First timers on the East Coast! 2 months in!

[Bluthebus00]

Hello all! About 2 months ago we committed and purchased our bus!

We lucked out and found him a couple days after the dealer slashed the price in half! The dealer received the bus as a trade-in. They usually sell new buses to schools, companies and the government. Because of regulations on age and mileage to their usual clientele didn't want to purchase a 17yr old bus.

We went to see it in person and it was perfect. The perfect length, in great condition only needing minor repairs and maintenance. AND THE MOTOR IS NEW!!! Only 7,000 miles. Previous owner replaced the motor before deciding they no longer needed the bus! Their loss!

We've named our bus "Blu". Blu is a 25' flat-nosed 00' BlueBird C1FE (handicap accessible). We love RVing but didn't want to invest in an RV where we'd have to sacrifice flexibility in the floorplan. A bus conversion was the perfect fit! We're turning our bus into a full RV that sleeps 4, has a full bathroom, full kitchen and a combo passenger/living room/dining room area.
The dealership was nice enough to remove and dispose of the lift and all seats at no additional cost! They even delivered it to us for a very very low price.

As of this post, I'm finishing up framing the kitchen and living areas. We are planning on using the rear handicap access door as the primary "RV" door. It locks from the outside with a key. I found retractable steps that detach and stow away neatly when the bus is in motion. The main entry doors to the bus are pneumatic and though they work great, could get annoying once we start going in and out repeatedly, especially when the bus is docked on a campground or something for a week.

The sleeping areas consist of murphy bunks for the kids in the front and a master bedroom in the rear for my wife and I.

The passenger seating when the bus is in motion also functions as the dining area seating and finally as the "living room" seating. When the murphy bunks are stowed away, there is a 42" TV and entertainment system mounted on the underside of the bottom bunk.

As for the kitchen, it's going to be small but have a 3.1cuft fridge, microwave, sink, overhead cabinetry and a drawer under the microwave.

The plumbing will drain into 2x tanks(grey & black) located under the bathroom behind the bus' batteries. Looking for a water heater solution for the bus. Thinking tankless...

I'll try not to add more detail to spare you all the additional reading haha
We are beyond excited to work on this bus and happy to be a part of this community!

[somewhereinusa]

Good looking bus. You've got a good start.

[Johnny Mullet]

Very nice! Welcome aboard.

[Rusty]

Cute bus ! I bet it has great interior space with the high sidewalls.

Looks like you have your plans all set. Are you going to insulate it?

[WanderWoman]

Welcome! Where on the east coast are you?


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[Robin97396]

They're in PA.

I seriously appreciate that they filled in their profile information, unlike many of our other new contestants.

Welcome to the site. That's one fine looking bus. I thought it got cold in PA? I second the (no insulation?) query. Some people don't insulate, but they usually live further south.

You've got a good start. Any pics of your interior progress yet? We're very nosey here.

[WanderWoman]

Originally Posted by Robin97396

They're in PA.

I seriously appreciate that they filled in their profile information, unlike many of our other new contestants.

Welcome to the site. That's one fine looking bus. I thought it got cold in PA? I second the (no insulation?) query. Some people don't insulate, but they usually live further south.

You've got a good start. Any pics of your interior progress yet? We're very nosey here.

Thanks for letting me know, Robin. I’m on my phone on Tapatalk and it doesn’t show the profile.


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[dan-fox]

Welcome! Nice looking rig you got there.

I wonder if the dealer knows something we don't about making a profit off of the removed seats and handicap lift?

[Robin97396]

I can sympathise. I'm on a Android pad that thinks it's a laptop, but it's not even close. These pads think they're phones too, but they don't do calls. Text so small I can't even read it with my glasses on until I stretch the screen. I'll be complaining about this for months.

Anybody know how to root an android 6.0 marshmallow? I tried about 20 times using utube unsuccesfully.

[golfersmurf57]

Originally Posted by Robin97396

I can sympathise. I'm on a Android pad that thinks it's a laptop, but it's not even close. These pads think they're phones too, but they don't do calls. Text so small I can't even read it with my glasses on until I stretch the screen. I'll be complaining about this for months.

Anybody know how to root an android 6.0 marshmallow? I tried about 20 times using utube unsuccesfully.

Robin I saved the 6 dilemma well phone did it for me. Screen cracked then quit so I opted for this Android 7 with twice the phone space. Too bad I'm on straight talk or I'd tether to my lappy. Anyone know which mobile WiFi hotspot works the best for the buck? I don't touch very well with these mechanic's hands. But I can typo with the worst of them on my laptop. And if my phone reception is bad will WiFi hotspot have same problem?

