Spring Cleaning Right Up There With Going To Dentist

As you are spring cleaning, here are thoughts to ponder:

Americans who said they would rather pay taxes or go to the dentist than spring-clean: 41 percent.

Best time to stock up on someone else’s clutter: May, when spring-cleaners subsequently hold garage sales.

Martha Stewart’s spring-cleaning advice least likely to be followed: “Take the time to scrub down the outside of a painted house with a stiff brush to remove dirt.”

Average number of hours a week that American women spent housecleaning in 1996: 10.1 Average number of hours a week that American women spent housecleaning in 1965: 37.8.

American women who use domestic help to clean: 10 percent.

Why spring-cleaning was indispensable 50 or 100 years ago: Sootier furnaces and fireplaces.

Ratio of forward-thinking people who get their chimneys cleaned in the spring instead of fall: 1 to 4.

Proof that spring-cleaners start from the bottom: Sales of carpet and floor cleaners peak in April. Heavy-duty hand cleaners peak in May, and all-purpose cleaners in June, window cleaners in June and July.