Proper Guitar Storage and care for Electric Guitars

[MAXIFUNK]

So, now that I have amassed a nice little collection of guitars.
I was wondering what are some of the ways to keep your investments and prize possessions in great shape.

I have 2 basses out in stands and 2 guitar guitars out in stands and my Gibson LP is kept in the case and the rest are in gig bags.

I am going to put the Peavey T-40 back in the case since I never play it anymore and as my first real bass I want to keep it in the same great shape it is in now.

I plan on buying a tweed guitar case to keep my Paisley Strat in and buying a case to Keep my American Special Strat HSS in as well.

So for the axes kept in cases is there anything I should be doing to make sure they stay in mint pristine condition?

The guitars I keep in stands or gig bags is there anything I should be doing to make sure they stay in mint pristine condition?

Recently I had my no pick guard black strat modded out a little. I changed the pick up covers to black and switched the tone and volume knobs to black rounded profile metal knobs and pickup selector also was changed to black. Looks really cool (pics to come shortly) but my tech said the neck felt a little dry to him while he was putting on new strings. This guitar is kept on a stand 100% of the time since it by far my most played guitar also the neck is maple.

Do I need to get a humidifier for my room with my axes out on stands?
I also thought about getting those small plastic humidifier tubes used inside of cases for acoustics guitars for my electric guitars in cases & gig bags or is a small room humidifier enough?

I wipe off all of my guitars before or after every use.
I polish them every 3 months or so with guitar polish. Wipe down the strings and even wipe down the fret board with cloth placed under the strings and go in a motion like I was polishing shoes once or twice a week if I am playing a certain guitar a lot. I use the fret dressing on my rosewood necks every time I restring them. Can that be done more often while the strings are still on?

I live in Southern California near the Angeles National Forest and the beginning of what is called the high desert area of So Cal. So it is a very dry & very hot area in summer and warm/cool area in winter but humidity is very low year round accept on rainy days. It is 17 to 18% humidity today.

any ideas? Does anyone use a room humidifier they would recommend?

Thanks for any advice in advance.

[ZMAN]

For me the tweed cases are nice. I have two of them. The Fender plastic cases seem to keep the guitar neck in place better. They close tighter. I almost ruined a MIJ Strat by leaving it under the bed in a Tweed case. I forgot there was a heat vent under there. Heat, and or excess humitidty and sudden changes in temperature can affect your guitar.
I try not to leave my guitars out. I have heard so many stories about children and pets knocking things over. Some guitars especially Gibsons can actually snap the neck at the headstock if dropped. It doesn't take a couple of minutes to take them out of the case.
You are doing all the right things by wiping them down and polishing them. Keeping the crud off will keep them pristine.
I personally have never used "case humidifiers" and I don't really know what they are. I try to keep the temp steady and a few degrees either way won't hurt. It is extremes that will cause damage.
I only use bore oil, (fret doctor) on my rosewood boards about twice a year.
I do it with a Q tip while the strings are on. I then wipe them down after it sits for an hour or so. I don't know how often you change strings but twice a year is recommended for dressing.
I ony use Gig bags on my lower value instruments for storage. If I take them out of the house I use a hard case.
That is about all I can think of.

[wingsdad]

I live in Southern California near the Angeles National Forest and the beginning of what is called the high desert area of So Cal. So it is a very dry & very hot area in summer and warm/cool area in winter but humidity is very low year round accept on rainy days. It is 17 to 18% humidity today.

Pretty close to me, neighbor...I'm about 60-70 miles east of u in the "other" High Desert, that of the Mojave River basin, north of Big Bear/Arrowhead...off the I-15 1/2 way between Barstool and San Berdoo. Been here since '92.

What's this thing you call "rain"? If that's when water falls from the sky in droplets, I think that happened a couple of months ago. For an hour.

All of those are solid body guitars. IMO, all you need to be careful about is avoiding exposure to radical temperature changes and extremely humid or dry atmosphere. Keep 'em away from direct sunlight, and direct air flow from heat and a/c vents. You might need a room humidifier if the RH is under 40-45% as a norm in your house/room , but if it's over 60% as a norm, a dehumidifier could be wise.

All the wiping, polishing, condtioning, etc you describe as your regimen is good practice. You don't ahve to condition rosewood boards more than evry 6 months or so unless you play the thing nightly in gig conditions sweating like an acid hose.

[MAXIFUNK]

Thanks Zman that does help a lot.

@Wingsdad
yeah I am in Santa Clarita not far from you at cut over the 126 to 15 and I am right at the foot of your door step. You are also right I should have said what they call rain in So Cal but we do get some decent rain about 5 to 10 times year lately rather than 1 or 2 times a year when I 1st moved here in 1989.
Thanks for the info as well.

[kerc]

I dunno, my Club King 290 is always on its stand in the living room...

[Spudman]

I like to leave as many of my guitars out as I can. Currently I have 20 out of their cases around the house ready to be played at any time. I don't have kids or pets to worry about and most of them are hanging on the walls. I like to do this so that the wood can be exposed to environmental sound waves. It appears that many years of frequencies resonating through a guitar can improve it's tonal output. Plus, I like to be able to 'grab and play' at any time.

I've found that for the most part if I leave a guitar in a case then I forget about it and don't play it as often. I store several guitars in hard and soft cases. They are not subject to any movement or abuse where they are. Mostly I buy cases for transporting guitars not for storing.

I'll treat the rosewood fingerboards every couple of years with an approved oil if they start looking dry. More often is usually unnecessary.

Even though I live in a very dry climate I don't humidify anything. So far after 30+ years I've had no problems concerning that. I do leave the bathroom doors open though when showering so that the whole house benefits from that moisture.

I do like to keep everything clean though. I wipe off sweat and grime and always put away a clean guitar. That way it's clean and ready to go when I pick it up again.

I think if you just pay attention and don't toss your axes around and keep them clean you won't be having many problems. Guitars aren't so sensitive.

[Tig]

Dang, I must be doing somethin' wrong, as I never sweat on my guitars!
I keep them hanging or on a stand, but I only have a few.

Living along the air conditioned, climate controlled Gulf Coast has its advantages, I guess. I rarely need to adjust the tuning much on the better guitars.

[riverrick]

All my guitars are hanging on the the wall or on a stand. I feel that if they are in a case they won't get played. Seems that you take really good care of your axes so I see no problems.

[Bow]

I only own 3 real hard cases, and 2 are for strat style guitars, the other is for my Ovation 6-string.

I have 4 hanging on the wall and the rest of the electrics under the bed in Gig bags, the Tiesco Del Ray and the 12-string acoustic are in their stock "cardboard" cases...

My old Norma 6-string acoustic (my first guitar) is just under the bed as is a no-mane Les Paul copy that is good for slide...

But like Tig said, climate controlled on the gulf coast of Texas

[kiteman]

I always keep mine in the hard cases. I only have three so I don't have much to worry about. :)