than this. While it may take a contortionist to use the toilet, you can’t argue with how space-efficient it is. And isn’t that what modern architecture is all about?

3. Fly-drive

While this garage may be unusable at the moment, it’s at least the most future-proof car storage facility we’ve ever seen. Just think: sci-fi movies can’t all be wrong – at some point, hovercars are going to be a thing. Right?

2. Trouble in store

At least nobody’s going to get on this escalator by accident, unlike the one that leads to nowhere. Provided it’s an “up” escalator, that is. Can you imagine getting on at the top, only to go straight down to a pillar? You can’t even jump over the handrail here!

1. Rail’s not handy

Oh well, then. Never mind. We didn’t want to get into that cupboard after all. Indeed, who needs storage space when you can have an unusable door? In fact, that’s real modern art, right there. Or at least, that’s what the desperate realtor will tell you.