Hello all,
I am in the early stages of planning an RV build, trying to decide what kinds of configurations would even be practical for what I want to achieve. Most of the other options I'm evaluating more or less come down to "fiberglass or aluminum rectangle on top of a pair of frame rails" and are thus fairly straightforward to plan, but with a bus I have to think about non-flat walls, window placement, unibody structures, chassis infrastructure more complicated than a handful of electrical lines and the wheel wells, etc.
With that in mind I am looking for resources along the lines of what Ford would call a "Body Builders Layout Book" that provides diagrams with all the relevant dimensions and more importantly where you should not do certain kinds of things like drilling due to critical components being nearby.
Are any documents like these publicly available for any of the major bus platforms? I'm primarily looking at later Prevost XLs but anything in the 40-45 foot range with a non-DEF four stroke is under consideration. XL2, H3, MCI D-Series, etc.
If the official guides don't exist or are kept closely guarded, are there any good unofficial resources for the same?
There is a degree of "trial by fire" to this hobby...
Get all the manuals for your bus, and tread gingerly to find the big and small wiring.
I don't know anyone who successfully pre-planned the floor plan, without the bus being available to measure, check, and find structure directly below where you wanted to put the toilet pipe...
The adventure continues?
Happy coaching!
Buswarrior
go to prevostcar.com look up tech manuals elect puematic etc. You can use my serial number for this search. W-6553. If you have a coach the last letter in your serial number= year the last 4 digits= unit number. Wiring in prevost bus are tatooed every few inches and color coded.. The air lines are color coded to use only.IE blue=suspension. best of luck!!
In search engine above.. put in 45XLE the first was sort of offtopic the 2nd in 2013 give you a better idea bus projects.
Yes, in the end it does all revolve around where you want to put the toilet pipe. There is, seriously and all kidding aside, no more important decision you can make in planning a conversion. With some coaches there are only a couple of choices that make any kind of sense. I can say the D series is one of those because I have one. The Prevost? I dunno.
Jim
Go to all the Prevost for sale ads. Look at the interior pictures. You'll start seeing commonality after viewing a hundred or more.
Or you can do it a Neanderthal way - we moved into our shell of a bus & started with masking tape & belongings in boxes - full timing peeing on trees & such. As time went on after a couple rolls of masking tape (beats demolition of a changed idea!) and much rough times we ended up with exactly what we wanted and still lovin' it in our 42nd year of ownership. That's our story & we're stickin' to it! :)
There's a fairly new YouTube channel with guy who I think has a Prevost in the vintage range you are looking at: Prevost Life Plus
Hi wolrah, if you can't find parts and service books for whatever bus you choose, these are a similar resource here, lvmci...
I have a dozen similar literature lying around in my garage, the relevance of which, in principle, is already a little outdated. But I can share with you if you are interested, need to make a scan and send it.
My understanding is you have not yet picked or found the vehicle? Good suggestion above is look at all of them you can. Doing slides? No slides? Big difference on what you can do. We almost gutted an Allegro bus and re did interior to our liking. Just got a 1980 Shorty (35 foot) Prevost and jerked half the furniture out and redoing all the valences and shades right now. Allegro had slides, mini me Prevost has no slides and only 96 wide. Not much floorplan changing going on there, but we still love it. If vehicle is important, floorplan will be a little boxed. If floorplan is priority, choose wisely on what vehicle lets you do that. Expect to keep shower/toilette where it is and beware how tricky Prevost is on hiding wires, heating ducts in places you thought too small for all of that. Mostly, try to have fun with it.
The DLs will have you putting the toilet just in front of the rear wheels which is a pretty good location.
Jim
Another option is to go with a composting toilet. Then you don't have to worry about the black tank at all, just a gray tank.
Some of the newer composting toilets look just like a conventional RV toilet. Here's one I'd consider if doing any renovations on our bus bathroom.
https://compoosttoilets.com/
With such a creative bunch, seems like plenty ways of swishing poop off center of the gravity drop zone. Can't one put a small holding tank directly under and use a sump pump to transport it anywhere to the black tank?
I'm missing something as it seems universal there is this golden rule that the crown must sit on top of the black tank.
It all depends on how simple one wants to keep the install. Lots of current options for a toilet not over the black tank. Nearly all high-end motor homes with more than one bathroom are using a macerator toilet, and with that system it's not necessary for the toilet to be near the black tank.
Many are also getting away from a black tank at all. A composting toilet combined with a small cube of peat moss and a few trash bags will get you at least a few weeks use. Works in any weather and even with the plumbing system still winterized.
