2011 Girardin G5 HC Bus Build

[Buster Junior]

Those are two very handsome boys!

These are our twin girls...crazy as rat **** but they are the center of our hearts. Thank you��

[Vineyardseashell]

Originally Posted by Buster Junior

I only wish he was clean underneath. Lots of Rochester NY rust. Looks can be deceiving. Hopefully he is mechanically sound and will fit our needs. I was full of rust from seat removal and developed a bit of anxiety thinking we should have gotten a bus from the South. But, alas, he is now ours and we do love him so. And, yes, the large entry in addition to the extra corner head room was a huge draw.

My bus is a tad rusty underneath, but nothing major that I saw; a good cleaning will work wonders before applying an undercoating.


I was more referencing the interior underneath condition. Because our buses go to and are surrounded by beaches and sand, I had lots of sand in mine, and thought the rust on the interior and floors would be horrible, but as you saw in my photos, it was near perfect.


I still think you may be pleasantly surprised by the interior condition.



....Girls...sorry! I have a boy (Rebel), this time around. My old American Bulldog, Sweet Georgia Brown was a princess wench...She was 13 when she passed a few years ago. I miss her so much. Rebel on the other hand is laid back and adaptable to whatever is going on- couch potato to a ball of puppy energy when the situation warrants. He is such a good boy!



I am getting ready to head up to the bus lot in a bit to take delivery of more building supplies and hope to finish insulating this weekend and get started on the framing.


Saturday mornings are my lazy days...



Clyn

[Buster Junior]

I sent you a private message, but suck at this technology stuff. Not sure if you got it, let me know. Good luck on the delivery, always fun getting more supplies...very motivating.��

[Vineyardseashell]

Today's update on my build is extremely short...and depends on whether you see the glass half full or half empty


I only succeesed in getting one small piece of insulation installed today.


As I was waiting for my daughter's BF to deliver supplies, I took to looking at the ceiling panel, and decided to tackle it again while waiting. I did not make mucn headway in half an hour I worked on it when the supplies arrived. We unloaded the supplies into the bus.


The boyfriend took a look at the ceiling and decided to help. Two hours and three mangled pieces later, one center ceiling panel is out.


The sun is starting to settle in the sky, the temp is cooling off and it will be dusk before too long, so I am going to call it a day, go have a shower then nead out to have my nails done.


I will get up early tomorrow morning and bang out most of the insulation.

[peakbus]

I feel your pain on the ceiling removal! I just removed mine over the last few days. Girardin really took it seriously putting those together. All that glue! I was fortunate to have an air chisel which made quick work separating the panels and popping any stubborn rivets. I can't imagine your challenge with few tools and one good wrist!

[Vineyardseashell]

Originally Posted by peakbus

I feel your pain on the ceiling removal! I just removed mine over the last few days. Girardin really took it seriously putting those together. All that glue! I was fortunate to have an air chisel which made quick work separating the panels and popping any stubborn rivets. I can't imagine your challenge with few tools and one good wrist!

Hi Peakbus,


I'm sorry that your ceiling was glued too! Whatever glue Girardin uses- it's strong stuff. Glad to hear that you completed the job and it went smoother than mine!



If it weren't for my daughter's boyfriend, that one ceiling panel would still be there. Once the panel was out, he was kind (and strong enough), to break the glue seal going down one trim piece so I could get a better look underneath it. I am re-thinking the ceiling...


The ceiling trim pieces will come down once the last ceiling panel (above the AC unit) is removed. But, I may cut the trim pieces near the front of the bus, where the perforated ceiling panels were; put those perforated ceiling panels back in, and then cap the ceiling trim pieces; That way, I don't have to mess around with removing the front wall and plastic trim surrounding it. I could leave that front area for a future project.


I also got a better look at the side wall's trim pieces (where the wheel chair track was). There is a piece of flat rectangular metal attached to the bus rib, running parallel to the trim; and I suspect that each rib along the trim also has a similar piece of metal. It almost looks like the trim was installed by sliding it onto the metal pieces the entire length of the wall; And, I also suspect that each of those metal pieces has a bolt coming thru the bus rib into it, and the trim.


I have no idea how I will get that side wall trim off, so my thinking is a) it won't be worth the attempt to remove the side wall trim pieces, and just use it as the foundation for my upper walls instead of a 2x2; or b) I will have to use a grinder to cut the trim on each side of every rib and then hammer out (or off), the remaining pieces of trim from the metal bar.


LOL! I don't think Girardin meant for these buses to be deconstructed.


Clyn

[Vineyardseashell]

Sorry everyone...no update today...at least for now. I lost the update twice after loading images. Not sure why, everything disappeared. Maybe after supper I will dig my laptop out and give it another try.


Take care!


Clyn

[Vineyardseashell]

Let's give today's update another try. I will have to post the images separately as they are not on my computer.


