Don"s conversion 2.0

[BarnYardCamp]

materials used: 1/2" treated plywood, perforated galvanized angle, perforated galvanized strapping, galvanized carriage bolts in 1/4 and 3/8- nuts and flats, galvanized 3/8 all thread, 3/8 barrel nuts, 3/4" heater hose, 2 ratchet straps and RED Loctite liquid.

Hind site being what it is...I should have ordered the tank with the inlet and vent holes on one end and a drain hole on the other. I faced the tank holes forward, this will allow me to better drain the tank especially when the bus air suspension is pressurized. The negative is that with all the holes on the "low" end, I'll lose a little tank capacity.

Built a tray with plywood and galv angle. Inverted the tray and placed it in position under the bus, using tray as a guide, I drilled 6 holes through the bus floor, moved tray out of the way, dropped 3/8 galv carriage bolts into those holes, flats and nuts to tighten those carriage bolts to underside of bus, barrel nuts and hex nuts to attach 12" sections of all thread to the carriage bolts, placed tray back under bus and attached forward end to all thread, slid tank into place, used floor jack to lift tank and tray aligning all thread as necessary, flats and hex nuts above and below the angle on the tray. Adjusted tank position by tightening the hex nuts on the all thread. Placed heater hose over the all thread at the corners to prevent the all thread from damaging the tank (the corner all threads are positioned to prevent the tank from sliding forward or backwards. Using ratchet straps to hold tank to the tray, found that using both hooks on the ratchet straps didn't fit well, cut the hooks off the binders allows straps to lay flat, much neater. Ratchet binder does not touch the tank, I'll get a larger diameter hose, cut it length wise and put that over the binders to protect the tank and the binders.
Pictures show all that I described here. Final picture; you can see the edge of the tray just under the side of the bus.

(Ratchet straps will be on the pre-trip inspection list)

[cadillackid]

wont the ratchet mechanism get all nasty pretty quickly? I left a couple of those in the bed of my pickup for a couple months and they were all rusty, sticky and good for the trashcan... didnt seem t otake long.. unless you are goping to chase sunshine (which is what i would do because i hate rainy days)

[BarnYardCamp]

Originally Posted by cadillackid

wont the ratchet mechanism get all nasty pretty quickly? I left a couple of those in the bed of my pickup for a couple months and they were all rusty, sticky and good for the trashcan... didnt seem t otake long.. unless you are goping to chase sunshine (which is what i would do because i hate rainy days)

I was concerned about this as well and mentioned it in the description of hanging the grey water tank. Anyway, the binders are in between the tank and the side "skirt" of the bus, not much space and not much accumulated grime there but I'm sure the tires throw off plenty of water when driving in the rain. I placed 6" clear hose over the binders, hose cut length wise, the hose will protect the tank from the binders and hopefully deflect most of the water off the binders. The hose does not close around the binder so we'll have to wait and see if this is effective. Maybe having the hose cut open will let the binders dry and stay clean??

[cadillackid]

Mine weren’t really dirty but they sure rusted quick and my truck bed doesn’t hold water it’s just the rain that got them and rusted then. The little piece of strap looked fine. I don’t think they will rot in water ..

[BarnYardCamp]

Finally got back to the bus today. (Camp ground needs take priority)
Black water tank was built with a "ledge" length wise down each side about 2 inches from the top.
Hole for toilet connection was off center and 12" from one end (per my specs) so I ended up disregarding my wife's suggestion for moving the bathroom to the starboard side.
Built a wood frame around the tank and attached short pieces of perforated galvanized angle to the sides using 5/16 carriage bolts with the heads countersunk into the wood. Used "C" Clamps to hold temporary legs onto the frame so I could position the tank under the bus so I could line up the toilet hole with the tank inlet and mark the locations of the mounting holes.
Moved the tank/frame out of the way and drilled 4 holes through the floor of the bus. Dropped carriage bolts into the holes and secured the carriage bolts to the underside of the bus with flats and hex nuts. Attached barrel nuts to the carriage bolts and attached 12" sections of all thread. Used perforated steel strips over 1x4 treated wood to cross over the top of the tank to prevent the tank from bouncing out of the tank frame when traveling.
Flats and hex nuts over and under the cross braces and the mounts for the tank.
materials used: treated 2x4 and 1x4 wood, galvanized 3/8" carriage bolts, all thread, flats and hex nuts, barrel nuts, galvanized perforated angle and straps, galvanized 5/16 x 2" carriage bolts, flats, hex nuts, red Loctite liquid and several verbal outburst of frustration heavily weighted with profanity.

