This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Formula 409" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR(August 2012) (Learn how and when to remove this message)
This article's factual accuracy may be compromised due to out-of-date information. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(January 2022)
Formula 409 Home & Industrial Cleaner
Product type
Cleanser
Owner
Clorox
Country
U.S.
Introduced
1957; 67 years ago (1957)
Markets
Worldwide
Previous owners
Chemzol
Website
formula409.com
Formula 409 or 409 is an American brand of home and industrial cleaning products well known in the United States, but virtually unknown in other places. It includes Formula 409 All-Purpose Cleaner, Formula 409 Glass and Surface Cleaner, Formula 409 Carpet Cleaner, and many others. The brand is currently owned by Clorox.
The flagship product was invented in 1957 by Morris D. Rouff, whose Michigan company manufactured industrial cleaning supplies.[1] Formula 409’s original application was as a commercial solvent and degreaser for industries that struggled with particularly difficult cleaning problems.
The inventor's son has stated that it was named for the birthday of the inventor's wife, Ruth, on April the 9th (rendered in the American style with the month first as "4/09").[1] The company, however, claims that it was named as the 409th compound tested by the inventors. Other claimed origins for the name include 409 being the telephone area code where it was invented (area code 409, which serves southeastern Texas, was not introduced until 1983); the birthday of some other person, such as the inventor's daughter; or a reference to a powerful Chevrolet car engine used in the 1960s.
In 1960, Rouff sold Formula 409 to Chemzol, a New York firm, for an amount in the low six-figure range. In the mid-1960s, entrepreneur Wilson Harrell, along with longtime friend David Woodcock and television personality Art Linkletter, bought Formula 409. Harrell, Woodcock & Linkletter bought it for $30,000 and took it national. Linkletter also promoted the product in television commercials. The company eventually took Formula 409 to a 55 percent share of the spray-cleaner market, and six years later, Harrell, Woodcock & Linkletter sold the company to Clorox for $7 million.[2][3]
In early 2020 Formula 409 became impossible to find in stores[4] and disappeared from the "products" listing at the Clorox website.[5] Some websites say Clorox has discontinued the product.[6] There has been no announcement or news release, and the website www.formula409.com is still active. Formula 409 is currently (January 16, 2022) sold at Walmart, Target, grocery and numerous other stores. The packaging has been changed. [7]
^ abRouff, Brian (20 November 2011). "When Myth Becomes Reality". Brianrouff.com. Retrieved 2019-06-27.
^"A business 'buccaneer' laid to rest – Atlanta Business Chronicle". Bizjournals.com. 1997-12-22. Retrieved 2013-04-04.
^"Unconventional financing ideas that actually work in practice – Atlanta Business Chronicle". Bizjournals.com. 1996-10-21. Retrieved 2013-04-04.
^"Some of the items Houston-area residents say they're still struggling to find amid the pandemic". Click2Houston. September 6, 2020. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
^"Products". clorox.com. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
^"Case of Formula 409 All-Purpose Cleaner". cleanfreak.com. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
^"Formula 409 multi-surface cleaner". www.formula409.com. 4 July 2013. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
unknown in other places. It includes Formula409 All-Purpose Cleaner, Formula409 Glass and Surface Cleaner, Formula409 Carpet Cleaner, and many others....
include its namesake bleach and cleaning products as well as Burt's Bees, Formula409, Glad, Hidden Valley, Kingsford, Kitchen Bouquet, KC Masterpiece, Liquid-Plumr...
(brand) Falcon Safety Products Bon Ami Company Febreze Finish (detergent) Formula409 Frosch USA Gas duster Glade (brand) Guar hydroxypropyltrimonium chloride...
some Clorox cleaner in his teacher’s coffeemaker, and it was known as Formula409, hence the name of the song. It was later re-recorded during the Dookie...
rubbing the material on a cloth with a spot of Simichrome Polish or Formula409 cleaner, which will leave a characteristic light pink to yellow residue...
Metropolis Records. The album was accompanied by a music video for track "Formula409", which appeared online on July 30, 2008. A claymation video for the...
music video to promote Switzerland Yes (songwriter) Yes Yes Grim Reaper "Formula409" Electric Six music video to promote Flashy Yes (songwriter) Yes Yes...
were arrested and charged with assault for kicking, punching, spraying Formula409 on wounds and cuts, making racist comments, and holding the Lambda Chi...
Races by venue Support series: Formula 2 Championship FIA Formula 3 Championship Porsche Supercup The 2023 FIA Formula One World Championship was a motor...
The FIA Formula 2 Championship is a second-tier single-seater championship organized by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). Held on racing...
Buy the Drugs Electric Six music video Himself – Tait Nucleus? 2008 Formula409 Electric Six music video Himself – Tait Nucleus? 2011 You're a Mean One...
called the most powerful three-litre engine seen in Formula One at that time, with 548 bhp (409 kW). They tested their turbocharged V8 engine during...
also referred to as LIBOR market model. The Black formula is similar to the Black–Scholes formula for valuing stock options except that the spot price...
chemical compounds with chemical formulae and CAS numbers, indexed by formula. This complements alternative listing at list of inorganic compounds. There...
Electric Six's project to create a music video for every song on the album "Formula409" Anthony Ernst Garth Released to promote Flashy "Making Progress" 2009...
number of points awarded to each position have varied – see the List of Formula One World Championship points scoring systems for details. (ordered by...
Benzene is an organic chemical compound with the molecular formula C6H6. The benzene molecule is composed of six carbon atoms joined in a planar hexagonal...
Guinness Complete Grand Prix Who's Who. Guinness. pp. 157 and 409. ISBN 0851127029. Formula One portal Life Profile Goodwood Festival of Speed details...
developed and manufactured jointly by Mecachrome and Renault Sport for use in Formula One, and used by Arrows, BAR, Williams, Ligier, Lotus, Caterham, Benetton...
motorsports organization with teams competing in the IndyCar Series, Indy NXT, Formula E, Extreme E, and joint entries in IMSA and the Australian Supercars Championship...