Not sure I'd opt for a smaller tank/lift station set up though, as to pump the solid waste you'll need to use more water. If you're going do that, you might as well just install a macerator toilet.
Cool. I figured there are some viable alternatives than to simple gravity feed. That said, then why make such a fuss about toilet placement. Personally, it seems having more of a blank slate to layout would offset what it takes to install a macerator style pooper.
And maybe even composting option is worth a conversion for full on off-grid living due to reduced water usage.
What does it cost in the beginning?
What is the likelyhood of having to tear into it, and all its glory, later on?
What does one have to do to service it on a regular basis?
The answers depend on how poop averse one might be...
The answer that is most common, is likely the one that adds up for most people.
The bus conversion already used up a lot of peeps' counter culture apetite, the toilet may be a topic that goes too far?
Not for one, but for the other that is only humouring the first?
Vive la differénce?
Happy coaching!
Buswarrior
This seemed to shift from floorplan to toilette? Funny. Have fun with the planning. You can sketch two seats and a steering wheel up front. You can't get around that. Put the bed in back. You don't need it all day and will just trip over it if it is not there. That leaves kitchen/shower/ and yes....the potty, and the closer they are together the closer the pipes are together and less bay space lost. Then a sofa or two chairs where you like them. Dinner table optional, and if you want to look like the NEW stuff, you need 4 TVs inside and 2 outside. Seriously, look at all you can before you start. Some pretty cool ideas out there. If you can go to some meets, most are happy to show you what they have done. Good luck with it!
History has shown that a straight drop into the black tank is the most trouble free way to go by a pretty good margin, as well as the most cost effective. Even if you are carrying out the desiccated remains in bricks (yuk) you still have to dump waste water. Mechanical things go bad, so fewer mechanical things means fewer vile moments and who doesn't want that?
Jim
In looking at modern RV's via a number of YouTube videos.
I think the new tendency is to put the toilet/shower in the far back, which given our rear engine placements would argue for a macerator toilet.
The layout of my 40ft bus has roughly 6.5 feet devoted to bathroom/shower though about 2.5 feet is closet/washing machine as part of the combined space.
Another upside of a macerator toilet is that you do not have to instruct guests on how to use the toilet. Downside is more water usage and need for 120v power and hey something that might fail.
Probably best to hear from a busnut that has had to deal with a failed macerator toilet, before venturing onto that shitty path?
The boat ones are not pleasant, every nook filled with solids, and of course, a pipe and bottom full of fluid, when they finally choke to death.
If the sewer aspects of this hobby make you the least bit squeamish, think really hard about the consequences of how to deal with failed equipment, cuz every choice breaks down eventually.
Raising a glass to keeping one's stomach from churning...
Happy coaching!
Buswarrior
I was thinking of a similar situation where bathroom placement, let's at the rear of the coach, was highly desired. It's an obvious tradeoff. Most desirable bathroom location on the floor plan vs greater service and maintenance issues from more mechanical parts that as said plenty of times IS going to break and need fixing.
Maybe I'm not so put off by poo, so I'd think it not such a big deal. But I'd make sure the design to control the mess in case of failure. Maybe a small holding tank combined with the macerator. An alert on the holding tank not being cleared by the masticator would avoid spillovers and contain poo in transit. Masticator intake could draw down into the tank so removal would minimize the mess. dunno, just thinking on my own. Obviously some super high end coaches like Marathon have sorted it out, go copy their design.
Quote from: Jim Blackwood on March 05, 2021, 08:13:48 AM
History has shown that a straight drop into the black tank is the most trouble free way to go by a pretty good margin, as well as the most cost effective. Even if you are carrying out the desiccated remains in bricks (yuk) you still have to dump waste water. Mechanical things go bad, so fewer mechanical things means fewer vile moments and who doesn't want that?
Jim
If you want absolute simple then a good composting toilet with urine separator is the ticket. From the reviews I'm seeing the odor problem is less than a traditional black tank, and the emptying of the bin is less messy than dumping a black tank. No chance of every having a black tank leak if you don't have one. Macerating toilets have the highest number of moving parts and potential for problems, for sure.
For a species that has a habit of crapping and peeing virtually into our own drinking water supply, we sure tend towards being fecally adverse, don't we. I guess after having spent time working on a dairy farm it just doesn't bother me so much any more - just one more task to be done whether it's emptying the black tank or the composting toilet.
I have the luxury of a drafting program for work purposes.
After securing the bus I measured multiple times to begin designing the floor plan. As I progressed I copied the image and moved things around.
