Home Season Calendar

See the dates that matter for your house this year: AC season, peak heat, mosquito and tick months, rodents moving in, sprinkler blow-out, the pipe-freeze window and furnace tune-up time, all from your town’s climate normals.

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January
Water heater strain
Incoming water is coldest in January, so the heater runs longest and hardest then. A tank past ten years is most likely to start leaking in this month, usually from the bottom.
Who to call: plumber
Around Apr 25
Last spring frost
Tender plants go in and irrigation comes back on after this date. A system that sat all winter often has a cracked head or a valve leaking underground, and a soggy patch of lawn is the first sign.
Who to call: irrigation pro
Remind me: Apr 25
June
AC season starts
Average highs reach 80°F in June and stay there for months. The first hot week is when a tired unit fails and every HVAC company is booked, so a tune-up in May catches weak parts first.
Who to call: HVAC tech
Remind me: May 1
June through September
Mosquito and tick season
Nights stay above 50°F from June through September, which is when mosquitoes breed and ticks wait in tall grass. Standing water and brush against the house turn a yard into a breeding ground within days.
Who to call: pest control pro
July
Peak heat
About 13 days a year top 90°F, most of them around July. An AC that is short on refrigerant or airflow cannot keep up on those days, and the wait for a repair is longest then.
Who to call: HVAC tech
Around Oct 1
Rodents move indoors
Mice and rats head inside about two weeks before the first frost (around Oct 15), through gaps as small as a dime. Once they are in the walls, traps alone rarely end it; a pest pro seals the entry points.
Who to call: pest control pro
Remind me: Oct 1
October
Furnace tune-up
Average lows drop below 40°F starting in November. The first cold night is when a failed igniter or a cracked heat exchanger shows up, and every HVAC company is booked that week, so October is the month to have it checked.
Who to call: HVAC tech
Remind me: Oct 1
By Oct 8
Sprinkler blow-out
Water left in the lines freezes with the first hard frost and splits pipes, heads and the backflow preventer underground, where the damage stays hidden until spring start-up.
Who to call: irrigation pro
Remind me: Oct 8
November through March
Pipe-freeze window
Average lows sit below freezing from November through March. Pipes in garages, crawl spaces and exterior walls freeze first, and a split pipe floods the house the moment it thaws.
Who to call: plumber

Dates come from climate normals and describe a typical year, not a forecast. A local pro can tell you what your own house needs before each season.

Data: Daymet (NASA/ORNL) 10-year monthly normals and median frost dates, per town

How the calendar is built

Where the dates come from

Every town page carries 10-year monthly climate normals from Daymet, plus the median first fall frost and last spring frost. The calendar reads those numbers and turns them into dates: the first month that averages 80°F highs starts AC season, months with average lows under 32°F are the pipe-freeze window, and rodents head indoors about two weeks before the first frost.

A window, not a day

A normal is the middle of ten years, so a real year lands a week or two either side of each date. Use the calendar to book the pro before the window opens, while schedules are still open, instead of the week everyone else calls.

Why every line ends in a pro

Each moment on the calendar is a failure waiting for its season: the AC that limps into June, the water heater that leaks in January, the sprinkler line that splits under the first frost. A tune-up or a check a month early is what turns an emergency into an appointment.

Common questions

When does AC season start in my town?

The calendar marks the first month whose average high reaches 80°F. In much of the South that is April or May; in the northern states it is June, and in a few places average highs never get there.

When should I winterize my sprinklers?

About a week before the median first frost. Water left in the lines freezes and splits pipes, heads and the backflow preventer, and the damage stays hidden until the system is turned back on in spring.

When do mice move indoors?

Rodents follow the cold inside about two weeks before the first frost, which is why sealing entry points is a fall job for a pest pro. The calendar dates it from your town’s median first frost.

Is this a forecast?

No. It reads climate normals, which describe a typical year, not the one ahead. A cold snap can arrive early and a warm fall can push everything back, which is why the reminders sit a little ahead of each date.

Can I get a reminder?

Yes. Dated lines have a calendar button that adds the reminder to your phone. Nothing to install and no sign-up; the date is set for the next time that moment comes around.

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