How often do I really nedd to clean my flute??

It depends on how long you play it... I clean my 3 times a week.. after my longest lessons.. make sure you don`t get water on the pads

If you do get water on your pads (they`ll click and feel sticky when you press them) stick a dollar bill under the pad and depress the key. while it is depressed pull the bill out. don`t press to hard or you`ll rip the cash. buy cigarette paper (usually at gas stations) that works great. they also sell paper at music stores.