From one tiny home to another.

[RufioShortBus]

My wife and I currently live in a 12'x24' tiny home in Hancock, MA. We've been here since August of 2014. It's been an amazing experience! Now we have decided to it's time to try the mobile tiny home and get some traveling in.

We have a 2001 Chevy Corbeil Short Bus. It holds 24 Children or 12 Adults. It is a diesel and has 194k miles on it. We have decided on the name Rufio (after the character in Hook), and by 'we' I mean 'I' as she got to name our dog. :wink1: It also came with an AC unit! We are very excited about this and definitely plan on keeping it hooked up.

I just started removing the seats yesterday. I of course had to use a grinder as most of the bolts were rusted to the point the nut just kept spinning. So far I have 4 of the seats out! Hopefully by tonight it will be all eight.

If you have any information you think is important for a first time skoolie/ the beginning stages of the conversion, please let me know!

Thank you to skoolie.net for having me, it's great to be here.

 

[Tango-SKO]

Welcome to the Mayhem! --- With your tiny home experience, you should have a leg up when it comes to making the most of the space available. Please do keep us informed as you progress...preferably with pix. We LOVE pix.

 

[RufioShortBus]

Pictures

I am hoping I read the directions correctly and will share some photos with you all.

First seat is out!
First Removed Seat Photo by makesyourmomrockharder | Photobucket

I'm very happy about this! First time using a grinder and it's a success!
Me With First Removed Seat Photo by makesyourmomrockharder | Photobucket

I learned while removing the few seats where all the kids hid their gum...
The Hidden Gum (Flash) Photo by makesyourmomrockharder | Photobucket

Here's a rough shot looking toward the rear exit at the empty space the four seats were.
Looking To Rear Of Bus At Where The Four Back Seats Were Photo by makesyourmomrockharder | Photobucket

Hope you can see and enjoy the pictures! More to come! :biggrin:

 

[Carytowncat]

The plicture of you smiling with the first seat removed totally captures that first seat removal joy.

Welcome and good luck!

 

[RufioShortBus]

All seats are out! Now to find a home for them.

I had a friend come over yesterday and we removed the remaining seats. It's amazing how much larger it already looks. Another friend started going through some of the wiring to remove the child alarm - boy is that thing annoying, ay? So far no luck, but we got the back door alarm off, so that's nice. That was followed by whispering "Tim, I deactivated the alarm" for the rest of the night.
Then my one friend went to leave and she realized her van was acting up and now has a knock. It's always something.
Here are some pictures to enjoy!

Zack Helping With The Grinder Photo by makesyourmomrockharder | Photobucket

Bus Seat Graveyard Photo by makesyourmomrockharder | Photobucket

View Through Rear - No Seats! Photo by makesyourmomrockharder | Photobucket

No Seats - Messing With Lights Photo by makesyourmomrockharder | Photobucket

 

[joeblack5]

Hi there. We are converting a ford corbeil. The nuts of the seats are not welded to the bottom. Our corbeil is made of aluminum. It is a srw. We removed the seats with an impact driver and holding the nuts with a wrench. You have a blog about the tiny house?
Later j.

 

[RufioShortBus]

Hi there. We are converting a ford corbeil. The nuts of the seats are not welded to the bottom. Our corbeil is made of aluminum. It is a srw. We removed the seats with an impact driver and holding the nuts with a wrench. You have a blog about the tiny house?
Later j.

We were able to get 2 bolts out with our impact. The rest had rusted threads so the nut just ended up spinning on the bolt. So we had to grind the rest out.

We don't have a blog on the tiny home. It's very simple compared to the bus, so I've never thought about it. We've also been trying to keep this quiet because of the building codes in our area. The building is structurally sound and then some, but Massachusetts requires anything you live in to be a house. And to be a house you need a septic system, well, and electric lines running in from the grid.