SF's Pee-Repelling Walls Are Really Making a Splash

San Francisco's experiment with pee-repelling paint is working out so well that the city says it will expand the trial in an attempt to prevent further public urination. Since treating nine of its walls with a liquid-repelling coating that causes urine to bounce back at anyone seeking relief, the city has been sending an unfortunate individual to smell the city's walls and look for moist areas. "So far so good," says Public Works Director Mohammed Nuru. "We have had a daily monitoring program, and it seems to be 95% successful," though he adds there's one particular alley "that we have had trouble with." As a result, officials will apply the Ultra-Ever Dry paint from Florida company Ultra-tech to eight more walls this week, reports the San Francisco Chronicle.

Once the program's trial period wraps in December, city officials will review the effectiveness of the paint, which has worked "really well" in Hamburg, Germany, says Nuru. "Based on that, I think this program is really going to work. It should deter people." Signs on the coated walls state: "Hold it! This wall is not a public restroom. Please respect San Francisco and seek relief in an appropriate place." But as they don't explain that the texture produced by the paint creates peaks that repel most water-based and some oil-based liquids, "surprises are in store for the unwitting relief-seeker," notes the Chronicle. Last year, NBC News reported Nissan was testing a vehicle coated with Ultra-Ever Dry paint, meaning soon you may never have to wash your car again. (San Francisco should probably add the stuff to its light poles.)