First picture; tank on ground 2 temp legs attached to hold tank in place so I could line everything up.
Other pics are different views of tank under the bus.

[BarnYardCamp]

Yesterday, I installed the drain valves and associated plumbing. I asked at the local RV dealer/service center about using schedule 40 PVC instead of ABS. They said a lot of people transition to PVC when making repairs. I had some 3" schedule 40 so I went with that.
The dump valves I chose were built into a 90 that had a port for the 1 -1/2" drain for the grey water tank. I'll have to reach under the bus a little to manipulate the valves and to attach the flex dump hose. All of the plumbing is well off the ground, nearly hidden from casual view. Plenty of clearance to attach the drain hose as well. The tanks are on opposite sides of the bus and nearly even on the drain ends. Made for and easy project.

I positioned the grey tank dump valve with the handle at a downward angle for easier manipulation. Before doing this, I walked my camp ground and checked the handle positions on the campers. Most had the handles pull to the side, some had the handles at downward angles, one even had the black water valve positioned to pull straight down. So valve position shouldn't be an issue. I may ad a rubber support strap to the dump valve end, not sure it's needed though.

Materials used: 6" section of 3" PVC, approx 6' of 1-1/2" PVC, 1-1/2" 90 and threaded adaptor, 2- 3" hose clamps, universal PVC/CPVC/ABS glue.

The water hose in the picture is there for my successful leak test.

[BarnYardCamp]

In a previous post, I mentioned that I had replaced the marker/clearance lights with LEDs. In a frustrating step backwards, those lights quit working, tripping the fuse and only some would illuminate, some brighter than others. Obviously there was a short somewhere. I was going to remove each of those lights to inspect the wires. That's when I learned that the seam sealer stuff I used behind them is really a gray super glue. Those lights were not coming off (easily).

I removed the ceiling panel in the back of the bus which enabled me to see the 5 rear marker lamps. I found that when I installed the left rear lamp, one of the self drilling screws had trapped one of those plastic coated wire couplers against a piece of steel bus body framing, tiniest penetration through the plastic was all it took.

I had been undecided about removing the ceiling panels which were the perforated noise reduction style, thought I'd just cover the with some type of wood product. After taking the rear most ceiling section down, I knew that trying to re-install it would take 2 men and a boy to accomplish. I went ahead and removed the rest of the ceiling except for the last section at the front. Removing the metal ceiling will make installing the roof top A/C unit and my vent fan easier.

I know a lot of people recommend against removing the old "school bus" wires. Doing so can create headaches. I removed the wires from the rear flashing lights along with a couple mystery wires that were in the harness over the windows going to the back of the bus. Those mystery wires were already terminated at different points in the harness, maybe they were from the side mounted stop signs that were removed by the guy that painted the bus? Anyway, I may have enough wiring to cover all my 12v electric needs.
And of course, I started and moved the bus to make sure nothing I had removed mattered.

Final accomplishment was the switch panel next to the drivers seat.

The wiring behind the panel was/is a rat's nest. I thinned it out a little but not much.

The switch panel already had a bunch of switch blanks in it along with several open holes that still needed blanks. I unplugged and removed all the switches, plugging them back in to the appropriate harness so nothing was mixed up. I bought more of the same thin aluminum diamond plate that I had used on the stairwell. I covered the switch panel with the diamond plate using my cheapy metal brake to wrap the edges. Then cutting out just the holes for the switches being used, eliminating all of the need for any switch blanks.

The smaller switch panel had the school bus flashing light indicators, heat temp controls, A/C on/off switch, A/C condenser fan switch and the radio in it. I made a new panel using heavier diamond plate and only cut out for the items being used. No radio, when driving, I prefer the voices in my head over listening to the radio.

Pictures: before/after switch panels, switch cluster on door mechanism deleted, metal ceiling removed.

