30+ Convoluted Solutions MacGyver Would Be Proud Of

From satellites in space to tire swings and electric scooters, human creativity has been proven time and time again as an infinite nectar to be channeled into different endeavors. Whatever inventions you think of, no matter the size, it is always the result of an unhinged genius.

Oftentimes, the world’s greatest inventions started out as the stupidest solutions that soon became the ready-made saviors available at almost every shop. But even with all of these tried and tested tools, humans have a penchant for doing things our own way. Sometimes, we’re so proud of unconventional engineering projects, we can’t help but show off our handiwork.

Here are some amateur engineers who proudly shared their “it’s just so crazy it might work” inventions.

Heinz

Upcycling is the DIYer’s best friend. After something has fulfilled its purpose, there is no better feeling than turning something as mundane as an empty ketchup bottle into a new tool. And after all that effort of getting ketchup out of a Heinz bottle, it’s only right we get to reuse it.

It’s the ultimate utility item. Basically, all we are saying is when in doubt: grab your Heinz bottles. You might learn a thing or two from this clever crafter. Just don’t mix up the wood glue bottle with pancake batter mix.

Winter is Here

We heard it over and over again. Now, winter is finally here, but we won’t be riding dragons or fighting White Walkers. Instead, we’ll whip out our saws to cut through hardened meat. The song of ice and blade, as they call it.

Our weapon of choice here is the Dewalt 20V Max Brushless Reciprocating Saw. It was clearly designed for cutting through hardened timber and whatnot. But when you’re stocked up on firewood, it has another use. We need every possible tool to hack through that frozen meat.

Tissue Loft

The genius keeps ticking, doesn’t it? Here, we are treated to one of the most unique bathroom solutions since the voice-activated showers. Here, toilet paper gets more freedom, and even can lazily swing around as it waits for you to finish your business.

Oh sure, you could just set it on the back of the toilet or the counter, but chances are it’ll get soggy. And don’t even get us started on how unsanitary it would be to keep your tp on the floor.

The last straw

We all know about the remote control wars. It seems someone was fed up with the case of the disappearing remote that they locked it up like a flighty bird. And, well, why not? Remote controls have been proven time and time again to be the Helen of Troy in many households.

We have to thoroughly appreciate this, though. The craftsmanship and sinister patience needed to erect this structure is commendable, to say the least. This was found in a laundromat, but we bet some older siblings would happily take inspiration from this setup.

Divine Engineering

Unless you are sensitive to Lego abuse, we can call this the most genius thing ever. We can agree that using any form of adhesive or chewing gum on a Lego is thorough desecration, but they are the most multi-purpose toys on the planet, so no limits, we say!

In fact, you could do this for your consoles and PC. Grab Legos of different colors to color code them according to the gadget, then attach them to a large Lego pad on the wall. You can probably find some Legos in your childhood memorabilia box; might as well utilize them as such.

The relatable one

We can all relate to this struggle. There is no way any of us softies would dare to hold the frying pan with our bare hands. If you’re ever stuck without an oven mitt, you’ll find that wrapping a pot holder around the handle makes everything better.

But if those pot holders keep slipping, office clips make a powerful ally. Simple and very efficient, but still genius. This might not be the spiciest engineering, but you’ll get to see much more devious stuff on this list; hold your breath. 

Flight Simulator 2000

What a rig! This should be patented already and made exclusive to just the elite pilots. Although there should be more concrete and glue stick, we can say it is sufficient enough to pilot a Cessna. But the smiley under the brand name is an instant Boeing 747 upgrade. 

Surely this isn’t hard for any genius to construct. All you need is an Xbox controller, an old Amazon box, some other long instruments, and a good five minutes. Boom! You have manufactured the globally coveted all-new Flight Simulator 200.

Monstrosity

A wise man once said anything is a hammer if you are desperate enough, and it seems someone took those words to heart. Nothing can stand against this son of a gun. Got any stubborn screws, nuts, or bolts? Whatever it is, they quiver at the sight of this Kraken. 

