somewhereinUSA build

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somewhereinusa
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Re: somewhereinUSA build

Post by somewhereinusa »

The floor covering is 3/4 inch plywood with a plastic coating on both sides. Really nice 9 ply stuff. The strips are H section aluminum. It's basically a full floating floor. I picked up the ply at a RV surplus place for $10 a sheet, and couldn't pass it up. I really like it, don't know how it will hold up.
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somewhereinusa
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Re: somewhereinUSA build

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This is something I posted on another forum in response to something about owning a bus isn't cheap.

I don't have very much money, never have had. Someone recently asked why I didn't just buy a motorhome. I may be plodding along on my conversion, but it's all paid for. I can wait until I have enough money to pay for what ever new project I am working on. If I had some kind of monthly payment that sucker comes every month no matter what. I don't even keep track of what I have spent. Who cares? It would probably scare me. It isn't fancy, there are a lot of the "fancy" buses/motorhomes that I don't care for. It does however, have things not found in a lot of the fancy units. I may spend more on trial and error and failed attempts trying to build something that I have seen and could have bought but, then again, who cares? I may drool over some cool thing that you have in your bus. Will I go out and buy one? No, but I may spend months trying to make one. :) I'm putting all of the things I've learned how to do in the first 65 years, into something I want to do. I do try to use the best of things that I can afford or make. I don't like plastic so, I try to make it out of something else. It might not be the best that YOU can afford, but I'm not trying to please you, or sell it to you. My bus sits in the driveway where I can see it out the bathroom window. Every time I look out there, even in the middle of the night, I think "that is really cool, I built that"
I have some systems that aren't the most efficient, I know that, I worked with what I could get or had and, they work. That pile of "junk" my wife occasionally mentions is getting smaller. :)

I don't see the wisdom of doing something a certain way so that it will be worth more when you sell it. I'm not doing it for them, I'm doing it for me. I don't sell things, ask my wife. :) I see TV shows where people have their house appraised then do some sort of remodel and have it appraised again. They are all happy that it gets appraised higher and are then told that they "made" x amount of dollars. Unless the appraiser hands them the new amount, they haven't made anything, they spent money. True, they may have added value but, if they live there ten years it will have to be redone anyway. Apparently anything over ten years old is "too" dated and couldn't possibly be left that way.

Dick
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stuartcnz
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Re: somewhereinUSA build

Post by stuartcnz »

The other thing going for your bus, that motorhomes don't have, is a commercial vehicle as their basis. So it will still be hold'n together when the motorhomes have fallen apart.
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somewhereinusa
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Update

Post by somewhereinusa »

I went on a trip to Wisconsin last month, was going to stay for 2 days, stayed for almost a week. Even made some money.

The heat works better than in my wildest dreams.
I have been using the bus for over two years, this is the first time I really felt comfortable even though things are far from finished. Hot shower,warm floors,permanently installed microwave,large reefer.
I am now at a place where I can start doing some finish work.
In keeping with my tradition of never using anything for it's intended purpose. I just finished up my under cabinet led lights in the kitchen.
I am quite pleased with the results and only have maybe $20 invested in all of them.

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When I first got them I was a little concerned about how much light they would make, and the color. These after dark shots show plenty of light and I like the color.

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Here are some detail shots. I got the stainless dipping cups at Sam's.

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Exploded view.

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The lights came with a plug in base, quite simple to take it off and solder wires on. I was surprised to find that these boards aren't polarity dependent, must be something built into the board. When I put it together I used a much larger hole in the metal part where the wires pass through so as to avoid any shorting problem. I simply screwed to the bottom of the cabinet and used silicone to hold spacer and pcb into the cup.

Dick
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Re: somewhereinUSA build

Post by LuckyChow »

Nice! They came out really bright from the looks of the picture. Minature can lights. Does the cup get very hot?
Darryl
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somewhereinusa
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Re: somewhereinUSA build

Post by somewhereinusa »

The can doesn't really get hot enough to feel
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somewhereinusa
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Re: somewhereinUSA build

Post by somewhereinusa »

I got the rear unit operational yesterday and couldn't be happier. Still have some final dressing up to do. It wasn't really all that hot yesterday, but I did get the bedroom down to 65 in a couple of hours. It was cool enough this morning to test the heat, made it toasty in the back. This thing is QUIET, if nothing else is making any noise, when I first start it up, I get a sense of the outside unit more than being able to hear it. When it's running the only thing I can hear is the inside fan, which is very quiet. It blows very cold or hot depending on the setting.
I hooked up my Kil-a-watt, on start up it VERY slowly climbs to 7.3 amps, then falls to 2 to 3. I just checked and while on high heat it was at 10 for a few seconds then fell again.

