Pine Sol
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Pine-Sol is a registered trade name of
the Clorox Company The Clorox Company (formerly Clorox Chemical Company) is an American multinational manufacturer and marketer of consumer and professional products. As of 2024, the Oakland, California-based company had approximately 8,000 employees worldwide. N ...
for a line of household cleaning products, used to clean grease and heavy soil stains. Pine-Sol was based on
pine oil Pine oil is an essential oil obtained from a variety of species of pine, particularly ''Pinus sylvestris''. Typically, parts of the trees that are not used for lumber stumps, etc. are ground and subjected to steam distillation. As of 1995, sy ...
when it was created in 1929 and during its rise to national popularity in the 1950s. By 2016, Pine-Sol products sold in stores no longer contained pine oil, which was done to reduce costs.


History

Pine-Sol detergent was invented by Harry A. Cole of
Jackson, Mississippi Jackson is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Mississippi, most populous city of the U.S. state of Mississippi. The city sits on the Pearl River (Mississippi–Louisiana), Pearl River and is locate ...
, in 1929. In 1948, entrepreneur Robert Earnest "Dumas" Milner acquired Magnolia Chemical, the Jackson, Mississippi supplier of Pine-Sol. Milner put Howard S. Cohoon in charge of the firm which had six employees: three salesmen and three who produced the product. In the following five years Cohoon turned the company into a multi-million dollar operation selling 20 million bottles throughout the United States and 11 other nations. Cohoon modernized the operation from manual bottling and labeling to full automation. According to Cohoon, at that time pine oil was produced from old
yellow pine In ecology and forestry, yellow pine refers to a number of conifer species that tend to grow in similar plant communities and yield similar strong wood. In the Western United States, yellow pine refers to Jeffrey pine or ponderosa pine. In the S ...
tree stumps which were previously regarded as worthless. After Pine-Sol went national, Milner Company began a national radio advertising campaign starting with the
Robert Q. Lewis Robert Q. Lewis (born Robert Goldberg; April 25, 1921 – December 11, 1991) was an American radio and television entertainer, comedian, game show host and actor. Although born with the Goldberg name, he grew up as Lewis, his father's profe ...
show in 1952. By 1955 the Milner company had purchased Perma-Starch, of Illiopolis, Illinois, and by 1959 Milner had grown to a $1.5 million daytime TV advertising package and a $100,000 radio buy shared between Pine-Sol and Perma-Starch. In January 1956, the
Federal Trade Commission The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is an independent agency of the United States government whose principal mission is the enforcement of civil (non-criminal) United States antitrust law, antitrust law and the promotion of consumer protection. It ...
ordered Milner Company to cease and desist an advertising campaign that related to the false claims regarding the effectiveness of Pine-Sol compared to other pine oil containing products. Milner Company had previously agreed to cease and desist several other false claims about germicidal and bactericidal properties of Pine-Sol in March 1951. In February 1963, the Dumas Milner Company, including Pine-Sol facilities in Jackson, Miss., and Perma-Starch plant in Illiopolis, Ill., was taken over by Wayne, N.J. based
American Cyanamid American Cyanamid Company was an American manufacturing conglomerate. It began as a fertilizer company and added many additional lines of business before merging with American Home Products in 1994. The combined company sold off most of its di ...
for stock valued at $17 million. Howard S. Cohoon was to remain in charge of the division. The Pine-Sol brand was acquired by Clorox from American Cyanamid's Shulton Group in 1990. The 2005 version of the original 8% to 10% pine oil based cleaner was acidic ( pH 3–4) and could be used to remove bacteria from household surfaces. However, some of the products now contain bases (pH 10–11). There was also a dispute between
Clorox The Clorox Company (formerly Clorox Chemical Company) is an American multinational manufacturer and marketer of consumer and professional products. As of 2024, the Oakland, California-based company had approximately 8,000 employees worldwide. N ...
and
Reckitt Benckiser Reckitt Benckiser Group PLC, currently branded as Reckitt, formerly known as Reckitt Benckiser, is a British multinational consumer goods company headquartered in Slough, United Kingdom. It is a producer of health, hygiene and nutrition prod ...
over potential consumer confusion regarding the fact that both
Lysol Lysol (, ; spelled Lizol in India) is an American brand of cleaning and Disinfectant, disinfecting products distributed by Reckitt, which markets the similar Dettol or Sagrotan in other markets. The line includes liquid solutions for hard and s ...
and Pine-Sol end in "sol" and are used for cleaning. The issues spawned negotiations, agreements and lawsuits among several involved companies over the years from the 1960s to late 1990s.


