When mountain cedar, oak, grass and ragweed pollen hit North Texas, when storms and 100 degree days usually come, and what to clean in a Mansfield home in each part of the year.
Most cleaning calendars are written for places with a real winter and a spring that starts in April. Mansfield is different. Cedar pollen peaks in the middle of winter, trees start in February, summer brings weeks of 100 degree heat and the second wettest month of the year is October.
This calendar follows the 1991 to 2020 normals the National Weather Service publishes for Dallas/Fort Worth, the closest long record to Mansfield, along with the North Texas allergy calendar from Children's Health in Dallas and the city's own mosquito season. Each block lists what changes in the home and what to put on the list.
This is the closest Mansfield gets to winter. The airport averages about 29 nights a year at or below freezing, most of them in December, January and February, and normal snowfall is just 1.6 inches. It is also mountain cedar season: Ashe juniper pollen runs from December to February and is one of the harshest allergens in Texas homes.
Windows stay shut and the heat runs, so the home recirculates what is already inside. February adds the first tree pollen on top.
Spring is the windiest time of year at Dallas/Fort Worth, with average speeds around 12 miles per hour in March and April against about 9 in late summer. Oak, elm, ash, pecan and pine pollen are all in the air, and grass joins in March. April averages almost six thunderstorm days.
This is the classic spring cleaning window here, earlier than in most of the country. A deep clean in March or early April clears the winter dust before the heaviest pollen settles.
May is the busiest storm month, with about 7.7 thunderstorm days on average, and the wettest, at 4.78 inches. June follows with 6.3 storm days. Mud and wet grass come in on every shoe and paw.
Mosquito season is also underway. Mansfield works with Tarrant County Public Health to monitor mosquitoes typically from April through November and asks residents to remove standing water, which means emptying saucers, buckets and pet bowls left outside after each storm.
The average first 100 degree day at Dallas/Fort Worth comes on July 1 and the average last on August 27, with about 20 such days in a normal year, most of them in these two months. Dew points sit near 70 degrees. Mold spores peak from July through late summer.
Doors stay closed and the air conditioner carries the house. Bathrooms dry slowly, so they need attention more often. The humidity and mildew guide covers what regular cleaning can do and where it stops.
Ragweed runs from August to November, and grass pollen lasts into September. October is the second wettest month at Dallas/Fort Worth, at about 4.37 inches, so fall brings a short return of muddy floors. Mosquito monitoring usually winds down in November.
Fall is the second good point for a deep clean, after a summer of closed doors and before the holidays fill the house.
The questions Mansfield homeowners ask most often about this topic, answered plainly.
TotalCare Cleaning will service Mansfield 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.