We have an ideal plan...but not certain it will work. However, we have several iterations as a backup.
The nice thing about the drafting program is, I could move things around and dimension them in a short time. I found some creative ways to save space.
Once we settle on a plan, I will draft elevations of everything. I'm not a visionary, but I can execute a plan.
Here's what Custom Coach was doing in the 70s for design layouts. This is my bus, #1915.
This is really a poo topic. lol
Got me curious about "good" composting toilet products. Have many here researched and installed this sort of pooper?
I like the benefit it is less hassle than dumping black tanks and also the water savings is great. Can't complain about less odor as well.
Seems like it might be an even better option than traditional methods.
Just reread wolrah thread. The original that started this thing? Didn't ask a single question about latrine, toilette, macerator etc etc.
I think we scared them off. "All these people can think about is poop?".
Hasn't logged on to the site since posting this question...
Happy coaching!
Buswarrior
I did a bunch of research on odor, and at one point I had a job with the floodwall board which meant we also maintained sanitary sewer pumping stations. You'd expect that to be a stinky job but it was surprising. The combination of moving water and exposure to air removed all but a residual aroma which was much less objectionable. (although it did tend to follow you home, one of the reasons I didn't continue in that job) Of course that was much more diluted, being mostly grey water but with the poo ingredients in a broken down state which also surprisingly must happen immediately since all we ever saw was gray water.
So I have a plan to actively introduce fresh air into the black tank and I think that will keep the stench under control, which means I'm less concerned about the smell and more about the inconvenience of dealing with the waste.
What I absolutely do not want to deal with is solid waste. I don't mind so much dealing with the liquid form but even then the farther from the living quarters the better. And opening a simple valve to dump it into the tank is about as simple and reliable and fail proof as possible. Add in cold weather and it only gets worse.
Yeah, dumping the black tank isn't fun, but you have to dump the gray tank anyway so opening an extra valve isn't that challenging. In my case I'll be flushing the gray water through the black tank so clean up afterwards is better.
So that's why my toilet is going where it is. And I think the location makes sense. I don't know why you would want the toilet at the rear of the bus anyway.
Jim
We are planning for an incinerator toilet. No black tank for us.
Quote from: epretot on March 05, 2021, 08:04:44 PM
We are planning for an incinerator toilet. No black tank for us.
Had never heard of such a pooper. Are you planning to be hooked to a pole most of the time? It seems the electrical versions pull some serious amps to get the job done. Wonder how that throws off the solar and battery calcs off? lol
We will have shore power, solar and generator power.
I'm fortunate enough to have an electrician and a low voltage expert helping me to design and build the system.
Too bad they don't have them in pill form!
As long as you and others close by can deal with the smell while burning it.
Quote from: epretot on March 05, 2021, 08:04:44 PM
We are planning for an incinerator toilet. No black tank for us.
I had a friend who worked as a port crane operator and since they were 200ft off the ground they had incinerator toilets. First that I heard of such a unit.
Of course we hear of Vietnam era stories of burning the $#!% collection with diesel fuel which was a despised/punishment job.
Quote from: chessie4905 on March 07, 2021, 04:54:10 AM
As long as you and others close by can deal with the smell while burning it.
I have 5 kids. All but one are teenagers now.
I'm immune to the smell of poo.
yeah. doing away with black tank, then the composting toilet doesnt work out. then tear out and install black tank.
That's just how those oddball toilet plumbing situations happen. Try something new in the build, end up having to step back, and now the drain has to travel and the tank gets short so there's enough slope. Nevermind that it now has to go through the generator.
Jim
Quote from: chessie4905 on March 07, 2021, 10:47:25 AM
yeah. doing away with black tank, then the composting toilet doesnt work out. then tear out and install black tank.
The newer composting toilets are doing quite well. I understand that not everyone is able to get onboard with them, but I'm seeing them installed on some pretty high-end narrowboats in the UK as well as some pretty nice RV rigs in the US. They don't have the stink most people assume, mostly due to the separation of liquid and solid waste.
I've seen lots of reviews of them after owners have replaced a black tank toilet with a composting one, and none of them have indicated any intent to go back.
Would they be for everyone? Of course not. If you have 5 kids or regularly travel with more than just 2-3 people they probably would need emptying more often than I'd prefer, and I'm sure that there are some who just won't like the general concept.
One way or another though, we're all going to need our fecal facilities.
Sorry for the delay in response, some mistaken math about the end date of a lease led to some temporary panic around my household and I've had "more important" things to think about.
