How could you design something like that? Do you have any idea how dangerous it is? What about the cost?  How can you possibly clean them? How did that ever make it onto the market?   

In my job providing property maintenance to the “rich and famous” I have entered literally thousands of private homes and businesses over the years. Sometimes I see things that leave me scratching my head. It's too bad that I haven't taken more pictures over the years but now that I'm a Steemit blogger I will!

Perplexing design decisions made on drawing boards by people who would never need to use or maintain the manifestations of their decisions!

A Little Bit of Background  

  I studied industrial design (the design of furniture and products) for three years and worked in that field for a decade. During my formal education we were exposed to a very critical analysis of all of our designs. Not only did they have to look good but much time was also spent analyzing of how the designs would be cleaned and maintained. No can clean, no can have a passing grade!  

What a nightmare! Why didn't I do it differently? image source: pixabay.com

Exhibit One: Why Didn’t I Install a Window That Could be Opened? 

   In these few examples I’ll show you situations where the decision to install a fixed window turned cleaning them into a costly and dangerous endeavor! When I offer my service to clean these windows I am almost always dealing with women and here are a couple of phrases that I often hear:   

• I tried to tell the architect that it would be a problem but he wouldn’t listen! Now I regret it!
• They just show you everything on a drawing and now that I see it....never again!

Here below are just three examples (I have hundreds) where an expensive  "high wire aerial act" could have been eliminated by simply installing windows that you could OPEN! HELLO!

In the photo on the right we actually had to close the road just to wash one small window!

At this house we had to put a ladder into the creek and then wade in! "Your joking right?" No, sorry I'm not!

Exhibit Two: Washbasins That Don’t Drain And Splash Water Everywhere!  

  Over the past ten years or so the fad, at least here in Europe, is to install extremely shallow and flat-bottomed washbasins. They may look sleek and elegant but come on designers, to a certain extent, form really does have to follow function! We're not washing sheets of paper we're washing our hands!!!  

Turn on this tap and the water spashes all over the place!

Not only do these basins leave dirty soapy water pooled at the bottom but they’re so shallow that the water splashes out all over the place. By the time you’ve finished washing your hands you’ve got to mop the floor and clean the wall behind the basin! I’m sorry designers and manufactures but that’s gross!  

What About You?

• What head shaking designs have you seen?
• Have you ever been "taken in" by something based on its looks only to regret it later?
• Does form really need to follow function?

I hope that you enjoyed this first in a series "What Were They Thinking? The Design Hall of Shame!"

Until next time,

@kus-knee (The Old Dog)

Remember, I reward the best comment(s) on each of my posts with my "The Old Dog is Throwing You a Bone" program! So please re-steem and follow so that we can spread the wealth!