Month by month cleaning for Knoxville, built from the airport's 1991 to 2020 climate normals, the National Weather Service frost dates, local pollen reports and UT Extension's lady beetle timing.
Generic spring cleaning lists assume a single pollen season and a single wet month. Knoxville does not work that way. Rain is spread across the whole year, tree pollen begins in February, the summer air is muggy and a second allergy season starts in August. This calendar follows the valley's real dates.
The figures come from NOAA's normals for McGhee Tyson Airport, the National Weather Service office in Morristown, a Knoxville allergist quoted by WVLT and University of Tennessee Extension.
Knoxville's normal year brings 51.93 inches of rain, with July the wettest month at 5.25 inches and October the driest at 2.81. There are about 86 days with at least a tenth of an inch, ranging from about 5 in September to almost 9 in March. The median last frost is April 14 and the median first frost is October 24.
Heat and cold both visit. The airport averages about 36 days at 90 degrees or hotter and about 67 nights at or below freezing, while snowfall is only 4.6 inches in a normal year, mostly in January and February.
January is the coldest stretch, with about 18 freezing nights and the most snow of the year at roughly 1.7 inches. Wipe condensation from window sills on cold mornings so it does not mark paint, and keep a boot tray by the door for slush days.
By February, a Knoxville allergist reports, tree pollen from cedar, maple, oak and pine has started. Change the furnace filter and wash entry mats before the yellow dust builds.
March has the most rainy days of the year, close to nine with measurable rain. Floors near the door and the mudroom get the most attention now. Tree pollen keeps falling, so wipe sills and porch furniture weekly and wash pillow covers on outdoor seating.
After the median last frost on April 14, many homes do the big spring reset: wet-wiping blinds, cleaning window tracks, washing baseboards and wiping ceiling fans before they are switched on for summer. That is the job a One-Time Deep Clean is built for.
Dew points climb through June to about 68 degrees in July, which is the muggy air Knoxville summers are known for. July is also the wettest month at 5.25 inches. Bathrooms and laundry rooms dry slowly, so run exhaust fans longer, hang towels spread out and wipe shower walls after use.
June, July and August hold most of the city's roughly 36 days at 90 degrees or above. Keep a closer eye on the kitchen, where warm, damp air and crumbs attract ants, and clean the refrigerator gasket and drip tray area you can reach.
Ragweed now appears in early August, earlier than the late August start the same allergist saw when he began practicing in Knoxville. Close windows on high pollen days, vacuum upholstery and wash bedding more often.
September has the fewest rainy days of the year, about five. It is a good month for the jobs that need dry weather: washing porch floors, cleaning screens and airing out closets.
October is the driest month at 2.81 inches. Around the third week, UT Extension says multicolored Asian lady beetles often start moving into Tennessee homes to spend the winter, gathering on sunny walls before slipping indoors near windows. Vacuum them rather than sweeping or crushing them, which can stain.
The median first frost on October 24 marks the end of most pollen. December brings about 16 freezing nights. Before guests come for the holidays, a fall reset of fans, vents and window tracks clears the ragweed and summer dust.
The questions Knoxville homeowners ask most often about this topic, answered plainly.
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