Online guitar lessons are a great opportunity for people who do not have the time or money to invest in lessons from a studio. Beginners, however, need to get some good advice on how to take care of their instrument. In a studio environment, of course, the instructor would take care of those valuable bits of advice. Some online guitar lesson providers provide their students with articles or files containing this information. In case your provider does not furnish you with this information, this article is for you.

First of all, when you finish playing for the day, protect your guitar by placing it into a stiff case that fits the shape of your guitar. If you do not play as often as you might like, take the guitar out of its case occasionally in order to allow its porous, natural parts to "breathe." Avoid temperature extremes, as well as environments with fluctuating humidity levels. Heat can do serious damage to your guitar. If you have central heat, humidify the air in order to keep the wooden parts supple, keeping cracks and warps from forming. Even a pan of water left near a vent will help, should you not own a humidifier. Cracking and warping can occur most often in cheaper instruments, because guitar makers often shorten the wood's seasoning process in their cheaper lines. Beginning players, of course, are more likely to have an inexpensive instrument.

That factor, together with your not having learned as many tips for care of their guitar as more experienced players, can be a recipe for disaster for your guitar. Therefore, please pay close attention to the environment in which you store your instrument. When you graduate to a more expensive guitar, the guitar will most likely be made of fully-seasoned wood, wood that has been completely dried before being used to manufacture the instrument. Furthermore, caring for your guitar will have become second nature by that time.

Wipe your strings after you play, using a duster or soft cloth. Exercise caution on the guitar’s wooden surfaces. Do not use polishes or other wood care products, since it is easy to ruin the delicate finish of the guitar, or cause the wood to absorb the product. You may, however, use a very slightly moistened cloth to remove grease spots, as well as other marks. Small cracks in the face or sides of the wood are common in fine guitars. Usually they are of little consequence until they attain considerable size. Before they get to that point, take your guitar to a skilled repairer, called a luthier. If, however, your instrument's fingerboard is warped, take your guitar immediately to an expert. The repair will be costly, but well worth the investment in the long run.