We could call this the Florida Man special or the Thumb-Detecting Nutscrewer—whichever rocks your boat. This took some serious dedication if they welded everything together. If you must know, the name of this magnificent chimeric tool is the Hammer Crescent Wrench. 

Shower Slides

It seems someone forgot to buy shower curtains… again. Others might set out a floor towel, but not this guy. Luckily, his short memory is balanced by an ever-burning spark of genius. Getting two trash bags and cutting them open was easy enough, but using duct tape was the icing on top.

We mean, can you see how neat the duct tape lies between both bags with minimal wrinkles? As another genius once said, nothing is more permanent than a temporary solution. This will certainly be used for more than one night. 

Chopsticks

Ah yes! The good ol’ Jackie Chan technique. Just like the great Kung Fu master, pulling this off requires great attention to detail. All you need to do is find two—obviously clean—HB wooden pencils, rub off the eraser shavings, and snap them together for the feast!

Perfect for simple-minded folks like us. Word to the wise: Only do this in private; you don’t want to reveal this classified genius info to the masses. For some people, the pencil method might just be good for chopstick practice, but you could put it to the test like this guy.

Whip it up

This is what we talking about: simple, genius, and super hilarious. Might be time to retrieve your old table fans; they sure will come in handy here. There might be some drawbacks, like the noise and cleaning issues, but who cares. It is genius and that’s what matters!

If you are looking to make one of yours, we welcome you to the challenge, but you’ll want to use a slower, higher-torque motor. The motor used should also be geared down with helical gears to reduce the noise. What? You thought we wouldn’t give some bonus tips in this listicle?

The Craftman’s special

Staying on the topic of providing modern solutions to everyday problems, this is as DIY as it gets. Car parts are expensive, and this driver must’ve been tired of breaking open their piggy bank for basic repairs. Our main critique here is that it’s not even a concave mirror!

Whatever a car side mirror costs these days, it must be enough to motivate the construction of this monstrosity. It is not even a concave mirror!

But the innovation is quite admirable; it almost warms the heart. Attaching a cute mirror from God knows where in place of a side mirror could go wrong, but there will never be anything more stylish. This is a unicorn right automobile here.

Best Class

“Screw that, I’ll do it myself.” Seriously, who needs overpriced seats and too-bright screens with cruddy movie selections for a comfortable flight? Our genius engineer here has outpaced the game. As it stands, the rest of us are just playing catch-up.

You’ve gotta appreciate the great use of the vomit bag. Not that this Chad will ever need it. He just anchored his iPad to the tray table like a real champ and turned on A New Hope. Not all heroes wear capes. 

Our Sweet Neighbor

Imagine having a bad hiccup with your car and asking your neighbor for help, and the next thing you know, he comes out with a homemade pallet jack. And right there, you get a quick intro into the art of lifting cars without any fancy equipment.

On a good day, a pallet jack can lift up to 5000 pounds, so cars shouldn’t be a problem. Of course, the challenging part is doing so without damage. Wait till you see people pulling out their cars from a ditch with a homemade come-along.

Temperature is rising

This is actually happening. Everything is heating up, and some folks are dangerously prepared for it. Attaching a whole air conditioner unit to a car is pretty wild. Talk about being innovative. We cannot get into the full mechanics of things, but this is impressive.

The literal cherry on top is the security camera watching over the AC. This has to be the most on-brand modification ever performed on a Chrysler Voyager. It looks like someone has made this Voyager a home on wheels, and a classy one at that.

Bee Prepared

We know how important it is to protect the bees. Without them, we wouldn’t have fruit-bearing plants! But some people can’t stand having those little buggers near their homes, and that’s when the exterminator gets a call. But, like cars, those are some pretty hefty bills.

This genius is missing a great opportunity here. Instead of smoking out bees, they could make a fancy new brand of distilled water. Pass the steam through the tree to capture that oaky flavor, and bottle the condensation for a drink to rival Fiji water.

Air Mattress

Air mattresses might not be as comfy as a memory foam bed, but don’t count them out just yet. When you’re in a pinch, an air mattress can do wonders. But what do you do when the cap is nowhere to be found?

