This section of the website, is intended as a polite reminder, to help players maintain some level of basic care and preservation for the instruments they wish to play and keep playing. Always keep the same string size (different brands are ok) on the guitar after getting an upgrade, fretwork, etc. and/or if you are generally happy with your instruments sound and feel. Smaller strings have less tension than larger strings. If an instrument is playing perfectly with 12's and you install 10's, the guitar will likely buzz dramatically. If you install 13's then the action will be difficult and fatiguing.

Wash your hands and tune your guitar as you begin playing, for longer string life and consistent string tension. Keep your guitar clean with Dunlop 65/guitar cleaner and Guitar Honey/fingerboard conditioner or something similar. I strongly discourage using "polishes" that don't have to be shaken. Any polish that needs shaking, has wax and/or micro abrasives that actually buff or coat the finish of the instrument. Waxing a vintage guitar that has "finish checking" (spiderweb cracks) will eventually result in a matching pattern of wax/white lines permanently embedded into the guitars finish.

Keep your instrument comfortable. A preferred range of humidity should be between 40-50%. If the humidity is consistently lower than 35% the wood of an acoustic will sink as is contains less moisture. If the humidity is too high, the top will swell, leaving a higher action. Possibly leading to string buzz or a stiff action if the neck/fingerboard bows/shrinks. If an acoustic instrument gets consistently below 30, then the guitar can easily crack or existing cracks may open up dramatically. If a guitar gets too hot, the glue joints will begin to separate, wood can bend, and finish damage can occur. Keep it out of your car when it's hot out! If it gets too cold/dry then the wood will more easily crack and fret ends will feel sharp.