San Francisco to Public Urinators: More of Our Walls Will 'Pee Back'

Men, when nature calls and there are no restrooms nearby, a discrete wall won’t be a quick solution for you -- at least in San Francisco.

After testing nine ”pee-back” walls in the Tenderloin, Mission and SOMA districts, the city will nearly doubling the number of walls with the pee-repellent paint. Eight more walls will be painted this week.

According to San Francisco Public Works Director Mohammed Nuru, the pilot program has a 95 percent success rate.

“There’s only one alley in the Mission that we have had trouble with,” Nuru told the San Francisco Chronicle.

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• San Francisco to Public Urinators: Our Walls Pee Back
  

How does the department know the walls work? Through daily inspection, Nuru said. One person has the unenviable task of doing a daily sniff -- really! -- and visual inspection of each wall. Anything that smells of urine or looks moist is noted and reported.

The “pee-back” walls have proven to work in Europe, especially in the city of Hamburg, Germany. That’s where Nuru got the idea.

The special paint created by Jacksonville, Fla.-based UltraTech International Inc. works by creating texture on treated surfaces with geometric shapes that peaks and valleys. These “peaks” are what repel water, according to the company.

Each wall costs the city a couple hundred dollars, but that cost pales in comparison to the cost of having to steam clean the wall or sidewalk.

The Golden City has traditionally had a problem with public urination, despite a ban on the books since 2002 with fines ranging from $50 to $500. That didn’t seem to curb the problem.

Last year, the city started the ”Pitt Stop” program by installing public toilets. That reduced the number of calls for urine steam clean, but the city wants to do more to deter the peeing menace.

San Francisco will evaluate the program’s effectiveness in December and if the “pee back” walls prove to be effective, more walls will be painted with the special paint.

For now, be aware. The treated walls have a painted message to remind people that walls are not bathrooms but does not warn that it will “pee back.”