Just grab a bottle, and you have a handy cap. Best of all, if you think there might be a leak, the clear bottle will allow you to peek inside. In fact, you have a live observatory to spy on the little critters that might be living in your cozy mattress.

Hot gluing

What can we say? Hot gluing is quite a delicate art that requires great patience and incredible tools like this glue lighter—if that’s what they call it. If there’s a power out or you can’t find your hot glue gun, this can come in real handy.

Crafting this masterpiece is no joke, as you might get burnt by the flames or have hot glue drip on you. Advisably, you want to ensure the glue is not overheated—just warm enough until it is soft. Then tap what you need to glue with it and spread it like butter.

Fork Drive

Exciting times ahead, folks. Someone finally thought up a way to share recipes. But what happens when that USB port is just too tricky to reach? Just attach the thumb drive to a fork and voila! Now you can eat your cake and share it, too.

The lack of insulation is a bit concerning, but at least it looks nice. The duct tape’s color perfectly matches the fork’s dull metallic sheen. It is certainly one of the most innovative ways to patch up a USB drive’s broken parts. Shame nobody ever thought of that.

The simple things

We could go on about how genius this is, but it is not. It’s just a fella keeping their repairs simple, both technically and financially. Why spend thousands of dollars to repair or replace a part when you have the perfect solution waiting in your junk drawer?

We’re certain this was an on-the-fly action because, when you need a space heater, you need it now. Coming in from the freezing cold to find your heater control damaged must suck, but at least you get to be challenged after a boring day.

Desperate measures

Having that one friend that just won’t shut up is one thing, but a car trunk that just won’t close is another ball game. You have to come out with all guns blazing unless you love looking like Trunk Wayne, the Batman from Earth-what–the-heck.

This right here is the standard operating procedure for the most desperate of times; the last resort that actually works out. In fact, you can get creative with this genius technique and seal up truck doors, fridge doors, and even the sunroof.

Go-stools

Ever been torn between going to the bar to get smashed or the go-kart arena to get smashed? Well, it’s our honor to introduce the concept of bar stool racing to you. Basically, it is go-karting with a bar stool for a seat and ten times more fun. 

Safety matters, too. Make sure you don’t let your clothes, shoelace, or anything else on your person get caught in the moving parts. That could become a real death trap. Looking at the license plate, we’re not surprised. Only an Ontario genius would think of this.

Quality counts

As we can see, the sign there says it all. Why waste any cash on a new fridge when some spare insulation can do the trick way better? And it’s the simplest thing ever! Just roll the foam over to either side and hold it in place with a bucket.

Sometimes you really don’t have to be a genius to drive groundbreaking change. This guy certainly wasn’t. When you have a relic like the GE side-by-side refrigerator, you have to take care of it like it’s your baby, especially when keeping it cozy and insulated. 

The Future is Now

The rearview camera has been a game-changer, but some people still get left out. After decades of craning necks just to back out of the parking lot, our friend here has had enough of all that. What did we say about desperate times, again?

But Madre Mia, this is no way to use the almighty Canon EOS 6D camera. Unless you are on the everlasting mission to capture all plate numbers in the city for strictly legal purposes or shooting a Christopher Nolan movie, it’s hard to wrap your head around. 

Relics

As the soccer-crazed fans some of us are, anything to save a cleat is quite welcome. This right here is a classic cleat that premiered at the 1982 FIFA World Cup, where 40-year-old Dino Zoff captained Italy to glory, and Paolo Rossi’s brilliance drove it home.

These cleats are only as iconic as the year they came from, and what they represent is totally unrivaled. Whatever means possible to keep them in good shape is highly recommended; the owner of these cleats has certainly done a great job at that.

Odd Couple

Sometimes all we need is a ray of sunshine or the mishmash of two entirely different appliances to create a dose of perfection. A Makita 18V Impact Driver and a fruit blender are quite the power couple, as you may find here.

This match totally makes sense since the driver generates enough torque to power the blender at an even faster rate. Although you might make a little bit more noise than you bargained for, we guess that pales in comparison to the brutal efficiency of this thing. 