Condenser unit mounted in original condenser space. I will put the original screen and trim back on. The frame is the original, that never seemed to have been damaged, I also mounted a second rock guard in front. (the white one)

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There was no way I could get the larger line routed around all of the corners, I tried, without kinking. The smaller of the rubber refrigerant lines from the original factory air was the right size, so I had new flair ends put on it and it worked perfectly, I'm hoping this will also alleviate the problems some have had with line breakage, the 1/4 inch line is much more forgiving. I then insulated the rubber line. When I pulled a vacuum, I was a bit surprised to find that it stayed exactly all night, I figured it would change some because of the temperature change. The sun was shining on it when I did it and it was cool the next morning.

The condensate tray on the evaporator had provisions for a drain at either end so I put a T in and used them both. I painted the inside unit so it wasn't that ugly white, I may do some sort of enclosure to hide it later.

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I'm a little concerned about how the feet are fastened to the body, just two spot welds. I also made an upper mount to help control movement at the top, hoping to reduce stress on the bottom feet. I made the bottom rubber mounts more to keep from crushing the feet when I bolted it down than anything else.

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Only time will tell if this was really a good installation, but right now I am extremely pleased.

Dick
LuckyChow
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Re: somewhereinUSA build

Post by LuckyChow »

Looks great Dick. I wish I could install one myself. I hate the noisy roof airs. You'll have to give us an update after you use it a while. Did I miss it or did you say which brand you installed?

I think you did a great job on the install.
Darryl
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ol trunt
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Re: somewhereinUSA build

Post by ol trunt »

Nice fabrication Dick. I'm sure when you report back to us after a while it'll be something boring like "It works even better now than when I first finished it." :lol: Jack
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Re: somewhereinUSA build

Post by Stealth Camper »

Sweet!! I have been looking at those mini-splits for a travel trailer event I have going on right now. I am inspired.
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somewhereinusa
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Re: somewhereinUSA build

Post by somewhereinusa »

It's been a while, been busy working on my generator, not a lot of pictures. I did get a good deal on a pure sine wave inverter and just got it installed.

It is a bit larger than the old one, but was able to get it in the same spot.

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Cables and fuse, batteries are in engine compartment about 3 feet on the other side of wall to the right.

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View of the control panel showing that I'm on shore power and batteries are charged.

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Still a little dressing of the smaller wires to be done and I still haven't figured out final resting place for the control panel.

Dick
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somewhereinusa
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Re: somewhereinUSA build

Post by somewhereinusa »

Got the kitchen counter installed today. Still needs the pipes hooked up. I hated washing dishes in the bathroom sink. Still have to do the window trim and some odds and ends.

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Just a little bit of steam punk. Mumsywumsy said she wouldn't like it, after it was all done, she thought it very nice. Took about a week of polishing off and on to get to this point. I pressure tested this with air, haven't filled my water tanks yet this year. Not real sure my swivel will work, if not I'll have to do something else.

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Cooktops. Still have to construct a cover for when not in use. There will also be a drop in cover for the sink. Still have to construct some sort of drip pan in case of spills.

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Warm weather is coming, hope to get the generator installed soon.

Dick
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Dennis The Bus Dweller
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Re: somewhereinUSA build

Post by Dennis The Bus Dweller »

Wow, it looks great
Peace along the way
Dennis the bus dweller N.Y.
ol trunt
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Re: somewhereinUSA build

Post by ol trunt »

Very nice Dick. I guess I'd have to dub that "pipe art". Jack
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somewhereinusa
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Re: somewhereinUSA build

Post by somewhereinusa »

Working on getting some things done and things straightened up and put away for the upcoming summer.
Finally got the last of the counter/table surfaces done. This is the table in the kitchen.

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Mumsywumsy always wants to play board games and the only time I really have time is when we're away, so I made a pullout so there wouldn't be any cheating.

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When I originally built my door lock, I used a RF transmitter for the remote control. It worked, but I was never really happy with it. The metal of the bus interfered with the signal. You had to be right outside and since the lock is a linear actuator you had to hold the button down while it operated. I just finished an all new setup. This one is bluetooth controlled by my phone. It works from about 200 feet, one button push operates the actuator for the right amount of time. I also have 6 more relays for future use. Right now I just have porch light and front interior lights hooked up.

Control panel using arduino nano, bluetooth module is in front corner of windshield next to A piller.

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First outing of the year is in three weeks.

Dick
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