Formulation

According to 1950s Milner executive Howard S. Cohoon, producer of Pine-Sol,
pine oil Pine oil is an essential oil obtained from a variety of species of pine, particularly ''Pinus sylvestris''. Typically, parts of the trees that are not used for lumber stumps, etc. are ground and subjected to steam distillation. As of 1995, sy ...
is formed only in large stumps from cut-over timber that has remained in the ground for "at least 20 years." It is not found in live pine trees. When asked about the risk of running out, Cohoon estimated in 1954 that there was "enough to last for another 35 years." He was not worried about a shortage as he claimed pine oil could be produced synthetically. Although the original Pine-Sol formulation was pine oil-based, today the cleaners sold under the Pine-Sol brand contain no pine oil. In 2006, The Clorox Company's product line included "Clorox Commercial Pine-Sol Brand Cleaner", with the same ingredients and concentrations as "Original Pine-Sol Brand Cleaner 1." In 2008, the
material safety data sheet A safety data sheet (SDS), material safety data sheet (MSDS), or product safety data sheet (PSDS) is a document that lists information relating to occupational safety and health for the use of various substances and products. SDSs are a wide ...
for the "Original Pine-Sol Brand Cleaner 1" formulation listed 8–12%
pine oil Pine oil is an essential oil obtained from a variety of species of pine, particularly ''Pinus sylvestris''. Typically, parts of the trees that are not used for lumber stumps, etc. are ground and subjected to steam distillation. As of 1995, sy ...
, 3–7%
alkyl In organic chemistry, an alkyl group is an alkane missing one hydrogen. The term ''alkyl'' is intentionally unspecific to include many possible substitutions. An acyclic alkyl has the general formula of . A cycloalkyl group is derived from a cy ...
alcohol ethoxylates, 1–5% sodium petroleum
sulfonate In organosulfur chemistry, a sulfonate is a salt, anion or ester of a sulfonic acid. Its formula is , containing the functional group , where R is typically an organyl group, amino group or a halogen atom. Sulfonates are the conjugate bases of ...
and 1–5%
isopropyl alcohol Isopropyl alcohol (IUPAC name propan-2-ol and also called isopropanol or 2-propanol) is a colorless, flammable, organic compound with a pungent alcoholic odor. Isopropyl alcohol, an organic polar molecule, is miscible in water, ethanol, an ...
. In January 2013, Clorox began making a product called Original Pine-Sol Multi-Surface Cleaner which included
glycolic acid Glycolic acid (or hydroxyacetic acid; chemical formula ) is a colorless, odorless and hygroscopic crystal, crystalline solid, highly solubility, soluble in water. It is used in various skin care, skin-care products. Glycolic acid is widespread in ...
while lacking any pine oil. In January 2014, Clorox announced that Pine-Sol products would no longer contain
pine oil Pine oil is an essential oil obtained from a variety of species of pine, particularly ''Pinus sylvestris''. Typically, parts of the trees that are not used for lumber stumps, etc. are ground and subjected to steam distillation. As of 1995, sy ...
, due to pine oil's limited supply and increased cost. In response to consumer requests for the original formula, Clorox made available a product containing 8.75% pine oil to online purchasers, but said it would not be sold in stores.


Editions

Editions of Pine-Sol currently contain(ed) 7 editions, which include: Classic, Lemon Fresh, Refreshing Clean, Lavender Scent, Spring Blossom, All-Purpose, and Mandarin Sunrise.


See also

*
Dettol antiseptic liquid Dettol antiseptic liquid is a product produced by the Dettol Brand for Reckitt. It is light yellow in color in the concentrated form but, as several of the ingredients are insoluble in water, it produces a milky emulsion of oil droplets when dilut ...
Pine oil based


References


External links

*
Clorox's online sales, via 1221 Market, portal for 8.75% pine oil
!--Official page according to Pine-Sol's verified Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/pinesol/posts/787902647900574--> {{Clorox Clorox brands Products introduced in 1929