The Siphon

You may be wondering what the heck is going on; let us break it down. Here, we have a thermos coffee pot from which coffee is being siphoned into a plastic bottle. If you are wondering why anyone would use a pot to make coffee in the 21st century, we are too.

As it turns out, this iced coffee lover didn’t have a better way to store their chilled beverage. Judging by the ladle, their first attempt to bottle that caffeinated goodness didn’t work. But as this genius found out, two straws make the perfect siphon.

Lace your pipes

Any car owner can relate to just how annoying a displaced exhaust pipe is. The one thing we cannot relate to, however, is the genius of padding it and basically tying it with a bow. Really, who are these self-taught mechanics?!

It seems that automobiles are the perfect medium for wonky DIY solutions. Or, maybe it’s because cars break so often and easily. Broken mirrors, missing car jacks, and now rattling parts. Is there nothing these geniuses don’t know how to fix?

Free Wheel

As we’ve seen dozens of times, amateur engineers opt for replacement parts rather than layers upon layers of tape and glue. No item is a lost cause when you’ve got a wrinkly brain. There’s still hope for your swivel chair that lost its wheels after hours of go-karting. Yes, you read that right.

You don’t even need to buy a spare part. Just salvage a wheel from another broken item, and attach it. Voila! Easy peasy, right? You’re welcome. But achieving the ultimate repair, as seen in this picture, may be way more complex. You might just want to go with gorilla glue.

Grandma’s Chair

Call it marking the territory or making the obvious clearer, but grandma likes to have the chair to herself. The ancient iron is there as a little reminder to the young bucks. If the upholstery can’t remind you, then this ancient metal device will.

It’s also a reminder to those over-eager grandkids who keep pestering her about replacing that old chair. So what if it doesn’t recline like it’s supposed to? It’s a family heirloom at this point, so just stick on something heavy as a counterweight. She won’t let this Lazy-Boy end up in the trash!

The Belt

Safety belts are underrated, multi-purpose tools. We tend to neglect them, but when we need a heavy-duty fix that Krazy Glue won’t fix, it’s time to strap on those belts and hold your broken dishwasher shut. Simple and effective; just the way all solutions should be.

On the one hand, you could buy a new dishwasher, but the appliance works, so there’s no need to replace it. Bringing out your inner engineer is way more fun in scenarios like these. Another plus is that it brings a rugged aesthetic to your boring kitchen.

The Ultimate Present

Good things come wrapped in metal, but so do radioactive materials. Depending on who you receive such a gift from, don’t make any assumptions. There is no doubt a lot of thinking went into this. Anyone of us would be unnerved; we already are.

With this, you can show people how surprised they are to receive such a gift. Just make sure the tin foil is shiny and smooth to capture their shock and apprehension. The ribbon is a good attempt at disarming it, but it makes it even more unnerving. Brilliant.

Steamy Buns

Ever heard of a steamer? We bet you have! It’s not a staple in every kitchen, but it’s a must for certain cuisines. No one wants to buy an appliance to only use once or twice. Unfortunately, some foods just aren’t the same in an oven or microwave.

Now this is a low-budget solution! Even the barest kitchen has a pot, a pan, and a stove with one working burner. Just clear off that dish drying rack, stack on your bao buns, and let the water do the rest.

Another One

While we’re on the topic of food hacks, take a look at this DIY stove/oven/microwave food heater combo. This poor soul’s workplace doesn’t have a microwave, but they weren’t going to eat a lame cold hamburger. So, they used the tools at hand…

For this trick, all you need is a Holmes Electric Heater, some foil, and whatever you want to heat. After you carefully wrap your food up in the foil, all that is left is to turn on the heater and put it close. Once again, voila!

Don’t Flush Your Money

Few things are worse in this life than a broken toilet. When you gotta go, you gotta go. Worse still, no one wants to call a plumber while the toilet is just waiting to be flushed. Luckily, this person was a secret genius and knew how to fix a broken lever.

