Poorly designed things that make using them difficult?

[Whatisthisfuckery]

Spice jars, who in hell has designed the dimensions of spice jars? What measurement of spices does one usually find in a recipe? Teaspoons. What can you not quite fit in a spice jar? A fucking teaspoon. Whose bloody bright idea was it to design a jar that makes it hard to dispense the most common measurement of the ingredient contained within?

Ahh, that’s better, I needed that rant.

Go on, rant away. What poorly designed thing makes you angry inside?

Spice jars, I have rectangular measuring spoons that fit in the usual skinny jars but Sainsbury's ones with the wide neck are not only easy to get a spoon inside but look pretty too. Well done Sainsburys.

My Tefal steam generator iron has a dark blue water tank and you cannot see how much water you have in it.

@Dilbertian I have that mini chopper and I don't submerge the lid but I do clean it under a running tap. Also sometimes the lid won't go on because something you have added sits under the blade and the blade spindle is on a spring which pushes down when you put the lid on. I chop frozen peppers in it and have to push down the blade, add the peppers from a bag, then get the lid on. Why, Braun, why?

The stupid tiny ring pull in the top of Worcestershire sauce or soy sauce bottles. I have adult sized hands, it hurts to pull these.

Yes! @dancerdog I want to recycle not test my eyesight. Make your symbols larger.

Petrol pumps. Back to the designed by men for men problem. 1) it's hard enough to squeeze with both hands anyway and my little finger joint spasms from the tension when it can't reach the trigger handle. 2) I always end up in the long queue for the right hand pump because it's too hard to simultaneously pull the hose around the back end of the car and apply the pressure to the handle.

The cashier at Sainsbury's was somewhat bemused when I gushed about how wonderful their pumps are and I could use them with a single hand. Unfortunately I don't often pass it and it usually has lengthy queues.

I suspect that the divorce rate for stylish bathroom designers is high as they've clearly never cleaned them themselves.

car parking meters when you need the exact change, have to guess how long you are going to stay THEN have to drag your dc back to the car, probably in the rain, to put the ticket in...packages of meat where the opening is one end, but they have layered the meat to start at the other....

Meat packaging with cooking instructions on the inside. I want to know if I have time to cook it before opening!

Skinny measuring spoons. Mine are from
Lakeland and I bought them specifically for that problem

Gosh I can relate to so many of these, especially the blister packs of pills. I take tiny alfacalcidol tablets every day for life and they are a nightmare to get out, especially with arthritis in my finger joints so thanks to whoever gave that great tip re the gadget!

I wonder if the Market Researchers get this sort of feedback from testers and then just ignore it? Cos these issues have cropped up again and again for years and never seem to improve.

It's use by dates printed in bits of the packaging that you throw away that annoy me. You need to print it on the lid.

Also any bacon/cheese/ deli pack with a peel off corner. Make sure it works. If it doesn't, don't bother with the bloody thing.

And finally, REN cleanser in the pump bottle. One broke very near the end so I forgave it, decided I was unlucky. Same thing happened to the next one except it was only half gone. So now I have half a bottle in thick plastic that I'm going to have to saw open with a blade to get out.

I've just switched brands because it's annoyed me so much.

Another one; my fridge has a door alarm. Biggest PITA ever and would never buy another fridge with one. It doesn't work if the door is only slightly ajar, which is when it would be most useful. No, it works when the door is wide open, which in most cases is because you want it open. Like when you're putting shopping away or cleaning it.

@Saoirse7

Bags of flour.

Why? They spill everywhere, even before it's open. Why not sell them in a similar container to baby formula??

Homepride comes in a box with a proper lid. You only have to buy it once, you can thereafter refill it with bag flour.

[quote XingMing]@SplendidSuns1000... I can help you clean your coffee/spice grinder!

Between using it for different things, you grind a dessertspoonful of rice. And throw it away, then wipe with kitchen paper. It removes any lingering smells.

Don't thank me: thank my DS, who came across this top tip on a chef's YouTube channel. It is a small thing I know, but I was ridiculously pleased to be told.[/quote]
I adore you and your DS. Thank you! (I'm definitely taking credit if I ever have an opportunity to give out this tip )

@Bettina500

Another one; my fridge has a door alarm. Biggest PITA ever and would never buy another fridge with one. It doesn't work if the door is only slightly ajar, which is when it would be most useful. No, it works when the door is wide open, which in most cases is because you want it open. Like when you're putting shopping away or cleaning it.

