Although the first official day of summer is June 21, many Americans are already turning their thoughts toward vacations, pools, camps, and more. To help them with their planning—and to promote their industries, in the process—associations are hard at work launching summer-specific awareness campaigns, toolkits, and tips.

Chill out with some AC. As temperatures rise, so does the need for effective air-conditioner units—and the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers published a handful of tips for picking the right one. “Choosing the right one involves more than just looking at price and power,” said AHAM in a press release. “Buy too strong of a unit for the room size and you’ll use more power than you need. Take home a unit that doesn’t have enough capacity, and you may end up sweating while you use too much energy as your unit runs continuously but never quite cools the room.”

In shopping for AC units, AHAM suggests measuring your window or the floor space that it will occupy to ensure a good fit. And for those smartphone-savvy consumers, AHAM recommends choosing a unit that has the capability to turn on or off remotely.

Get swimmers to take their mark. Swim season is ramping up, and a group of organizations—including the American Swimming Coaches Association and the National Swimming Pool Foundation—have joined forces on the SwimToday campaign to get more families involved with swim teams.

According to the campaign, 95 percent of parents take their children swimming for fun, but only about 20 percent consider getting involved on a swim team. However, once families get their kids on swim teams, they report benefits like better self-esteem and time-management. To participate in the campaign, SwimToday is encouraging people to post on social media with #FunnestSport hashtag.

Don’t let the bed bugs bite. With millions of Americans planning summer vacations this year, the National Pest Management Association wants to remind them during Bed Bug Awareness Week—running from June 4-10— to be on the lookout for bed bugs that might be lurking in their hotels. To help with this, NPMA released a “Don’t Let Bed Bugs Crash Your Summer Vacation” Infographic.

Bed bug infestations tend to peak in the summertime, so NPMA recommends that vacationers inspect hotel dressers, beds, and chairs for “pepper-like stains, spots, or shed bed bug skins.” And because bed bugs can migrate, it might be wise to place your suitcase in a plastic trash bag during your hotel stay to ensure you don’t bring any stowaways home with you.

Prep kids for camp. The American Camp Association knows that camps are places where “children learn real life skills, develop self-esteem, and gain a sense of independence and community.” But ACA also knows that there’s a lot of planning and preparing that parents have to do in order to get ready for camp.

That’s why the group has a set of resources geared at helping parents navigate topics, such as gauging whether a child is ready for camp, what they should pack for their child, and how they can cope with homesickness, among a number of other resources. It also allows parents to search a database of more than 3,500 camps to find the perfect fit for their kid.

 

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