Assuming that headroom near the side wall is not an issue, for living in a bus full time, which is better, Side Isle or Center Isle Floor plan? It seems like side isle would feel more like a home. I have been full timing in a 31' Airstream for three years and the center isle makes it feel like one room.
FWIW you just need to spend a lot of time going through RVs looking at their floor plans.
The designers of motor homes know what the market wants so they provide the layouts most buyers want. The buyers know from experience what they want so that is what they buy. Generally speaking a side aisle is not as efficient as a center aisle and if you do a few floor plans your will realize that. But a side aisle eliminates the sight lines from the windshield to the bedroom. Other than that I cannot imagine the benefit.
Quote from: Darkspeed on January 24, 2015, 08:13:45 AMAssuming that headroom near the side wall is not an issue, for living in a bus full time, which is better, Side Isle or Center Isle Floor plan? It seems like side isle would feel more like a home. I have been full timing in a 31' Airstream for three years and the center isle makes it feel like one room.
I'm not one to ask (my layout was pretty much dictated by the location of the stairs) but I like the feel of a side aisle better (and that's just a personal preference and don't mean anything) but I think in my bus the center aisle made the layout more efficient.
Quote from: Jon on January 24, 2015, 08:43:39 AMFWIW you just need to spend a lot of time going through RVs looking at their floor plans.
The designers of motor homes know what the market wants so they provide the layouts most buyers want. The buyers know from experience what they want so that is what they buy. Generally speaking a side aisle is not as efficient as a center aisle and if you do a few floor plans your will realize that. But a side aisle eliminates the sight lines from the windshield to the bedroom. Other than that I cannot imagine the benefit.
My post crossed in the mail with Jon's - he's right and he said it better.
We used a side isle as it makes the bed room feel more private and worked better with our design
dave
I toured a side aisle once that had two bedrooms with a set of three bunks each. The bunks were angled and created the spaces for closets etc. They had a brady bunch(minus Alice) family to travel with and it was a 45' bus. Master bedroom was still in the back. Roof was high enough that the aisle was tall enough.
Suggest getting a cheapo/free CAD software and lay it out. Fun exercise to ponder.
Good luck and post what you come up with.
Dark -
With my rig, Angola Coach put a kink in the center aisle to make it look like a side aisle. They did this by angling the galley counter where the cooktop & microwave are placed. So you have to zig-zag down the hall, but you don't see the bedroom from the front salon.
FWIW & HTH. . .
;)
A center isle doesn't follow the "two uses" rule. Everything we put in has to have at least two uses. A center isle makes the bathroom larger AND is the hall to the bedroom. There are offset center isles that will fit the "two uses" and still add privacy to the bedroom. If all else fails, close the door to the bedroom for privacy. We just don't spend much time in the bedroom during the day and at night the front window is covered.
Don and Cary
hi All, Don s rule is true, our new bus has only one wall, from kitchen to bathroom, the door opens from the kitchen to close the toilet room, water closet or cabinet,whatever you want to call it. Tami wanted an open feeling, a very short Isle way just a door width ,leaves so much more usable room and creates an openess that we didnt have in the MCI5A, which was a pro conversion.you can see some pictures on B&Bs facebook or Vans bus conversions facebook pages. this let the kitchen to feel almost appartment like in it's size. we also eliminated the dining booth and made a counter extending from the kitchen counter, to eat at, we mostly eat outside or just out, this also didnt divide the front section of the bus, giving an even more open feeling. lvmci...
I did the side isle as I wanted the bathroom to be seperate and still be able to transit back and forth without having the bath block the way. Jerry
Great subject, for me, one of the considerations is when doing an older bus (MC7), as you get near the side wall the head room also decreases, so I went with the center isle. I see benefits of both methods, but I chose the center isle for the head banging.
Dave M
I think the mid Isle will likely lend itself to more efficient use of space, but how much more depends on what you are doing. Following the suggestion of going to an RV show or taking a look at different units on dealer lots could give a good feel for what you like.
Seems to me that a side aisle provides more privacy.
What is more important, privacy or space ?
center thru kitchen, into the bath. side exit into the rear bedroom. The wall between the bath and bed is the closet, with the hanging access above the toilet and two double drawer banks on the bedroom side. Gives you a huge wall for the tv.
We are in the process converting mci 102 a3 right now . Our choice is side for a couple of reasons, 2 bedrooms and the bus has a big side door from wheelchair lift that we wanted to keep. The 2 bedrooms are also separated by the bathroom. For us the privacy was more important. Also headroom is not a issue for us as I am 5'10" on tall days . :)
As with anything you do to your coach it comes down to what works for you .