As mentioned yesterday, Saturday morning are my lazy days. So, it is nice just to hang out, enjoy my coffee and surf the net for awhile before getting motivated to get up and start moving around. During the week I am usually up between 4-4:30am and at the bus lot by 5:45am to start my day.



Today, I headed to the bus lot a bit earlier to get a jump start.



I pretty much have the lower walls insulated with the first round of insulation. Because the electrical system has not been decommissioned, there are a few sections that I couldn't complete due to the wiring.


In the curve of the roof behind the ribs, I added some leftover yellow insulation to fill the void. When I start to insulate the roof, I will need to score the rigid foam so it will (hopefully), follow the curve of the ribs.


In the lower walls where essential wires are i.e.) turn signal light wires, etc. I also added some yellow insulation to cover the wires, then filled the rest of the cavity with the foam board.


After giving some thought to the side wall trim pieces...I decided against trying to remove them. I figured they may be there for structural support. When I add wall cabinets, I will need to scribe the cabinets to fit in that area; And who knows...maybe I can paint the trim and/or find a creative use for them.


I was hoping my friend with the grinder was around and available to stop by and cut the ceiling trim in a couple of spots so I could remove most of it and get started insulating the ceiling- but he was off-island today; maybe later in the week, he can stop by after work. Keeping my fingers crossed.



Since I was stepping over stuff most of the day, I thought it best to re-stack my stockpile, tidy up my work area and sweep the floor.



My next thought project is to figure out how to frame out and insulate the fiberglass back wall. Because the wall is slanted there is a gap of space ranging from 2 inches (along the top), to almost 9 inches (towards the floor), between the wall and the interior steel framework.


Along each side of the back wall, I am hoping to have a bedside shelf immediately under each window, and also a box with shelves or netting near the floor (under the bed in the garage area), which could hold misc stuff like spray paint, etc.


I think that was pretty much it for today. If anyone has any suggestions regarding the back wall-I am all ears!


I will add a few images of today's progress in the next post.



Thanks, and have a great evening!


Clyn

[Vineyardseashell]

Here are the photos that correspond to today's update.

[Vineyardseashell]

Hi Everyone,


I was off island today and visited Home Depot. I needed to pick up an impact drill and also wanted to check out the spray foam insulation. We were short on time due to our ferry back, so I didn't have long to dillydally at HD. The HD person helping me had no idea as to what I was talking about regarding the spray foam insulation kits, so I ended up grabbing a few can of Great Stuff to tide me over, until I can get off island again.


I am thinking it would be best to frame out the walls, before adding the second layer of insulation in the walls.



In a previous post wondering what other people used to frame out their lower walls, posters said it would be fine to use 2x2's to frame out the walls.



My local lumber supply (where I get supplies at cost), doesn't carry them and would have to order them for me, which would take a few days for them to arrive. I don't want to waste that many days as I really want to finish the insulation.



So, my two questions are: could I use 1x2's doubled up to frame out the lower walls, then adding the second layer of insulation between the framing?



Could I use single 1x2's to frame out the rest of the bus i.e) roof ribs, etc.?


Thanks,


Clyn

[Buster Junior]

Hi there. So I know we are not doing things to the high caliber that most folks here are, but we are working on lower walls now. Studding with 2x3's and gonna add 1 inch insulating foam board and then finish with tongue and groove pine plank. Ran out of day light and the dampness came rushing in. Tomorrow is another day.��

[Vineyardseashell]

Originally Posted by Buster Junior

Hi there. So I know we are not doing things to the high caliber that most folks here are, but we are working on lower walls now. Studding with 2x3's and gonna add 1 inch insulating foam board and then finish with tongue and groove pine plank. Ran out of day light and the dampness came rushing in. Tomorrow is another day.��

Hi Buster Junior,


You are moving right along in your build! It's looking great!


2x3's...didn't know they made them...lol That may work; I will see if the lumber company has them in stock.


Thanks for the heads ups!


Have a great evening!


Clyn

[Frochevy]

I also used 2 x 3s to frame everything up in our bus! I decided to use those because they were cheaper than 2x4s and took up less room! I bought mine from a Menards store like Home Depot. I also used allot of furring strips screwed to my metal frame of the bus to provide a space for insulation and a place to screw wall panels, cabinets, etc into. Good luck!!

[musigenesis]

Some of my wall framing is 1x3s ripped to 2" (since I'm using 2" XPS foam board insulation). The main difficulty is that you have to be very accurate when you screw paneling into it, to make sure your screws are going into it dead center (2x studs let you be a bit more casual).

[Vineyardseashell]

Originally Posted by Frochevy

I also used 2 x 3s to frame everything up in our bus! I decided to use those because they were cheaper than 2x4s and took up less room! I bought mine from a Menards store like Home Depot. I also used allot of furring strips screwed to my metal frame of the bus to provide a space for insulation and a place to screw wall panels, cabinets, etc into. Good luck!!