Hell yes to this! I've just put away a massive shop accompanied by the high pitched screams of the large silver kitchen baby.

@HeyDemonsItsYaGirl

Urine sample test tube things. How on earth are women supposed to aim into them without getting the (paper) label wet?

Or pissing all over your own hand...

Re Sainsbury's baking powder etc, I squeeze the container slightly below the lid and then you can pop it out

@Bettina500

Another one; my fridge has a door alarm. Biggest PITA ever and would never buy another fridge with one. It doesn't work if the door is only slightly ajar, which is when it would be most useful. No, it works when the door is wide open, which in most cases is because you want it open. Like when you're putting shopping away or cleaning it.

Oh yes. My fridge has an alarm which does a worried beep if you're cleaning it or putting food away.

The freezer? No beep. Why on earth would you need a worried beep if someone leaves that door open and all your food defrosts and has to go in the bin?

Samsung - I'm looking at you.

Metanium nappy cream. It’s a small fiddly screw top, as opposed to a far more sensible flip cap (like Bepenthen). As you tend to need it when you’re changing a nappy, it’s supremely unhelpful. I’d change brand, but it’s amazing!

@gretagreengrapes

The fact you have to hold down the power button on the Dyson cordless the entire time you're using it.

Also, the cutlery rack in the dishwasher that nothing seems to fit in properly!

THIIIIISSSSS TIMES A MILLION

the Dyson dustbuster thing - would be absolutely useless if you have any weakness in your hands (or arthritis etc). You have to hold the button down as you're maneuvering a fairly heavy machine.

Any shower gel/hand cream/ moisturiser etc with a fiddly little screw cap that leaves you trying to screw it back on with your hand held at a diagonal because you've squeezed some product out into one hand but can't put the tube down to use the product until you've put the cap back on. I've got some posh hand cream that's the worst for this.

Hyundai i10 brake lights

50p for the replacement bulb
Half a day at the garage to dismantle half the car.

I bought a lovely and very well-reviewed eyeliner from Urban Decay. Looked amazing, stayed on perfectly. Until it got blunt and I needed to sharpen it. None of my pencil sharpeners fitted it, I went and bought it a specially large one. That wouldn't work either as the "wood" was actually very hard plastic. In the end I had to "whittle" it with a bloody Swiss Army Knife in order to use it.

The worst part was a few years later I bought the same thing again, forgetting whittle-gate.

I did wonder what I was missing and how the megafuck everyone else was managing.

Sticky labels on crockery/cutlery/birthday cards etc.

I bought some teaspoons from Tesco (ours have disappeared into a black hole). Each 4 tsp pack was bound with a bit of plastic and had a sticky label on it - impossible to get off in one piece.

@OliveHenry

You can usually stop a teapot dripping by rubbing some nose grease under the edge of the spout. It sounds disgusting but it works!

Just rub your finger down the side of your nose to get some delightfully named "nose grease" or "nasal sebum" or "squalene" then rub it on the underside of the spout, right on the edge.

I was dubious about this when DP suggested it, but it really does work!

I'm getting a weird old memory of Oprah or someone saying you can use this 'oil' as lipbalm in an emergency? On the same show about quick beauty tips, like flip your parting to the opposite side if your hair's looking lanky.

Coyocan

The architects are the creative ideas people. It's the architectural technicians that actually make things buildable like 'yes the upside-down pyramid looks cool but physics!'

Looks like the architect and technician weren't talking about stairs much.

Spotlight bulbs. Some asshat developer put them on every ceiling.

This means replacing the bastard bulbs. You have to push bulb up and twist. Easy enough to get them out. Absolutely impossible to get new bulb into the teeny little sockets provided for the two prongs on the bulb. Faffing about for ages.

Just.....why??!! There had to be a better way, surely?

Wipes packets. Resealable, my arse. They don't reseal, and will inevitably be dry useless tissues by the time I need one.

And my other rant. Why does nobody make toothbrush holders that fit multiple electric toothbrushes in??!!

My iron beeps to let you know that’s it’s been left on. Great idea but it starts beeping about 10 seconds after it’s been put down, so anytime you are folding the item you just ironed and getting the next thing it’s beeping like crazy at you

Can’t remember the last time I used an iron though haha