Skoolie Newb - Roast my ideas?

[Cmp433]

Hello All,

I am 26 years old and just sold my business i started 5 years ago. I have a decent pot of money with no debt or children (responsibilities) and have always wanted to tour the country while enjoying my hobbies such as rock climbing, backpacking, canoeing, etc. I have done quite a bit of research and am convinced that I need to buy a school bus, convert it, and take off. I am smart enough to realize that I need to do as much planning before even purchasing a bus, let alone converting it, and even more importantly taking to the open road blindly. I am wanting this to be more of a tiny house than a RV so to speak and i want to be able to live in it as comfortable as possible. My goal is to be able to live "off grid" for two weeks to a month without having to restock supplies if possible. After owning a business I have thankfully made friends and basically have access to any industrial tool, as well as friends who are quite the carpenter / plumber / electrician / welder / mechanic and am not the worst handyman myself.. If anyone has any information or input on any of my ideas / thoughts I would greatly appreciate it.

Here are my questions:

Are there any other drawbacks to a short bus asides from the obvious less living space? I am leaning towards getting a short bus for the mobility and convenience.

Composting toilet vs regular toilet? I really don't want to have to haul around and dispose black water.

Is it worth converting the bus to run off WVO? More importantly is it feasible to gather and convert the oil to make it usable while traveling?

Has anyone here made a "double decker" bus by chance? I had the idea that if possible, making a small bedroom above the bus and use it simply for sleeping. It seems like it would open up the bottom quite a lot since most the buses i have been looking at are only 15' x 7.5' max.

Is $10,000 a reasonable budget? I have been finding buses that are approximately $3,000 that seem to be a fit for what I am wanting. That would leave $7,000 for the renovations and supplies.

If anyone has any floor plans for short buses I would love to see them to compare and decide which would be best for me.

Thanks in advance!

[SDR76]

Hi. Welcome. I like your idea, and congrats on making this dream take shape. Toilet; either composting, or a simple dry toilet. WVO: I have a bit of experience in this, my advice, don't attempt it on the road. It can be viable, but a major Pain to try mobile. Double decker; I'm not sure on that. You could mount a FlipPac on there and have a tent top. Budget: it depends on what you want, I'd say for 10k, you could build something awesome! Especially if you have access to tools and equipment already... Best of luck!