[ol trunt]

Nice work on the switch panels.
Jack

[Oscar1]

Panel upgrade looks great.
I thought I was the only crazy one that preferred the radio off.

[BarnYardCamp]

This week I contacted The Rosco Vision Company (makers of Rosco Mirrors) and they were very helpful in guiding me to a dealer that was only 40+/- miles from me...Mike and B bus sales, Newcomerstown, OH...Mike and B sold me the little plastic access cover for my mirror for $5...

I had 2 scrap pieces of 3/8 plywood, cut those to form the rear bulkhead/wall of the bus, getting the curve right took a number of tries. Before installing the plywood I had a couple things to take care of described below. The plywood will not be the finished surface, nothing could dress it up enough to be suitable for that.

I also started installing the waste water tank vent system, used schedule 40 PVC and a steel floor flange, cut a hole in the left rear corner floor fed the pipe through the hole then with 2 90's had the pipe pass through the plywood wall at the back of the bus and then attached a "street" 90 which was threaded into the floor flange that I attached high on the rear bus wall. Caulked under the flange before tightening. Then attached the vent cover. I didn't vent through the roof as the fewer holes in the roof, the fewer future leaks.

Finally, I identified the wires to the rear turn signals, tail lights and brake lights and grafted wires to those wires and ran the new wires through the floor for a trailer hitch.

Like I said, these are small steps, but they cost me a bunch of time.

Pictures: mirror access panel, PVC pipe and trailer hitch wires, plywood bulkhead-rough in, exterior vent.

[cadillackid]

Love that diamondplate dash!! im doing something similar for my red bus so I can have room for dashboard A/C vernts.. and move my radio forward (i like music).. I LOVE mike and B sales.. I usually make a couple trips a year out there for parts.. !

[BarnYardCamp]

First: Big shout out to DeMac...thanks for the tutorial thread on roof hatch deletes, huge help!!

With cooler weather upon us, I didn't think I'd get this done this year.

I removed the roof E-exit, used my reciprocating saw to peal/cut the glue that held the gasket in place along with the thin layer of caulk. Cleaned the roof around the hatch opening with mineral spirits, Scotch Brite pad and a rag. Lightly sanded the area to be covered by the patch.

Pre-drilled the holes in my patch piece and cleaned up the holes with a light touch of the angle grinder.

Set the patch metal in place and secured it with ratchet straps then drilled the holes into the roof. Moved patch and ratchet straps out of the way, wiped the area clean again then applied seam sealer in 2 beads, one being over the screw holes. Put the patch piece back in place using a handful of nails as guide pins. Re-attached the ratchet straps and secured the patch to the roof with #10 sheet metal screws at approx 3 inch intervals. Ran a bead of seam sealer around the edge of the patch.

Getting late and I want the seam sealer to set so I'll paint the patch tomorrow. Weather forecast shows it should be warm enough to paint.

Pictures: open E-exit hole, patch with ratchet straps in place, patch complete.

[BarnYardCamp]

Tank vents; I used 1/2" ABS tubing, schedule 80 PVC barbed fittings and hose clamps.

I laid the ABS tubing out in front of our wood stove for a couple days to straighten it.

Started at the gray water tank with a 90 that is angled up and towards the port side. Then had to step the vent for the black water tank down from 3/4 to 1/2, connection there has a 90 from the tank, about 6 inch rise to a "T" then the tubing continues to the back of the bus where it is attached to the vent pipe going up and out the rear wall. I used a heat gun to warm the ABS tubing up when connecting to the barbed fittings, that made it easier to fully insert the barb and the clamps were able to be tightened just a bit more. I kept the tubing above the tanks to hopefully keep liquids from getting into the vent system.

I am a little concerned that the 1/2" tubing won't have enough air flow when I empty the black water tank. I think the worse that will happen is that it will suck the water out of the trap under one of the sinks.

[BarnYardCamp]

Vent fan: First I drilled holes in the vent fan flange for the mounting screws. I used #10 3/4" stainless pan head screws instead of the #8's that came with the fan.

The vent fan is located where the E-exit hatch was. inside the bus I measured and marked the center of the sheet metal over the old hatch hole. Marked for the center and drilled a hole at the mark.

On top of the bus, I measured out 7" in 4 directions from the newly drilled hole, marked those measurements.

