How to safely store pcb's

[Reboot]

Can somebody tell me how to safely store pcb's? Just red a topic on UK-Vac today where someone on ebay is selling around 120 pcb and the remarks from the members there are that the person selling those pcb has done a poor job in safely storing the pcb.

UK-Vac topic link:

http://www.ukvac.com/forum/some-pcbs_topic335223_page1.html

Ebay link:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/120-original-jamma-boards-ex-operators-collection-some-very-rare-jamma-cab-inc-/221286288913?hash=item3385b0ce11#ht_1879wt_1141

Now i have bought around 100 pcb's myself a while agoo and i stored them the same way! Not good it seems. Bubblewrap plastic is wrong?

[level42]

Well there's a lot of talk about regular bubble wrap being static and that the static can damage the chips.

I've had and seen dozens of PCBs stored/shipped this way, what can you expect with 30 year old electronics ? Most of these PCBs survive just fine. The "golden age" games are almost all just TTL chips and these are not that sensitive to static as CMOS chips are.

The golden way would be large anti-static bags and storing them on their sides. Maybe even put them in a big box.
Whenever you handle the PCB outside of such a static bag you should wear an arm-strap that is grounded.
However, the top-PCB repair guys that I know never use them, I guess they know what they are doing....

[Laszo]

There is also anti static bubble wrap. It is the pink bubble wrap. But as said the risk is limited. Just remember to be carefull handeling them with dry freezing weather 

[Elgen]

I always have good intentions and also have this archive-thinggy (partly home build) with drawers in it, but I have so many PCB, that most of them end up being 'stored' in big piles on the floor of my workshop...and for the most part: I really don't care };-P

[Reboot]

However, the top-PCB repair guys that I know never use them, I guess they know what they are doing....

That's the problem, I don't 

Indeed every movie I see most just grab the pcb's everywhere and touch the chips etc with bare hand, but when I read an article they always say to look out where you touch the pcb because of static electricity.
So very confusing for a noob, theoretically look out where to grab, but in real life just touch and grab almost everywhere, no problem. 

[Etienne MacGyver]

Yes, there is a change of damage from static electricity.

But all the years i have been touching components, boards, memory modules etc etc etc, without wristwrap and other preventing methods, i never ever have broken anything. (at least it was not showing)

in winter times with dry weather, i touch something ground to discharge myself before i plug in memory modules into pc's

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrostatic_discharge#Damage_prevention_in_electronics

[level42]

Yes that's what I often do too. You can also touch any electrical ground, like the bare metal "pins" on a grounded mains wall outlet.
 
I have damaged electronics once during my work years ago. It was a fire alarm system and for some weird reason, this was located in an office on the first floor. On the floor there was this thick carpet and I guess I was wearing shoes with rubber soles. When I touched a module of the fire alarm system a spark jumped from my hand to the module and it was dead.
Had to drive up to the office to get a new one.

So whenever I am on carpets I am aware of it.
Also: sometimes the damage will only appear after some time of use (weeks, months, years) and you won't always relate it to static discharge.

Over the years I have made it a habit to carry boards on the edges (not where the edge connectors are). I'm not touching parts if not needed, better safe than sorry. On the other side, I located the missing sound problem on my Centipede board using the "finger trick", touching the amplifier chip on the main PCB while running...and listening to what happened