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Originally Posted by ptsmith109
As it stands, I am getting by. I pay my bills and live pretty modestly but short of a career change I'm likely not going to get ahead unless I change the dynamic somehow...
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This seems similar to our motivations. A lot of people look for ways of cutting their costs, but usually there are "sacred cows" in the equation (like the mortgage/rent) that are just "given" costs with no alternative- I instead asked the question
how would I eliminate my top 5 most expensive bills and eventually ended up with a skoolie. Changing the "dynamic" or fundamental assumptions was the only way to do it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ptsmith109
Probably a full-size bus. I want enough to be able to fit a bed (queen or larger) along with some built-in bunk beds for my kids when they're with me on an adventure and still have some living space. I feel like a rear-engine flat nose bus with storage bays would be ideal... but is that something that's going to significantly increase my initial cost?
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Unlikely. Like o1marc mentioned most buses' fair cost is right around $5k, or at least it was when I pulled the trigger. Short or large. However, the associated upkeep does go up. Especially if you want to remain mobile you will need to be 100% on top of the mechanicals.
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Originally Posted by ptsmith109
It seems like it would make more sense to forego a black water tank and go with a composting toilet when I do the build... that would give more space for gray water storage.
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Let me just preface: Lots of people in RVs/buses/etc use composting toilets successfully. That being said, I started with a composter, ended up with a flusher, would never go back.
If your "gray" water includes stuff from the sink (food particles, etc), it is going to reek like heck, you're not going to be able to just pour that stuff on the ground. It will need to go to a dump station, and if you're going there anyway, you might as well kill two birds with one stone. I have two gray tanks, 45 gallons each, and a 40 gallon black tank. I could fit anywhere from 3 to 5 more similarly sized tanks under the bus, no problem. Full size buses will have places for tanks.
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Originally Posted by ptsmith109
What do I need to consider regarding fresh water storage? Size? Weight? All of the above?
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Loosely, I would suggest your gray capacity to at minimum be more than your fresh, and your black should you choose to have a black tank be half or more your fresh capacity. I wanted 100 gallons, ended up with 78. We dry camp by default (we fill fresh tanks when they are empty, we don't really just "hook up" and stay connected to city water) and we get 4-6 days out of it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ptsmith109
Obviously I'm a little bit away from getting started but trying to make sense of the task that's ahead of me is paramount right now.
What advice would you give someone who is considering taking the plunge?
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We live in a 37' skoolie we built ourselves and I'm $40k or more in at this point, $4k for the bus, $2k delivery, $4k to have a section of driveway paved to park it (yeah, these are big) and it took 3 years, although now that I know what I'm doing I could bang one out in 6 months or so. Do you know where/how you'll work on one?
Another user might suggest you look at RVs, I'd say take that seriously- see what you can get because it would be relatively turn-key. We bought a 5th wheel to rescue a relative from homelessness for around $15k and it had all of the basic infrastructure, although most of it obviously much, much less capable. Not to dissuade you from a conversion- just consider the option.
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