Aligning my square with the closest roof seem, I drew the vent hole in pencil. Angle grinder with cutting disc to cut and dress the hole.

Put the fan in place and marked the screw holes. Set the fan aside, cleaned around the hole then applied a liberal amount of the self leveling caulk that was recommended by MaxxAir. Put the fan back in place, aligned holes with a couple nails then secured the fan to the bus with the screws. Wires will get connected later.

Pics: Inside bus, drilled hole to mark center of fan opening, penciled opening on top of bus to be cut out, cut out completed ( hole is 14" square, angle of pic makes hole look rectangular), fan from inside and outside bus.

[BarnYardCamp]

Wife wants bus to be as open as possible. So, bathroom may be the only wall on the bus.

Bathroom area will be the width of the bus and just over 4' deep. It will have toilet, sink, closet(s) and enough room to comfortably change clothes.

I started by making cleats from some left over metal. The cleats will be used to attach the 2x4 wall studs to the floor. The top of the studs are attached to a roof rib with 1/4" x 3-1/2" carriage bolts. Wall studs are "sideways" to minimize wall thickness. Hope to get the last few studs installed tomorrow.

Pictures: New cleat, needs to be trimmed for length
cleat attached to bus floor and wall stud
wall stud attached to roof rib
overview of studs installed so far

[BarnYardCamp]

Left rear window deleted: First, I ran a plastic putty knife under the edges of the window gasket all the way around the window inside and out. Then, outside the bus, I used a heat gun to warm the bottom edge of the gasket...not very hot, just warm. Then I worked several small pry tools between the gasket and bus body while gently pushing on the bottom edge of the glass into the bus. Moving the pry tools around to get the gasket to follow the glass..took about 5 minutes for the window and the gasket to be removed, no damage to either.

I placed my 24"x24" piece of galvanized steel against the outside of the window opening and traced the opening on the steel with a pencil. Measured the window "lip" on the bus which was 5/8" and Added that to my traced lines and cut the steel using my angle grinder for the straight cuts and tin snips for the curved corners. A dozen trips between the bus and my shop to make small cut adjustments then used the drill press to drill holes around the perimeter of the steel with 3 - 4" spacing.. Finally laid a bead of seam sealer around the window hole and attached the steel using #8 1/2" self drilling screws. Tried the "wet finger" method to smooth out the seam sealer, I still made a mess of it. I'll try cleaning that up a bit tomorrow before I paint the steel window replacement.

Small section of wall erected: Inside the rear e-door, left side. Low on this wall is where the Heng's power converter/charger will be mounted. Behind this wall will also be a linen closet with the bottom shelf being 18" above the floor to insure the power converter has plenty of air space. I'll install a louvered vent for air flow. Since this is a Thomas built, angles had to be figured into the wall construction...only took three trips between the bus and shop to get it right, woohoo!

pictures; window opening, window and gasket un-damaged (for now) steel placed in window hole. Wall at back of bus approx 18" wide at floor, narrows to approx 13" at top.

[BarnYardCamp]

Today I was hoping to paint the rear window "patches"..nice warm day, way to windy. I did delete the right rear window. Used a lot less seam sealer, still made a mess of it.

[BarnYardCamp]

As everyone on this site already knows, when converting a bus, you need to plan several steps ahead. I've been working on the bathroom area but couldn't cover the side walls until I had removed some windows. This past week, we have had some really decent weather so I got busy with window deletes. I'm removing the last 2 windows on both sides of the bus along with the bottom window from the rear E-exit.

For the right side, my steel measured 49 x 31-1/8".

These windows were in front of the H-cap lift door. On the trailing edge of those windows were 30 screws, 1" on center. I felt that there were so many screws to give added structural support because the door hinges are there.

I removed all the screws that would have been prevented the steel window covering from laying flat against the bus. I also removed the screws from the rain gutter over these windows. I jammed the steel up under the rain gutter then traced the edge of the steel in pencil onto the bus. I then measured and recorded the locations of all the screw holes (except the 30 holes on the trailing edge). I marked the steel and drilled the holes. I put the steel back on the bus and realized that my pre-drilling those holes wasn't such a great idea. Removed the steel again and then, using a pencil and a torpedo level, drew a line on the bus to indicate the location of every other screw hole on the trailing edge. Put the steel back in place, then, using my pencil lines was able to accurately mark and drill the holes in the steel to reuse the same holes. I removed the steel and applied seam sealer to the bus making sure to cover the screw holes. Put the steel back up and secured it to the bus using some of the original screws and self drilling screws where the holes didn't line up. trying to reuse the same screws and holes was a bad idea, I ended up with a pretty bad ripple in the steel. I'm hoping that once paint is applied, it won't be so obvious.

