A month by month home cleaning calendar for San Antonio, built from NOAA climate normals, the Texas A&M cedar pollen calendar, city mosquito and ozone seasons and the area's hail and flood history.
Most cleaning calendars assume spring is pollen season and winter is the quiet part of the year. San Antonio flips that. The heaviest allergy weeks fall in January, the hottest stretch runs for months, and there are two rainy seasons instead of one.
This calendar follows the local year, using the 1991 to 2020 normals for San Antonio International Airport and the city's own health and safety seasons.
Texas A&M reports that Ashe juniper usually starts releasing pollen in mid December and peaks in mid January. The pollen is especially irritating in the Hill Country west of Interstate 35, which takes in the northwest side and the suburbs beyond it. Keep windows and doors shut on high pollen days, as Texas A&M advises, and put a fresh air filter in at the start of the season.
January is the coolest month, with a normal high of 63.3 degrees and a low of 41.0. The airport averages only about 14 nights at or below freezing, and normal snowfall is 0.2 inch, so there is little salt or slush to deal with. The work is pollen: dust sills, wipe blinds, wash pillowcases and throws often and vacuum upholstery where pets nap.
Cedar pollen tapers toward the beginning of March, which makes early March the natural time for a top to bottom clean. Pull the yellow film off screens, fan blades, porch furniture and outdoor light fixtures, and wash the inside of the windows. The deep cleaning guide covers what that visit will include.
March is also when two city seasons begin. The Metropolitan Health District runs mosquito surveillance from March through October and asks residents to empty standing water in yards and containers. Ozone season runs March through November, with the worst air on hot, sunny days. Clear plant saucers, buckets and the kids' wading pool, and check gutters that hold water.
May is the wettest month of the year at the airport, with a normal 4.40 inches of the 32.38 annual total. Heavy rain means muddy paws and shoes, so put a mat outside and inside each door and clean entry floors more often.
Spring storms here can be severe. The National Weather Service records that the April 12, 2016 hailstorm north of downtown dropped hail up to 4.5 inches across, with the largest stone falling about 3 miles southeast of Helotes. If a storm breaks windows or skylights, keep pets and bare feet out of the room until the glass is gone, and remember that cleanup of broken glass and storm debris belongs to a restoration contractor.
Normal highs reach 94.9 degrees in July and 96.0 in August, with nights near 75. The city averages about 122 days a year at 90 or more and about 18 at 100 or more. The house stays shut and the air conditioning runs, so dust collects on supply vents, return grilles, ceiling fans and the tops of tall furniture.
Kids and pets spend more time inside, especially on high ozone days, and that shows up on floors, couches and bathroom counters. Many households move to a weekly visit for these months. Keep a squeegee in each shower, because hard water spots set faster when bathrooms stay warm.
September and October bring the second wet spell of the year, with normals of 3.88 and 3.75 inches. The city's record flood month came in this season. In October 1998, 11.26 inches fell at the airport in one day, and the month finished as the wettest on record at 18.07 inches. Before the fall rains, clean out patio drains and move stored items off garage floors.
As the heat breaks, wash the grime of the hot months off window screens and outdoor furniture, wipe down the vents one more time and change the air filter before the next cedar season. Homes near the Hill Country edge, such as Helotes, can also use this stretch to clear dry leaves and brush away from the house, in line with the city's wildfire plan.
The questions San Antonio homeowners ask most often about this topic, answered plainly.
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