Lemon oil: apply or avoid?

Many of us read dichotomised views when it comes to lemon oil. As a treatment chemical, should it be applied (if so, what's the recommended dosage?) or avoided altogether?

Lemon oil is a moisturizing/ conditioning fluid, don't let anyone tell you different. Its job is to address dryness in wood & is often applied to the guitar's fretboard which is only applicable if it's made of porous wood (eg: rosewood, maple isn't porous...).

If you detect dryness in your fretboard (spots being lighter in hue) chances are, it needs moisturizing. In addition to lemon oil (the yellow liquid in the clear surface bottle, above), there are other such fluid in the market. I've featured Dunlop's 02 Deep Conditioner & BEMIS' Wood Conditioner, among others. The commercial lemon oil, sold as a guitar care product in the shops, is especially formulated to be fragrant unlike Dunlop's 02. BEMIS Wood Conditioner isn't guitar exclusive, in fact, it's a general wood care supplement for any wooden products which require conditioning/ moisturizing often; your mum's chopping board is one of them.

My experience with these 3:

• Lemon oil: the least lasting & least oily but the most fragrant
• BEEMIS Wood conditioner: the longest lasting with the oiliest concoction
• Dunlop 02: fastest to dry with a conditioning strength in between its above-mentioned 2 counterparts. Plus points for the manufacturer's wisdom of including a ready-to-apply tip; dabbing on a cloth before application is not required.

When applying any wood conditioning fluid, be sure to give it time to set in (10min or so). Apply sparingly & leave it to sink in before wiping away excess. Products with a lemon derivative especially, are to be applied less frequently due to its acidic nature; it would weaken the fretboard material over time.
In our equatorial climate, the need to recondition our fretboard is to be exercised as & when it arises; our porous, wooden fretboards lose moisture faster unlike in temperate climatic conditions. Also, there are some of us who use scouring fluid (eg: Dunlop 01 Cleaner & Prep) to remove dirt/ grime off our fretboards. This often contains alcohol-based solvents which dry our fretboard excessively hence the need to recondition/ remoisturize.