how to keep strings clean/new?

[MrMarkIII]

IMHO, the stainless strings do last longer, but I just like the sound of nickel better. Dean Markleys and SIT strings last the longest for me. Ernie Ball lose their tone the quickest but they're cheaper.
Whatever you do, luthier guys, like Stewart-McDonald, say don't use stuff like Pledge or Endust because of the silicone. It will loosen stuff like frets and make repairs difficult because it's so slippery and hard to remove completely.
My peeve? **** "modern" guitar cases no longer have decent size cubbies to store an old t-shirt, slide, picks, capo, etc., much less a Fast Fret!
My stupid gig bag gets bigger every year.

 

[LerxstLee]

I agree with the point about no room in the cases any longer.
Always start with clean hands .
I put , (yes isopropyl ) in a smaller container in my small compartment .
I use a cotton ball , or part of one and pinch the string with it .
Slide it until the string is clean . It cleans the strings great .
I don't do this to save strings nor money . I like clean strings
and clean strings last longer thus saving me time in changing - stretching - tuning , not
all that bad but !

 

[wildrat666]

wash your hands ALWAYS before you play. wipe it off afterwards and I think it is good to change strings often.I change once a month and I play maybe 5 - 10 hours a week

 

[stadidas]

Washing yours hands is probably the best piece of advice here.
I had a friend who wanted to learn to play, and I didn't realise how clammy his hands were. I bought a new set of D'Addario 11s and set-up one of my guitars in standard tuning for him. After half an hour of playing, his hands had tarnished the strings. The crap from his hands took the plating off and the string looked a golden colour, and the fretboard felt like it had been played for months without cleaning. I'm not exaggerating; it really was that bad.

I don't let him play my guitars anymore.