Seattle based newbie

[TankaRu]

Hi all,
I've been dreaming of building a tiny house for years now, wanting to save money on rent and have freedom to travel. I love the look of skoolies and the mobility as well. Im still in my researching stage, so I've got lots of questions.

1) how long has it taken you to do your conversion? I know it will be different for everyone, but I'm hoping to get a ball park estimate.

2) where do you full timers usually keep your buses? Do you own land, rent land, stay with friends/family?

3) what methods do you use for cooling in hotter temperatures, or what methods would you recommend?

Thanks for the help!

[cowlitzcoach]

#1: I sold my Crown Supercoach because I realized that my newly born daughter would probably be graduating from college before my bus was fully converted.

#2: It all sort of depends. Some actually roam from place to place seeing the country. Several have become park hosts and get paid to live in a park for a season. Others are always on the move looking for new adventures, things to see, and people to meet. Very few actually own a piece of ground where their bus lives permanently. It all comes down to what works the best for you.

#3: The best way to cool in hot weather is to travel where it isn't hot out during the hot part of the summer. If that isn't an option parking the bus so that it gets shade during the hottest part of the day is one of the best things to do. With or without A/C, not letting it get super hot is much easier to cool off than one that is baking hot in the direct sun. Painting the roof white or another very light color can make a remarkable difference on the interior temperature. There have been several comments in different threads about A/C. There are a lot of different thoughts as to what is the best way to install A/C. Regardless of what system you choose, understand that an A/C system is a power hog. A/C systems need a steady source of 110-VAC to do the job properly. Which means most A/C systems will not run very long on solar or battery power. You will need either power coming in off of the grid or you will need to have some sort of power generator that supplies enough kilowatts at the correct amperage to make the system work.

Good luck and make sure you ask lots of questions.


PS: By the way, if you haven't figured it out yet, Seattle in particular and King County generally are very bus unfriendly. Whether it is finding a space to park while you visit Seattle Center or if you are wanting to park and live in your bus the powers that be just don't like buses.

[cadillackid]

I find most of the major cities are the worst about parking a bus even for just a few hours.. the local police will travel onto private parking lots and run people off even if the businesses are closed and couldnt give a crap... ive had that happen even on long road trips trying to nap for 30 minutes in my Car!..

smaller towns they dont seem to bother anyone who isnt bothering anyone else....

-Christopher

[slaughridge85]

Originally Posted by cadillackid

smaller towns they dont seem to bother anyone who isnt bothering anyone else....

Yep, and alot of them have free or nearly free city parks to say at with power and water to boot. Densely populated urban areas don't seem to be very skoolie friendly...

[TankaRu]

I more or less figured cooling off wouldn't be very efficient, but I hoped I was missing some secret.
I'll be avoiding the downtown area like the plague, and I'll likely be building in a suburb outside of the city, and traveling the opposite direction from there.
Big bus+big city=pain in the butt.
Thanks for the input!

[cadillackid]

Originally Posted by TankaRu

I more or less figured cooling off wouldn't be very efficient, but I hoped I was missing some secret.
I'll be avoiding the downtown area like the plague, and I'll likely be building in a suburb outside of the city, and traveling the opposite direction from there.
Big bus+big city=pain in the butt.
Thanks for the input!

for sure... I got a short bus because I love to hang out in downtowns of cities.. though I dont sleep in my bus over-night (its a mobile DEV lab).. a big bus in the city is a royl pain... even my 7 window on some of the narrow city streets is a bit of pain to make turns or navigate through traffic...

I live in a regular subdivision and thus far the neighbors are intruiged and excited about my bus... though I dont keep it home every night... only on the nights I am working on it.. so I dont wear its welcome out.. if I had a longer bus I would never be able to have it at home at all.. it wouldnt fit between driveways...
-Christopher

[TankaRu]

I am planning to live in it full time so I'm gonna splurge for the space. I've got a vw beetle that I'd like to tow behind the bus for trips to the city, or to drive around if I'm parked in one place for a while.