Hi Frochevy,


You are on the same page as me- I want to keep the bus weight down, maximize the insulation where I can, but still have enough support for cabinets, etc.


I checked last night with the lumber company, and they don't carry 2x3's. It is tough here on the island, the price of real estate is outrageous and off island lumber companies doing business here don't keep a vast supply of stores on island- they truck them in as ordered.



There is a old time island lumber supply here who may carry the 2x3s, I will just have to check out their pricing and delivery options...I still need to be discrete since I am doing all of this in the bus parking lot. Out of sight, out of mind rules.


Thanks,


Clyn

[Vineyardseashell]

Originally Posted by musigenesis

Some of my wall framing is 1x3s ripped to 2" (since I'm using 2" XPS foam board insulation). The main difficulty is that you have to be very accurate when you screw paneling into it, to make sure your screws are going into it dead center (2x studs let you be a bit more casual).

Good morning Musigenesis,


I never thought about ripping a 1x3 down. That would challenge my skill set and the limited space I am working within. That is a great idea!


Thanks,


Clyn

[Vineyardseashell]

Here's an update for what I did on the bus today (I will upload photos in the next post, as it is easier/quicker for me to type on my computer versus the tablet; the tablet has the photos).


Yesterday, after getting back from off-island, I had about 30 minutes of daylight left, so I filled all the little cracks between the first round of rigid foam with the Great Stuff. It went fairly quickly and for the most part not messy at all.


Today, I removed the excess Great Stuff foam leveling it with the ribs of the bus.


After some input from members here, on the lower side wall framing, I opted to go with the 2x3's. So I ran to the other lumber yard and grabbed 6 of them. It seems no one has stainless steel self tapping screws in the sized I needed, so I went with 2-3/4" wood to metal screws. The wood was stored outside, so I want to give it a bit to dry out before installing.



Looking at the floor/side wall and the 2x3's, I think I will put a bead of caulk down where the wall meets the floor and letting that dry before I screw in the 2x3 along the floor/side wall.


I think I will use the 1x3's on the roof ribs in order to keep some height between the floor and the ceiling. I am also going to keep the little metal boxes currently between the ceiling and the ceiling trim. Once the ceiling trim is removed, I will have to re-silicone those little boxes back up and also silicone them to the 1x3's.



I also put up the piece of rigid foam that I had cut and scored the other day on a roof section; it is being held in place by the 2x3's until the silicone dries.




Playing around with the new impact driver, I was able to gt out a few of the trim caps at the ends of the floor wheel chair rails. I found out that my bus does NOT have two floors- only one, which is simply a raised floor.



So after that discovery, I decided come hell or high water, those wheel chair tracks in the floor are coming out; and I will have to re-think my water storage and sunken shower aspirations.



I also heard back from my Jeep mechanic (a Jeep guru and overall jack of all trades, kind of like my Grandfather); unfortunately, he is too busy with other projects to decommission my electrical.



I have one other person to get in touch with- he doesn't have a phone, but worked on school buses for years. He usually doesn't do outside projects, but it is worth a try. If all else fails, I guess I will attempt to do the electrical myself, and hopefully not run into too much trouble.


My next plan of action is to head over to my daughter' house and use the printer to print out the wiring schematics and look them over again.


That is it for today's update. The day started off sunny and warm, only to cloud over an rain off and on all afternoon. It is chilly and damp now.


A couple of images to follow in the next post.


Thanks, and have a great afternoon!


Clyn

[Vineyardseashell]

Here are the photos to go with today's update...

[Buster Junior]

Hi there. Looking good. Great that you have some plans together. I feel like our project is a learn and move to the next step as we do the previous step. That is going to include the electric too. I picked up the AC wire and outlet boxes. Awaiting the 30 amp power plug. Making space for the battery and inverter/ converter and AC panel and DC panel...and i really have no idea what i am doing. Just reading what i can in some spare time and crossing each bridge as they come. Hopefully things will work out. I am very optimistic that things will come together. Not really financially an option to hire someone on. I will keep you posted. Keep up all the good work!!!

[Vineyardseashell]

Hi Buster Junior,


You seem way far ahead of me in the build. Some days, I feel like I am the blind, leading the blind in my build. Don't really know what I am doing either, but did jump in for better or worse


I don't know when you purchased your bus if you received any 'owners manuals, etc., but I have wiring schematics for my bus; some, or all of them may apply to your bus too. I just printed them out to look them over.



In fact, I was going to post a question to see if there is a specific area of the forum I could upload the pdf version of them, in case the same diagrams could work for someone else.


Does anyone know if there is a specific area in the forum to post such information for others' use?


Thanks,


Clyn