Summer Guitar Care
Summer time can be just as tough on your guitar as winter. Excess heat and humidity are the problems. You guitar was probably made in what the manufacturer considered average conditions. The closer you stay to that, the happier your guitar will be.
Here are some recommendations from the Laravee website:
Never keep your guitar in a dark cool basement during periods of high humidity. Don’t store it inside its case in such an environment as the moisture accumulates in the tight quarters of the case.
Keep your guitar out of the case. A guitar stand is a good idea as it allows the air to circulate around your guitar. If possible, it’s a good idea to keep your guitar on the second or third level of your house when the weather is warm.
Another factor, which can adversely affect your instrument in the summer time, is high temperature. When the weather is warm, never leave your guitar in the trunk or back of your car. In such locations, the build-up of heat can exceed 66°C or 150°F. Temperatures this high can have a devastating effect on your guitar, as heat can cause the glue joints to loosen. With the loosening of the fingerboard under these conditions, the action will become very high. Please note that this problem will not correct itself when the temperature drops back to normal, and to lower the action in this case would require a major repair job not covered by your warranty.
Spruce tops contain small resin pockets not all that visible to the eye under normal conditions. This is especially true of tight grain spruce and is more common to German Spruce than to domestic spruce. When the surrounding temperature increases dramatically, it causes these resins to expand and try to escape. Of course the only way out is through the finish causing blemishes all over the top. Although this looks disastrous, it is not particularly hard to repair. A competent repair person can correct this problem with a light sanding and polishing of the top. This kind of damage is not covered by your warranty as it is caused exclusively by careless exposure of the instrument to excessive heat.
One more problem worth mentioning here is if the guitar is exposed to bright sunlight for a period of time, a premature yellowing of the top will occur. Imagine getting a tan. This yellowing is not in itself a problem, but if there is some obstruction to the light, say the guitar strap laying across the face of the guitar, it will leave a lighter print in the shape of the obstruction which would be quite a defacement. This is one thing to keep in mind when you put your guitar down during the summer months.