Even though it’s hard, I will try to be mature about this matter. Picture stepping into the bathroom only to be greeted by the aroma of stale pee. And fossilized yellow droplets clinging to the underbelly of the toilet, the walls, and if you’re particularly unlucky – the windows.

And what’s up with the gross Saturnian rings hugging the base of the toilet? Urine . . . just everywhere. It’s pretty well known that households with boys (and men, ahem) can count on living with the effects of awful aim. It’s also pretty well known that no one likes to clean it up. No one.

To that end, a set of parents from Idaho have come up with a solution to ease the pain of splatter buildup. Cindy and Chris Covington, parents of five 5 boys, have invented a product called the Potty Protector. The slick contraption acts as a splash guard to keep the mess to a minimum.

Like many great inventions, this creation story has its origins with a common problem. Cindy kept telling Chris that she was tired of cleaning up tinkle after their boys – the spray, the drops, and the puddles. He went out to the garage one day, then came back in with a modified bucket and attached it to the toilet bowl.

“What’s that?” was Cindy’s first reaction. But after a week of using it, she only had to clean dust from her toilet. Soon, the Covingtons’ friends wanted to try one. Thus, the Potty Protector was born. She tells East Idaho News:

“It guards all of that extra fine mist spray that just happens with little boys, and even teenagers, and even grown men, and even older, older men.”

Fine mist spray is one way to put it, but it goes into the toilet rather than everywhere else. The Potty Protector is designed to fit any toilet and can be easily cleaned and stored. There’s also a nifty handle on the back for picking it up without touching the surface.

Cindy runs the company as its CEO and the product can be found on the website. Since launching a successful crowdfunding campaign through Kickstarter, the Covingtons have been able to manufacture and fill orders for the Potty Protector. So far, it sounds like it’s been a game changer:

“I just have had so many moms wanting it, and they were just all saying how much it has changed their life of not constantly having to wipe down the bathroom.”

Watch the video to see how it works! On the site, Cindy also shares that customers include elderly gentlemen and parents of disabled children who have found it to be a tremendous help. Sounds like it’s a win all the way around – for the fellows that use them and the good folks whose job it is to be on bathroom duty. Why not?

Would you try an invention like this for your household? Are you constantly having to clean up urine stains and odors? What do you do to combat poor aiming in your home?