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[golfersmurf57]

Originally Posted by golfersmurf57

Robin I saved the 6 dilemma well phone did it for me. Screen cracked then quit so I opted for this Android 7 with twice the phone space. Too bad I'm on straight talk or I'd tether to my lappy. Anyone know which mobile WiFi hotspot works the best for the buck? I don't touch very well with these mechanic's hands. But I can typo with the worst of them on my laptop. And if my phone reception is bad will WiFi hotspot have same problem?

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Robin can't you set your font size on your tablet like on a laptop?

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[Bluthebus00]

Originally Posted by Rusty

Cute bus ! I bet it has great interior space with the high sidewalls.

Looks like you have your plans all set. Are you going to insulate it?

Sorry for the late reply!

We're just logging back in now haha. The site stopped telling us we were getting comments on this thread. We were sticking with the stock insulation that originally came with the transit bus package. It is all fiber glass. We know it's a gamble but are hoping this doesn't become a rookie mistake. All of the walls and the ceiling are all insulated. From what I've tested thus far, it does hold heat pretty well. I've had a space radiator in the bus keeping it warm while I worked on it through out the Fall. Once the temps dropped below freezing, I worked on it a few times and there were days where I had to take off my jacket because it was pretty warm with the space radiator and the outside temp at 30"ish".

We aren't too concerned because we are also only looking to go RVing in the bus during camping season then winterize it and put it away for the colder months.

[Twigg]

Originally Posted by Bluthebus00

Sorry for the late reply!

We're just logging back in now haha. The site stopped telling us we were getting comments on this thread. We were sticking with the stock insulation that originally came with the transit bus package. It is all fiber glass. We know it's a gamble but are hoping this doesn't become a rookie mistake. All of the walls and the ceiling are all insulated. From what I've tested thus far, it does hold heat pretty well. I've had a space radiator in the bus keeping it warm while I worked on it through out the Fall. Once the temps dropped below freezing, I worked on it a few times and there were days where I had to take off my jacket because it was pretty warm with the space radiator and the outside temp at 30"ish".

We aren't too concerned because we are also only looking to go RVing in the bus during camping season then winterize it and put it away for the colder months.

The part people forget about is keeping the heat out. Insulation cuts both ways.

Good luck with the build.

[joeblack5]

Looks good, where in PA are you?

later J

[Bluthebus00]

Originally Posted by joeblack5

Looks good, where in PA are you?

later J

We're in southeastern PA somewhat close to New Jersey

[Bluthebus00]

Originally Posted by Twigg

The part people forget about is keeping the heat out. Insulation cuts both ways.

Good luck with the build.

Definitely! It was taken into consideration but we honestly just wrote it off.

Because this was a transit bus, it came with an overhead TransAir A/C unit with 2 compressors.

When we're docked at a campsite and the engine isn't running the overhead A/C, we have a residential A/C unit rated for 500sqft cooling 180sqft.

[Twigg]

Originally Posted by Bluthebus00

Definitely! It was taken into consideration but we honestly just wrote it off.

Because this was a transit bus, it came with an overhead TransAir A/C unit with 2 compressors.

When we're docked at a campsite and the engine isn't running the overhead A/C, we have a residential A/C unit rated for 500sqft cooling 180sqft.

It's rated for 500 sq ft of well-insulated house, not a tin can with a couple of inches of elderly fiberglass batting.

Take a look at the BTU rating of those AC units, and compare it with your other one

[joeblack5]

Nice to see another transit in PA, we are in state college.

Later J

[Robin97396]

The household air conditioner will work ok if they can park the bus in the shade. It would at least suck a lot of the humidity out of the air.

I have to agree about the value of installing insulation. It's worth it over and over. I'm on the cold side, but it sounds like you guys intend to vacation on the hot side. You don't want to be checking into a motel just to get out of the heat. These metal boxes are hot in the summer sun. It is a rookie mistake and it would be worth reconsidering before you build in any structues.

[Robin97396]

Originally Posted by golfersmurf57

Robin can't you set your font size on your tablet like on a laptop?

You know, I am almost positive there is a way to set the font size to something that doesn't require a microscope to read. I still haven't found it yet. This is an android pad with keyboard that minimizes every internet page because it thinks it's a phone.

This thing is driving me nuts. This is not at all like Windows. I no speaky smart phone.