So about storage

[beerftw]

I have 1 uv5g, 2 gm-5rh radios, and now a uv-5r which will be my low end wont cry if it breaks ham radio when I get my ham license. There is also 1 baofeng f22 frs in the mix, this is after I have given out some radios. I plan to get more radios, the equipment I have is sitting in the original boxes loosely, just to say this is becoming a problem.

 

  I have looked at the apache cases from harbor freight, and have thought about those cheap plastic drawers with organizers like walkmart sells. Either way I need a way to store and organize them, I am not the most organized person but it is getting bad keeping track of accessories and handhelds.

 

  I would appreciate any ideas for storage and I am sure others probably need some ideas too and have simply not asked yet.

[WSIF574]

I’m one of those people who keep the box. Accessories stay in there radios are on a shelf in the closet. My only suggestion would be for long term storage, what ever you pick, charge batteries to 80-90% and remove them. Charge once a year and check functionality. 

[beerftw]

45 minutes ago, WSIF574 said:

I’m one of those people who keep the box. Accessories stay in there radios are on a shelf in the closet. My only suggestion would be for long term storage, what ever you pick, charge batteries to 80-90% and remove them. Charge once a year and check functionality. 

I would love to keep them in my closet but my closet is filled with other stuff, some of those things volatile and kept separate for a reason. For volatile things just know they are legal but can easily go boom, hence why I do not want to mix anything with lithium batteries with them. A good portion of those volatile things you can buy at walmart in the hunting section during blackpowder season.

[TNFrank]

If you're going to keep the radio out for use you can cut the corner off of a plastic sandwich bag so the antenna has someplace to poke through and slip it over the radio to keep dust off of the radio. 

For long term storage I pull the battery off of the radio and put it with the radio back in the box and store it in my gun safe which is EMP proof so if we ever do take an EMP the radio would be protected and still work.

[amaff]

I DIY'd a couple of storage solutions for most of mine. I need to do the same thing for my UV-5R, 5RM and UV-K5 at some point.

 

[OffRoaderX]

Just stack them up on a random wall in your house.. Its the best way to find out if your wife really loves you or not.

 

[beerftw]

10 hours ago, amaff said:

I DIY'd a couple of storage solutions for most of mine. I need to do the same thing for my UV-5R, 5RM and UV-K5 at some point.

 

I will have to see if my creality 3d printer will cooperate enough to print something out, lately though it tends to go off tilt part of the way through any print and I have not spent the time to try and fix it.

[dugcyn]

store my non daily drivers in a faraday cage. jus sayin and am serious.

[WRUE951]

I recently put a few on Markeplace for storage.   I actually got paid to store them.  

[TerriKennedy]

On 2/1/2026 at 6:37 PM, WSIF574 said:

I’m one of those people who keep the box. Accessories stay in there radios are on a shelf in the closet. My only suggestion would be for long term storage, what ever you pick, charge batteries to 80-90% and remove them. Charge once a year and check functionality. 

The boxes are easier to stack and keep the right charger, manual, etc. with each radio. Some people put them in zip-lock bags in a plastic storage bin - whatever works best for you.

One comment about batteries - at least on the newer full-color-screen analog Baofeng models, that click on the volume knob when you turn the radio "off" is just a notification to the CPU to go into power-saving mode - it is still drawing power from the battery (slowly). I run the radio down to 2 out of 3 bars (the ideal level for Li-ion battery storage), then put a thin insulating material over the battery contacts and put the battery back in the radio, and put a pre-printed "Battery Isolated" sticker on the display screen.

BTW, if you plan on selling a radio, be aware that (again, on at least the Baofengs mentioned above) the radio menu "Reset all" does NOT clear all data back to the factory state. If you use the Baofeng CPS, write an empty config to the radio. If you use CHIRP, write your original backup image (you made one before making changes, right?) back to the radio. Note that even that will not reset the startup screen image or voices if you customized them.

[GreggInFL]

15 hours ago, TerriKennedy said:

One comment about batteries - at least on the newer full-color-screen analog Baofeng models, that click on the volume knob when you turn the radio "off" is just a notification to the CPU to go into power-saving mode - it is still drawing power from the battery (slowly).

Seriously? What's the thinking behind that?

[WRYT601]

4 hours ago, GreggInFL said:

Seriously? What's the thinking behind that?

Do the new ones offer a WX NOAA alert that wakes the radio?

[TerriKennedy]

9 hours ago, GreggInFL said:

Seriously? What's the thinking behind that?

I don't have a definitive answer. I believe a bunch of the "remember where we parked" stuff is in RAM and not written to flash. It may also be that since the ARM CPUs in these radios aren't the fastest, it makes for faster start-up times as it is already mostly set up. Or it might just be a random design decision on the factory's part.

I can say that I have crashed the firmware on various radio models while testing, and turning the knob past the "off" click didn't do anything - I had to pull the battery to reset the radio as it was stuck on even though I turned it "off". I have a UV-17 with corrupted firmware that goes "ch ch ch ch ch"* when you install the battery, even though it's "off". It then gets reset by the watchdog timer and repeats indefinitely (or until the battery runs down). 

* It's trying to say "channel mode" but can't get it out.

[LegitByDefault]

I would recommend ~50% charge and to check them every 3-6mo. Remove the batteries from the radios. Don't store them in a rigid sealed container, in close proximity to one another, or in a way that the contacts could be shorted.

There are specific products intended to store Li-Ion batteries, such as fire resistant bags which can be pricey, but it's a worthwhile investment imo.

Charge batteries from 30-80% to extend the lifespan and reduce chances of failure.

Having extra batteries is useful - if you use them. Otherwise they'll likely end up irrecoverably dead.