Birmingham summers bring dew points near 70 degrees and about 56 inches of rain a year. This guide goes through the rooms where that damp air shows up, and what a cleaning visit can do.
Humidity is the steady background of housekeeping in Birmingham. It is why a bathroom stays wet long after a shower, why a closet can smell musty in August, and why grout darkens faster here than in a dry climate.
This guide explains what to do room by room. It is about prevention and surface cleaning only. TotalCare Cleaning will clean surfaces, and visible mold or water damage belong with a specialist.
Normal dew points at the Birmingham airport average about 70 degrees Fahrenheit in July, 69 in August and 67 in June, which makes summer air muggy. The normal annual precipitation is 56.62 inches, with March the wettest month at 5.66 inches and October the driest at 3.34. The area averages about 81 days a year with at least a tenth of an inch of rain.
The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America reports that outdoor and indoor mold concentrations tend to be highest in the Southeast because of its warm, humid climate. Add 65 days a year at 90 degrees or hotter, and homes in this area spend a lot of the year closed up with the air conditioning running.
The Jefferson County Department of Health advises controlling mold and mildew by fixing leaks, using exhaust fans and keeping indoor humidity below 50 percent. An inexpensive hygrometer tells you where a room stands, and it often settles an argument about whether a dehumidifier is needed.
Cleaning comes after those steps. A clean surface grows less mildew than a dirty one, because soap film and skin oils give it something to live on, but if a leak keeps feeding the area, wiping alone will not keep it clean for long.
Run the fan during every shower and for a while after. Squeegee the glass and leave the door or curtain open so the surround can dry. Check the bottom of a shower curtain, the caulk line and the grout near the floor, since those stay wet longest.
A Recurring House Clean keeps tubs, showers and floors clear of the film that feeds mildew. Deep visits add detail, treating shower glass for hard water spots and detailing faucets. Birmingham Water Works reported hardness from 52 to 148 milligrams per liter in 2022, so mineral spots are possible as well as soap film.
Rooms with no airflow show humidity first. Leave closet doors open a crack on muggy days, avoid packing clothes tightly, and keep shoes out of damp corners. A closed guest room should be opened up every so often.
Basements and crawlspaces deserve a look after heavy rain. A musty smell usually means a moisture source, not a cleaning problem. Older houses are especially prone to this, and about 58 percent of homes in the city were built before 1970. The older home guide covers those houses in more depth.
Use the range hood when boiling water, wipe up around the sink, and check under it for slow drips. Leave the washer door ajar after a load so that the gasket can dry, and clean lint from around the dryer. The county also tells residents to remove moisture and seal cracks to deter cockroaches, which is one more reason to keep these rooms dry.
Degreased cabinet fronts and clean baseboards are part of a One-Time Deep Clean, and grease film traps moisture and dust just as soap film does. Refrigerator interiors belong to the Moving Clean, but door seals are easy to wipe yourself between visits.
The county also tells residents to empty standing water to stop mosquito breeding, and with this much rain, saucers, buckets and clogged gutters fill quickly. Keeping water away from the foundation does more for a damp basement than anything done indoors.
Mats on both sides of each door reduce the wet soil tracked indoors, and March is when that counts, the wettest month. The seasonal guide sets out the rest of the year.
The questions Birmingham homeowners ask most often about this topic, answered plainly.
TotalCare Cleaning will service Birmingham and surrounding areas with background-checked cleaners and is insured up to $1 million. Re-clean guarantee: if we missed something, tell us by the end of the next day and we come back to fix it. Beyond Clean. TotalCare.
