Today I went and got a sheet of Maple Plywood to rip a few boards I needed to finished framing the windows and doors.
It was 81 today and my insulation is definitely working. I decided it was a good idea to remove the little pesky window stoppers that make it so the windows only go down a crack.
I stocked up on lumber to frame out the master bedrooms bed, and also had enough maple plywood left over to cut the top piece for one of the couches. I ran wiring throughout the bus and definitely will need to invest in more wire to ensure that all outlets can reach the 1000 Amp Service box I will be utilizing. Plan is for that and a lot of other components to be in the back of the bus underneath the bed area.
I am thinking about mounting the grey water tank underneath the bus and the fresh water tank underneath the bed. My electrical system including solar inverters and charging components will be installed under the bed as well.
I finished the insulation of the sides of the bus. I used fiberglass for the places that the rigid foam board would not go, The foam board cuts so easy and I was able to get those cuts mounted pretty quickly.
My Son Aaron and I ripped a bunch of boards for use framing in all the windows and potentially the ceiling material. We shall see.
I created couch frames and installed insulation in the walls up front where these pieces will go.
I also had a sheet of plywood i wanted to fit into place behind the couches backrest. Im thinking about how high I want the walls to be, its just cut at the bottom to go over the wheel well and needs to be trimmed down to the height I want.
contemplating walling up to the middle of the window panes since the bottoms dont open. I could trim the walls at the top and still get a lot of natural light and added privacy without doing window deletes.
I did a little tinkering today with outlet placement and floor planning. Truth be told I did it in the wrong order, just don’t tell anyone ok?
I decided where the two couches are going in the front section of the bus. These are going to be simple pieces of furniture. Im thinking of using 2×2 to frame the shape, and hardwood finished plywood as the outer shell. Both couches will also be chests for storage.
I also installed outlets (twice) in both couch areas, I had to move them so they weren’t behind the couches backrest.
I had some extra Rigid Foam board insulation and I decided to test it out as the insulator on the walls, starting with the front couches was a good place to test it because there will be no plumbing or wires behind the couches.
This was a productive one. I got my table saw setup and cut 2 4×8 plywood into 2 inch boards 3/4 inch thick.
Once I had the boards cut, I had to insulate the spaces in the floor that the flooring didnt cover, after that cured, i shaved it down with my oscillating tool, and began the strapping process (Framing in a bus is called strapping.)
The base strapping was done by screwing small blocks into the bus frame using Wood to Steel self tapping screws, they pulled the wood in tight and worked really well. After the blocks were secured I ran boards down the sides and secured with wood screws into the blocks. This gives me 1 1/2 inches of framing which gets the boards beyond the bottom chair rail so I can put up wall boards when I am ready for that step.
After getting the strapping completed, I went and get some Flex Tape rubber adhesive to seal those pesky emergency hatches…not a permanent solution, just mitigating leaks so I can check the windows for leaks without the hatches throwing me on a wild goose chase. No pictures because I didnt bring my phone up on the roof and my hands were sticky from the tape.
I had a little help from my son Aaron finishing up the strapping, look at the wire harness in the window, that was another project I started messing with. I removed a lot of unneeded wires that controlled the flashing lights and stop signs etc…things that I have to remove for New York State to give me a title change from a Commercial vehicle to an RV.
Once I got the wire out, I rewrapped the remaining wires that control the brake lights, Reverse lights etc..and mounted them above the top strapping of the bus. It really cleans up the look of the bus,
I also ran some LED lights on the opposite side of the bus just for kicks and a little light.
One cool thing I found in my electrical adventure was a bus pass from 2017. It was in the electrical panel area.
Overall it as a pretty productive weekend, my back can confirm! I had a few folks stop by to check out the bus, my dear friends Chuck and Layla were in town but I was at the casino, so we will have to catch them next time! My neighbor stopped by and even brought me some goodies!
The Sickler Skoolie Build 