ECOLAB INC. — Director's Dealing 2012

Nov 9, 2012

SEC Form 4 — Statement of Changes in Beneficial Ownership

Issuer: ECOLAB INC (ECL)
CIK: 0000031462
Period of Report: 2012-11-07

Reporting Person: FRITZE STEVEN L (Former Chief Financial Officer)

Non-Derivative Transactions

Date	Security	Code	Shares	Price	A/D	Holdings After	Ownership
2012-11-07	Common Stock	M	44100	$34.50	Acquired	173982	Direct
2012-11-07	Common Stock	F	31173	$70.625	Disposed	142809	Direct
2012-11-07	Common Stock	G	2410	$0.00	Disposed	140399	Direct

Derivative Transactions

Date	Security	Exercise Price	Code	Shares	A/D	Expiration	Underlying	Ownership
2012-11-07	Employee Stock Option (Right to Buy)	$34.50	M	44100	Disposed	2014-12-09	Common Stock (44100)	Direct

Holdings (Non-Derivative)

Security	Shares	Ownership
Common Stock	12742.703	Indirect

Footnotes

F1: Reflects the reporting person's payment of the exercise price and witholding taxes for a stock option issued in accordance with Rule 16b-3 by delivering or withholding shares of Ecolab common stock.

F2: Number of UNITS in the Ecolab Stock Fund of the Ecolab Savings Plan (401(k) Plan) as of October 31, 2012. Includes 36.855 UNITS acquired since the reporting person's last report.(The 12,742.703 UNITS are the equivalent of approximately 23,680 SHARES of the issuer's Common Stock.)

F3: Option granted under the Ecolab Inc. 2002 Stock Incentive Plan on December 9, 2004. The option became exercisable, on a cumulative basis, as to one-third of the option shares (excluding any fractional portion less than one share), on each of the first and second anniversaries of the date of grant and as to the remaining option shares on the third anniversary of the date of grant.