Your monthly guide to great sales

Late January and February are the best times to take care of your carpet cleaning, says Bill Zinke, the vice president of marketing for Chem-Dry, a franchised carpet and upholstery cleaning service headquartered in Nashville. He says this is the slowest period of the year for the industry, enabling consumers to find discounts of up to 20%.

Thanks to Presidents Day sales, February is also a good time to buy a mattress. Gerry Borreggine, the president and CEO of Therapedic International, a mattress manufacturer based in Princeton, N.J., says many industry insiders insist that mattresses start going on sale over Presidents Day weekend because George Washington and Abraham Lincoln were lousy sleepers. "The truth is that we don't really know how they slept, and (we) never will," says Borreggine. He thinks the sales probably began because of the three-day weekend, which is why mattress sales also pop up on Memorial Day and Labor Day weekends.

Discounts over Presidents Day weekend are frequently 10% to 25%, in part because retailers are trying to unload older models to make room for new ones.

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Clothing experts say March is the time to find discounted winter coats and winter sporting goods, such as snowboards and ski gear, since the season is winding down. Luggage is also often on sale, as many spring breaks take place in March.

Although computer sales are often dictated by the hot new item on the market, March is also a good time to buy a laptop, says Josh Smith, an editor at Notebooks.com, a mobile computing news and reviews site. "New models will be arriving and pushing older models to clearance shelves," he says.

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Hit the stores for snowblowers and furnaces in April. This is also the month to buy a swimming pool, says Willan Johnson, the CEO of VivoPools, a national swimming pool and spa maintenance franchise. Johnson says April is the sweet spot in the year when consumers are thinking about pool season, but the demand is not yet high, so you can often save as much as 20%. Many contractors are also less costly during this month and more readily available to install a pool.

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Refrigerators often go on sale in May, as new models begin appearing in stores in the summer, which makes retailers anxious to clean out older models.

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As the weather gets warmer, health clubs look for ways to entice people to exercise indoors, making June a good time to find deals on gym memberships. You'll also find sales on dishes as the wedding season draws closer. Retailers competing for shoppers on the hunt for wedding gifts offer typical savings of 25% to 50%.

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Home-decor prices dip in July for the same reason prices for dishes do in June: weddings. Think table linens, cutlery, picture frames, sofa pillows and candlesticks -- often at savings of 20% to 50%. July is also a good month to buy furniture, with new trends on their way to the showroom floor in the near future.

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Although it's hard to tell the hype from the true sales, August is the best month to buy school supplies. With the summer almost over, it's also a good time to purchase swimsuits and outdoor grills for next season.

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If you're planning to install hardwood floors or have your cabinets refinished, consider doing it now. The industry offers sales during September primarily because it's a slow month, with families ending their summer activities and ramping up for school and the holidays, says Adam Kirschman, the director of marketing for N-Hance Wood Renewal, a franchised business based out of Logan, Utah, that offers refinishing services for wood surfaces. The industry also promotes the fact that since it's a quieter time of year in most households, it won't matter as much if the kitchen is out of commission while it's being remodeled. Expect to save 15% to 25% if you're booking a project in early fall.

Similarly, if you're looking for a sale on an oven, washing machine, dryer or dishwasher, this is historically the right time to buy. September is when retailers debut their latest appliance models -- except refrigerators (see May) -- and gear up for the holidays, so major appliances sell at steeper discounts in September and October.

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It's not that you can't find deals during October, but with Black Friday right around the corner, it may be the one month when sales won't be plentiful. There are still a few deals to had, though; if you didn't get enough back-to-school supplies in August, they are often on clearance now, along with gardening tools.

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Aside from jumping on Black Friday sales, two things you may want to do this month: buy an air conditioner or book a wedding.

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Pretty much everything is on sale in December, including things you don't want or need, which might explain a few of the more bizarre gifts you've received over the years.

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With the Super Bowl just around the corner, you'll see a slew of ads for big-screen television sales in January. In addition to TVs, this month is also known for sales on items such as bed linens and bath towels. This concept can be credited to John Wanamaker, a Philadelphia merchant who, in January 1878, borrowed an idea from a Parisian department store. He held the United States' first "white sale," so-named for the white sheets he sold, and it is has been an American tradition ever since.

January and February are also the best months to book a cruise, says Geraldine Ree, senior vice president of sales and marketing for Expedia CruiseShipCenters. She says travelers start thinking about vacation plans after the holidays, and "to take advantage of this demand, cruise lines work with travel agency partners to put out their best booking incentives of the year during this time."

You can often save 20%, but the big value is in bonus offers: "You'll find free stateroom category upgrades, savings on airfare, prepaid gratuities and onboard cash credits of up to $400 from some lines. Reduced deposits are also common, so you'll be able to secure your booking with just half of what would normally be required."

Another reason cruise discounts are offered during these months is that the industry likes to plan ahead and book as many cabins as it can for the entire year. "You may find cheaper, last-minute pricing at the end of the year when cruise lines are trying to hit their annual targets, but stateroom selection is likely to be sparse," Ree says, "and you'll end up paying more than you save on the cruise fare for an expensive last-minute flight to get there."

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