It’s currently the beginning of spring as I write this post and that prompted me to write about a really important topic and that is why it’s important to give your guitar a little checkup.

So just like you would give your car an oil change every 3000 miles, It’s important to give your guitar some routine maintenance as well.  This is important for both acoustic and electric guitars.

Acoustic guitars will sometimes need it more though because they are effected more by climate change.  Whenever a new season comes in, the climate and weather change. You also change the conditions that your guitars are in.

For example when the sun starts shinning and the warmer weather cracks, your probably going to be opening windows and getting more fresh air in.  Remember that your guitar is also going to be enjoying that fresh air as well.

This can sometimes have a negative effect on how your guitar plays because the changes in humidity will cause your guitar to adjust ever so slightly. Usually the change happens so slow and gradual that you won’t even notice it at first.  What happens though over the course of a few weeks or months is that your guitar might seem to be more difficult to play.

The reason for this is usually because the neck has warped a little bit and the action is now higher.  To fix this, you should adjust your truss rod accordingly to straighten out the neck. If you are unsure on how to do this, take it to a qualified guitar tech in your area.

Other things to look for are excessive wear and tear on your frets.  If you play your guitar a lot, eventually the frets get worn down.  You might notice the guitar buzzing more or you might find some dead notes.  To fix this you should have a fret level down. This is something that you should not mess with so take it to someone who knows what there doing!

One last thing to look out for is if the frets are protruding past the fretboard. This is very common because when wood dries it shrinks and when more moisture is around, it expands. If you run your fingers down the side of the neck where the frets meet the end of the neck, see if any of them are sticking out and catching on your finger. If so, you should have them filed down a little so you don’t feel this.