On the left side, the steel measured 67" x 31-1/8".
Again, I removed all of the screws that would have prevented the steel from laying flat against the bus. I jammed the steel up under the rain gutter and marked it's position on the bus as well as the screw holes for the rain gutter. I Removed the steel and drilled the holes in the top edge to correspond with the rain gutter screw holes.
Then, I used the torpedo level and pencil to mark the screw hole centers on the bus, but just the forward and trailing edges.
I applied seam sealer to the bus then jammed the steel back under the rain gutter, Starting with the screws for the rain gutter I secured the steel to the bus. Working from the top down, measured and marked the steel to match up the holes in the bus in the leading and trailing edges. I drilled and attached 2 screws, then did the same to the other edge and used self drilling screws to attach the steel to the bus in the post between the 2 windows. Working my way back and forth until all I had left was the bottom edge.
I still ended up with a ripple in the metal, but no where ear as bad as the right side. I used self drilling screws across the bottom edge. I then applied a bead of seam sealer all around the steel using a plastic putty knife to smooth it out.

Pictures; 1) marking the screw hole centers, vertical line is edge of steel, horizontal line is center of screw hole
2) right side window deletes
3) left side window deletes

(obviously, sheet metal work isn't my thing)

[BarnYardCamp]

We had a beautiful day here in Ohio...perfect day to get the last window out. and to get the garden hose out for a leak test....

Lower window in the rear exit door. Originally I was just going to remove the window and cover the hole with a piece of galvanized steel with out bothering to cut the steel to fit, just cover the entire window.

I decided that cutting the steel to fit into the recessed window cut out would look a lot better. So, I removed the glass and rubber seal, used clamps to hold the steel patch in place the traced the window opening onto the steel. Took the steel into my shop, drew another line 1/2" outside of the line I had traced, then used the angle grinder with cutting disc to cut the steel. Placed the steel into the window opening, made a few marks on the steel where I needed to trim more material off then after I was satisfied with the fit, I drilled holes around the edge of the steel, 3" on center. Applied a bead of seam sealer to the window opening then used #8, 1/2" self drilling screws to attach the steel. Ran another bead of seam sealer around the edge of the steel on the exterior to insure no leaks. Bead came out pretty good. (I guess I've got the hang of it now that I'm done with the windows)

I also did a leak test on the 4 side windows I had deleted last week. Left side good, right side one small leak from top about 6" from rear. Only leaked when water was running off the roof, didn't leak when spraying water to simulate driving in the rain. I removed some screws from the rain gutter, pried the gutter away from the bus, using air pressure, rag and screwdriver, I cleaned out what looked like rotting pine needles applied seam sealer, reattached gutter adding another screw. Seems good now. I won't be covering that for a while(inside the bus), so next few times it rains, I'll be able to re inspect it.

I'm going to make a table and use the window glass as the top. (for my house, not the bus)
pics; widow patch in place
window glass, soon to be a table top

[BarnYardCamp]

Finally making some headway again. bathroom walls are almost complete. Ceiling is 3/4 done. Light installed over sink. I was going to install another light centered in the bathroom ceiling, wife said not to bother, when everything is painted and the mirror is installed, the light over the sink will be sufficient. Sounds good to me!
Some wires have been installed, 10-2 w/ground for A/C and 12V wiring for the MaxxAir fan, bathroom light and also for cigarette lighter type accessory plug with UBS ports that will be at the head of each bed. I still need to run Romex for the electric water heater and kitchen cook top.
Pictures show some wall and ceiling progress. Wall to right of bathroom door will get finished tomorrow, I need to cut a piece of foam board insulation to fit the top section. Plan to install a light switch tomorrow as well. Of course, we have family stuff going on so any work on the bus will be as time permits.