Chuck
It was suggested to me (and sorry but I can't recall whom) to offset one of the "entrances" to the bathroom. You get the use of the entire width of the bus for a bathroom (like a center isle) and with the offset you get your increase in privacy. I am planning on locating the throne off to one side facing away from the bedroom with a stub wall with maybe some frosted glass to carry on to the roof. It will be on the opposite side from the offset passageway to isolate the throne from both the bedroom and the passageway. This way I can have my privacy door between the kitchen and the bathroom but open to, yet semi-secluded from the bedroom. A drawing would help but I don't have any at the present moment and I don't have a USB port in my neck.
Our bus had a side aisle when we bought it but we opted to change to a center aisle. The center aisle opened up the bus and allowed it to feel bigger with more space.
The Hollands have a side aisle type setup that is amazing. Craig's managed to design it in such a way that it feels more like a cozy 2 bedroom house. It gives the 2 bedroom areas their own space and privacy (to a degree) and the front space is very welcoming.
If it were the wife and I I would keep the center aisle but have a bathroom that goes across the width that can change to a center aisle. Dave Rush did this in his bus and I loved the way it looked and changed the bathroom to be open to the public, open as part of the bedroom or just 'put away' with a center aisle. Wisely done.
-Sean
In my 4104 I have a center aisle through the parlor and galley. I went to a side aisle at the midway point which gives me a full bath. My wife does not like compartmented bathrooms. We have short hallway to the bedroom. This configuration did not waste space.
Semi-side isle
I always like center isle. Side isle makes no sense to me since you waste all the wall space just for the walk way. Since our bus is 102 wide with 96" interior space, our hallway is offset to the road side. Starting on the road side is 24" cabinets that include refer, washer/dryer, closets. Then 24" isle. Then the remaining 48" is taken up with the bathroom built around the side door for access to the bathroom from the outside. The bathroom is 8ft long with a shower stall that is 36" x 36". Between the shower stall and the wall is the linen closet. Has been quite livable. Good Luck, TomC
We looked at a few buses before we bought ours. One of them had a side isle. It did seem to provide the impression of a more private bedroom, but otherwise detracted from the rest of the space. It was highly inefficient in terms of allowable contiguous space and made for a really odd bathroom layout. It also made for a goofy small kitchen area. The ceiling was considerably lower on the side which made walking through that aisle to the bedroom awkward.
I agree with Cary and Don on the multi-use factor. A side isle dedicates that space as a walkway and nothing/little else. With the center isle configuration we have in ours, that same isle can be used as actual usable space for the bathroom, or extending the enclosed space of the bedroom, or closing off both and having three different spaces (bedroom, shower, camode).
It also allows the kitchen space to be more functional.
The side isle configuration was a weight and balance concern for me as well, as everything was now loaded to one side of the bus (bed, with tanks under bed, kitchen counter and fridge, and bathroom).
Also, it may not matter for your use, but we saw this bus in cold weather. That walkway was bitter cold as compared to the more central parts of the bus. That may have had to do as much with the completely lacking insulation in this particular bus, but in our bus the walls are covered with things like cabinets and closets, leaving the usable open space in the center away from the walls, and adding a tiny bit of additional insulation. And sitting in an 8' aluminum tube, the further you're sitting from the cold walls the better ;D
Three more shots-- the front lounge is centered, the bed and bath are centered, just the entrance to the bathroom is offset with a slide out pantry and pocket door. That breaks up the bowling ball center isle. The pocket door slides out against a double closet on the left and seals off the bathroom. The bedroom has double sliding doors that come together at the center to isolate the bedroom and and bathroom from each other.
--Geoff
(These are never seen pictures from my RTS conversion. More if you want them).
Sorry but I do not understand the statement that a center hall makes better use of space as it does not wast space. A hall that transitions from point a (kitchen ) to point b (bedroom ) is still a hall . A 6x2 hall is 12 sq.ft along side or in center. :-\
Chuck
on our side isle when you close the door between the kitchen , bathroom and then close the door from the bed room to the bath room it makes the bath room huge . only difference is I have a 3rd door that closes off the bath tub and the crapper . this way with the side isle there is more room in the tub,crapper area . we had the bowling alley center isle in a sticks , staples m/h with a window in the back . my wiffe ,I hatted it but the dog loved it as she would through the dog toys all the way to the back and the dog could run well we were on the road
dave
We went with side isle with a full bathroom like a home. After spending some time in a friends center isle we did not like when attempting to shower you basically prevent anyone else from going into the bedroom or using the toilet. With the side isle we can still access the bedroom when someone is using the toilet or shower. We have 36"x36" shower, toilet next to it and a sink across from the toilet. Gives the girls full privacy when they are in there.