Just use a clamping wrench for an instant toilet flush lever. Get it on there nice and tight, and you’ll forget all about needing to call a plumber. Plus, it’ll give your bathroom a little rustic flair; we hear that’s all the rage today.

What happened to luxury?

There is no secret that we are witnessing a revolution here. More people are flipping off the big automobile giants to display their unique genius in the bodywork department. Leave it to Mr. Magoo over here. And we are all for it; this one seems pretty brutal, but the dog looks content.

What do you know? By the looks of it, some good wood lying in the backyard has been put to great use. Plus, a lot of money is saved on making actual repairs. We can tell what you’re thinking: they can’t keep getting away with it! 

VIP Lounge

The aviation industry needs to step on the gas here, or they will be squashed by the ever-rising army of geniuses. We already saw the frightening power of Mr. Arline-Vomit-Bag-iPad-Holder-Man and the Ultimate Flight Simulator 200 in all their glory.

Now the pages turn to the genius at the terminal. Why waste extra money on some VIP Lounge where they play some random documentaries and serve overpriced drinks? Hacking your way to comfort and displaying your genius is the obvious winner here.

In the Loop

We hate to admit it, but some of those silly little products at Walmart are actually useful. Take, for example, those desktop cord organizers. No one likes finding their cords in a tangled mess on the floor, but you don’t need to buy a specialized product to solve this problem.

This is just game-changing stuff. If you want to make it more fun, you could superglue a lego piece to your table and join a lego man to the piece; and put your cable through the lego man’s hands. Neat, right?

Operator’s Manual

Who needs paper clips and staples anymore? Just stick a whole bolt through the paper and give it a little twist to seal the deal. We can’t believe people don’t try this more often. Perhaps they fear damaging the document, but when it is an operator’s manual, what could possibly go wrong?

In case you are wondering, Red Max trimmers are quite the handful to manage—navigating this thing requires doggedness. Sticking a pin through the operator’s manual is more of an essential solution than it is a genius one. Anything to keep heads above the clouds.

Privacy first

Zoom meetings can be a bother, but they’re a necessary evil. If you use an old monitor, chances are you need a separate camera to attend that meeting. Unfortunately, they don’t come with privacy screens—not that it was a problem for this genius.

Get yourself a couple of sticky notes and some paper clips to act as a weight. There is no way to deal with the microphone though, except shutting it off from your system. Otherwise, you are good to go until the day you finally get a newer webcam with a built-in shutter.

Nest-friendly

We all love some unique additions to our backyards. It doesn’t matter if it is a projector screen, a fire pit, or a zip line. Whatever custom add-on in your backyard will give you that homey feeling. One of the easiest ways to do this is to install a birdfeeder.

Those pesky squirrels were getting greedy, so this person fished in their toolshed for a new way to string up their bird feeder. The irony of using a fishing rod to feed animals rather than capture them is not lost on us.

The Proxy

We saw one amateur engineer upgrade their camera’s security with some basic paper, but now we have a real engineer (okay, physicist) doing some office upgrades. He was tired of the security camera snooping on places they didn’t need, so he came up with a solution…

With some tape and cardboard, the camera now only captures what he wants it to. None of that 180-degree stuff. There’s a line of sight to capture any intruders, but the empty void of the dark parking lot is easily edited out.

Power Plant

If you ever wondered what good those old alkaline batteries could ever do, well, here it is: The Colorado Power Plant. All you need is batteries, wires, glue, pliers, and a basic knowledge of how electric circuits and battery units work.

This person was stuck in a power out with no battery packs charged and ready to go. Fortunately, they had all the tools needed to whip up a mini power plant to get their phone charged enough to snap a picture of their clever setup.

Going Nuts

Holding a nut in place while you screw it in can be a task from the devil. Next time you’re stuck, take a page from this pioneer’s handbook and tape it on. Genius, right?! That way, you can get that nut attached without it slipping from your fingers.

Maybe it seems unnecessary, but this is a 10/10 life hack, per our ratings. Wait till you see the side table made of spray foam or the labels they put on toddlers from preschool. Taping a nut is pretty tame compared to those.