History of Spring Cleaning  

Spring officially arrived on March 20. Despite the lingering snow and chilly temperatures, spring is here and warmer days are in the forecast. It’s the perfect time to wipe away winter from your home, and refresh with some serious spring cleaning, a seasonal ritual with its own origin story.

Spring Cleaning and Human Biology

Exposure to fewer hours of sunlight during the long winter season may have a direct effect on our inclination to throw open the windows and sweep out the dust when spring arrives. According to How Stuff Works, the human pineal gland produces melatonin when suffering from a lack of exposure to light. Melatonin increases the feeling of sleepiness. When spring arrives, ushering in longer days and averaging more hours of sunshine, we essentially wake up. This biological experience often results in more energy and desire to spring clean.

History of Spring Cleaning

Many cultures have customs that include a time of cleaning the home, usually as a way to prepare for new beginnings or a new year. In the Jewish household preparation for Passover, which occurs in early spring, includes intense house cleaning. This happens because keeping leavened bread in the home during Passover is not allowed. To ensure even the crumbs are gone, a thorough house cleaning is performed.

According to the New York Times, house cleaning is part of ushering in the Chinese New Year. The start of the Chinese New Year falls about a month prior to the first day of official spring and includes the tradition of sweeping and cleaning to remove bad luck from the home.

The Persian New Year or Nowruz (Iranian New Year) has a similar rite of spring cleaning. The ritual is is called khooneh takouni, meaning “shaking the house”. This is an intensive cleaning, floor-to-ceiling style.

In 2018, the U.K. hosted their first-ever Great British Spring Clean weekend. Going beyond individual homes, the massive cleaning weekend including more than 300,000 people and spanned 13,000 organized events to clean up parks, beaches, and streets throughout Great Britain.

Reasons It’s Time to Call United Window Cleaning

There’s no doubt that spring is a time for deep cleaning, organizing, and taking care of chores we often prefer to put off. It’s also a busy time for many—from the start of spring sports’ practices/games with the kids to special occasions like Easter, Mother’s Day, weddings, and graduations. Our calendars get filled quickly.

It’s time to let United Window Cleaning handle some of the must-do chores. We are Cincinnati’s oldest professional window cleaning service provider, established in 1919. Today, we’re still a family-business providing quality service and competitive pricing. With our transparent pricing, you know exactly what to expect and we offer free estimates plus a 100-percent guarantee.

While you tackle some of the other spring cleaning chores on your list, let us take care of your spring window and gutter cleaning today, so you can get back to doing the things you enjoy. To schedule an appointment, contact us online or at 513-721-5987.