diff --git a/src/components/paneConnect.vue b/src/components/paneConnect.vue
index 94979c63..e50be8f5 100644
--- a/src/components/paneConnect.vue
+++ b/src/components/paneConnect.vue
@@ -87,21 +87,15 @@ export default {
   mounted() {
     // Propagate localMode settings
     this.setLocalMode(this.localMode)
-    // Try loading and parsing savedHosts from localStorage 
-    if (localStorage.getItem('savedHosts')) {
-      try {
-        this.savedHosts = JSON.parse(localStorage.getItem('savedHosts'));
-      } catch(e) {
-        localStorage.removeItem('savedHosts');
-      }
-    }
+
+    // Try loading savedHosts from localStorage. If null, don't change.
+    this.savedHosts = this.getLocalStorageObj('savedHosts') || this.savedHosts
   },
 
   // When savedHosts changes, serialise to JSON and save to localStorage
   watch: {
     savedHosts(newSavedHosts) {
-      const parsed = JSON.stringify(this.savedHosts);
-      localStorage.setItem('savedHosts', parsed);
+      this.setLocalStorageObj('savedHosts', this.savedHosts)
     }
   },
 
diff --git a/src/main.js b/src/main.js
index 9d85dc14..81da8ece 100644
--- a/src/main.js
+++ b/src/main.js
@@ -67,6 +67,23 @@ Vue.mixin({
       }
       this.$store.dispatch('errorState', errormsg);
       UIkit.notification({message: `<span uk-icon=\'icon: warning\'></span> ${errormsg}`, status: 'danger'})
+    },
+
+    getLocalStorageObj: function(keyName) {
+      if (localStorage.getItem(keyName)) {
+        try {
+          return JSON.parse(localStorage.getItem(keyName))
+        } catch(e) {
+          console.log("Malformed entry. Removing from localStorage")
+          localStorage.removeItem(keyName)
+          return null
+        }
+      }
+    },
+
+    setLocalStorageObj: function(keyName, object) {
+      const parsed = JSON.stringify(object)
+      localStorage.setItem(keyName, parsed);
     }
 
   }