Quote from: dbldragon on January 26, 2015, 01:36:44 AM
Sorry but I do not understand the statement that a center hall makes better use of space as it does not wast space. A hall that transitions from point a (kitchen ) to point b (bedroom ) is still a hall . A 6x2 hall is 12 sq.ft along side or in center. :-\
Chuck
Chuck,
It wastes space, because you have the angles in there. It takes more space to push a two foot square box down a side aisle, because it has to turn. However, if you take that box and push it straight back, there is less sq ft needed. Draw it up, and you will see.
Geoff - Nice looking bus. I for one would like more pics.
pixs of ours http://s1280.photobucket.com/user/crane66/media/busdec202014014_zps2d9d3c4c.jpg.html?sort=3&o=2 (http://s1280.photobucket.com/user/crane66/media/busdec202014014_zps2d9d3c4c.jpg.html?sort=3&o=2)
http://s1280.photobucket.com/user/crane66/media/buspicsapril222014014_zpse751e857.jpg.html?sort=3&o=24 (http://s1280.photobucket.com/user/crane66/media/buspicsapril222014014_zpse751e857.jpg.html?sort=3&o=24)
http://s1280.photobucket.com/user/crane66/media/busdec202014002_zps8fce5abc.jpg.html?sort=3&o=13 (http://s1280.photobucket.com/user/crane66/media/busdec202014002_zps8fce5abc.jpg.html?sort=3&o=13)
dave
For now, we will be going with a side aisle...........momma says so. But I am going to show her the pictures of Dave's setup. That is a good looking set up.
There is a 3rd option, a modified side aisle, which is what we did on our MC96a3.
On the right side going rearward we carved out about 20 inches from the wall and installed pantry cabinets and a double sliding door for our electrical and hanging closet.
Opposite this we made a fully enclosed full bath, with entrance from the narrow hallway.
We like this because folks have access to the bedroom while someone is using the bath, and there is a little more privacy in the bath. Incidentally the bathroom door is exactly as wide as the aisle, so when the bathroom door opens, it can be secured to divide the coach for privacy when dressing in the bedroom, etc. When the door is returned to its normal position you can see down the length of the coach, and a get less cooped-up feeling.
Just our way. YMMV.
Mike in GA
thanks for the complement .
we had 2 sticks , staples m/h before and it all started because my wife wanted a bath tub . we looked at a lot of m/homes but could not find a layout we liked . then the idea of making our own from a bus was former
it is hard to see in the pixs but there are 3 pocket sliding doors
1 bed to bath
1 bath to tub, crapper
1 right side fridge between kit , bath
dave
John I see your point , but if it is a 2x2 box you could simply push it to the wall then push it down the hall no need to turn . My point is the hall itself , which starts at the end of kitchen in my case and ends at the beginning of the rear bedroom. Center or side it is the same length. My kitchen living room area never changed size just some appliance locations,but that was to do with sink stove fridge triangle.
This layout allows total freedom to come and go to bedroom and bath by multiple users , as we will be using our bus with our teenage son.
Chuck
Chuck,
I agree to an extent. The hallway itself is the same length. However, when you push the box to the wall, that is the wasted room. You could have an extra 2x2 cabinet there, or something. We went with a center aisle, because we had 9-10 people living on board for weeks at a time. We needed every inch of space possible. Side aisle would be great if you had the extra room.
Cheers,
John
A side aisle isn't necessarily wasted space.
With appropriate use of pocket and sliding doors to the bath, you would have the option to use the side aisle as part of the bath, or, maintain privacy in the bath while allowing access to the rear.
It would seem to me that it would be a much more enjoyable trip with guests if a private second bed room is available rather than having to convert the living room. For us, having to transition the living room seems to cause the most friction - some are having to retire early while others are kept up late.
We have occasionally included our kid's friends, & relatives with us camping - that is why I am proceeding with a side aisle. ;D
Same thinking Kyle private second bedroom biggest issue for us. We noticed when looking for a coach used they were either for 2 or for 6 or more with bunks. Center hall makes sense with bunks.
Chuck
Quote from: dbldragon on January 28, 2015, 09:26:44 PM
Same thinking Kyle private second bedroom biggest issue for us. We noticed when looking for a coach used they were either for 2 or for 6 or more with bunks. Center hall makes sense with bunks.
Chuck
Exactly. We had seven bunks in ours. If we would have wanted bedrooms, I am sure we would have gone side aisle.