Quote from: Tedsoldbus on March 03, 2021, 07:06:47 PM
My understanding is you have not yet picked or found the vehicle? Good suggestion above is look at all of them you can. Doing slides? No slides? Big difference on what you can do.
Correct, I have not picked a vehicle, I know a general range of vehicles I'd like to stick within if I do in fact go with a bus, but even that's not entirely certain. Right now I'm at the "draw up layouts and see if I can make it fit" stage.
I would like to get away without slides if I can, both for avoiding slide-related problems and being able to potentially start with a passenger bus rather than having to find an existing coach that was either close enough to what I want or bad enough to be worth gutting.
Long story short my girlfriend and I both work from home and would like to work from the road, potentially turning in to full timing, but we need more than just a place to put a laptop. We have desktops with multiple large monitors and need more desk space than the common "replace dinette with desk" setups deliver. We also both like a lot of bed space, so the name of the game is basically "can I fit a king bed and two decent size desks in the available space without sacrificing livability too much when we're not working?"
Quote from: richard5933 on March 05, 2021, 12:23:39 PM
Here's what Custom Coach was doing in the 70s for design layouts. This is my bus, #1915.
That's closer to what I'm looking for, dimensions of the spaces available to work within.
As for toilet talk, while I have looked at the idea of various alternative toilets when considering a skoolie or box truck build, I feel like if I were to use a proper nice bus I'd want to have a normal sewage system.
Have you seen Cherie and Chris' website https://www.technomadia.com/ (https://www.technomadia.com/)? They are doing what you are talking about for quite a few years.
Quote from: usbusin on March 08, 2021, 11:25:47 AM
Have you seen Cherie and Chris' website https://www.technomadia.com/ (https://www.technomadia.com/)? They are doing what you are talking about for quite a few years.
The name "Technomadia" feels familiar so I think I may have stumbled upon them a few years ago during a short lived fascination with the GM buses, but I hadn't come back across them recently. Their layout is actually very close to what I've been picturing, so that's a good sign for it being possible to accomplish what I want in a larger bus.
Just get a early 90's MCI 45' bus. You have lots of room to make a living room/big office for all your stuff, nice sized kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom. You could easily make a master bedroom big enough to contain one office and one in the living area.
My '96 floorplan is somewhat similar. Queen sized bed in the back (could fit a king but a bit more cramped) with wardrobes and headboard storage. Next window section is bathroom and shower. Toilet at the forward end of that compartment puts the drain over the rear of the rear baggage bay. Next window is desk and workbench (windows are about 5 ft). Then kitchen/dining and living areas. Could have moved the bathroom section forward one window for another desk area but that means removing the overhead air-con units which I wasn't willing to do.
Jim
If you want king size sleeping space you might do better with two twins against the outside walls and a center isle. This gives much easier access and much better walking space. I've seen some do this in a way that the beds can slide together at night to make a larger single bed.
So the feel I'm getting is that there aren't really any good diagrams of an empty bus or something like that I could use to specifically plan out a hypothetical floorplan?
I know that no good plan survives implementation and there would inevitably be things that need to change based on a specific chassis' configuration, and that considering the aisle space a difference of an inch or two shouldn't really be hard to work with for the most part, but I am a numbers guy at heart so I was really hoping there were diagrams along the lines of what richard5933 posted, but for an empty shell, so I could see the exact limits I'd have to work within and then play around with scale cutouts of various elements.
Also thanks very much to those early replies that provided reference serial numbers, that didn't find me exactly what I want but it is nice to see the sort of documentation that would be available if I were to pick one of those models.
Quote from: windtrader on March 08, 2021, 09:47:09 PM
Just get a early 90's MCI 45' bus. You have lots of room to make a living room/big office for all your stuff, nice sized kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom. You could easily make a master bedroom big enough to contain one office and one in the living area.
I am definitely considering the MCIs, I have some personal nostalgia for the XL45 because my grandparents had a Country Coach back then but this would be a long term project so finding the best platform for what I want logically has to outweigh nostalgia. Any bus platform in this class is in the running at the moment, and I would definitely be focusing my search on 45s because the whole point is space. If I can get to the point of drawing it out and it would fit I may be able to consider 40s, but I'm pretty sure the 45 is more common in the model years I'd be looking at.
Quote from: richard5933 on March 09, 2021, 09:46:47 AM
If you want king size sleeping space you might do better with two twins against the outside walls and a center isle. This gives much easier access and much better walking space. I've seen some do this in a way that the beds can slide together at night to make a larger single bed.
