You should keep your string waxed and maintenced all year. But, you need to look for broken fibers in your string. Frayed fibers also. Its usually a good rule of thumb to change your string and cable about every two years. However, sometimes you must change them more ofter if you shoot a lot. I know ive gone through strings in 6 monthes, but thats with shooting every day a couple hours. Make sure you do this enough time before season so you can stretch your string in.