You seem to be reading my mind. One of the ideas I am looking for this information to evaluate was exactly that, now much room it would give me to run a TwinXL on each side mounted on something like a drawer so they could be pulled together to equal a "split king".
Check out what Yvan did on the flip up Murphy design. With twins you could easily design something that flips/rotates where when not used for sleeping it could be set up as a nice work area. but if you need to keep your desk more permanent that that'd not work so well. Maybe have a full length desk that could be raised up during the night then drop down with all your stuff on it. Instant desk for the day.
As to trying to do too much detail dimensional planning, it seems most new builder get the floor in, lay tape down where they think things should go, then "live" with it to make adjustments to make things flow better, more comfortable, and efficient.
Unless you have previous with the specific coach and dimensions and done a conversion on that platform, it seems unrealistic to lay it all out before starting and expect it to be even close to where it actually ends up.
Plenty folks here can give you 1st person insights. I made the decision from initially wanting to DIY then seeing an already converted coach was the overwhelming practical and economic and time saving option.
Quote from: windtrader on March 09, 2021, 12:41:50 PM
Check out what Yvan did on the flip up Murphy design. With twins you could easily design something that flips/rotates where when not used for sleeping it could be set up as a nice work area. but if you need to keep your desk more permanent that that'd not work so well. Maybe have a full length desk that could be raised up during the night then drop down with all your stuff on it. Instant desk for the day.
I have definitely spent a lot of time considering fold-away solutions for the desk but the desktop computer aspect makes that challenging. How to make multiple monitors, keyboards, mice, etc. compatible with a stowable desk is an immense challenge. If I could work off a laptop it'd be a lot easier, but I'm used to having a lot of screen real estate in which to multitask and have built my workflow around that.
I have a few thoughts but they're not exactly simple mechanically and I feel like it would go beyond my abilities to fabricate so for now I'm assuming a relatively normal (if maybe a bit shallow) desk.
Quote
As to trying to do too much detail dimensional planning, it seems most new builder get the floor in, lay tape down where they think things should go, then "live" with it to make adjustments to make things flow better, more comfortable, and efficient.
Unless you have previous with the specific coach and dimensions and done a conversion on that platform, it seems unrealistic to lay it all out before starting and expect it to be even close to where it actually ends up.
I get that, but at the same time my issue at the moment is deciding whether this entire concept is practical in the first place, and if so what kinds of vehicles are viable bases for the amount of stuff I want to pack in, so some level of preplanning is necessary.
At this point I guess I could simplify what I'm looking for down to a general "safe zone" where if I were to come up with something that fit in a given area I could be confident it would fit in any likely candidate bus. If we assume a 45 foot widebody bus can I safely assume at certain amount of interior width? Are they all more or less flat vertical walls up to the windows with various forms of tapering from there to the roof? Is the amount of space available behind the driver's area similar across most 45' buses or does it vary?
Interior height is of course the one interior dimension I can easily find because it's marketable.
A 45' long 102" wide bus is as big as they get. I'm guessing but the sidewalls are pretty close to vertical. The back is likely not a squared off inside.
Maybe you stated earlier but generally it helps a lot to know a bit about your primary parameters. For example, what is your budget upfront and all in? What is your timeframe to find and build a bus, enough to make it functional? How extensive are your trade skills, everything from mechanical, electrical, plumbing, wood, and metal working?
When you mentioned designing and building a floating platform desk might be a challenge the bell went off. With more info we can provide a more realistic idea of what makes the most sense in your case. Trust me, more than one wannabe busnut shuffled off head down. Not that we were mean but getting informed about getting into this, they decide some other option would suit them better.
QuoteA 45' long 102" wide bus is as big as they get. I'm guessing but the sidewalls are pretty close to vertical. The back is likely not a squared off inside.
Depends on the model... My J4500 sidewalls have a significant curve from the bottom of the windows to the roof line.
Things like the back are why there are not a whole lot of pre-created shell plans out there. Because things like the engine air intake run through the back of the J4500, only part of that space is usable. So, it would be there on a generic floor plan, but it's not conventionally usable place. There is also the question of usable floor space in the broader space. Are there wheel wells intruding? Is the floor level or terraced (like the J4500)? If it is terraced are you going to level it?
Also, as many have alluded to, the spacial relationship of the bays to the floor is critical. I was surprised how long it took me to find a reference point that carried through from the bays to the floor so I could lay out those measurements.
On the computer desk, I would also consider what actually has to be on the "desk." Can the computer itself be stored in a cabinet (even if that is a few feet away?) Can the monitors be ceiling mounted to flip down and extend? The more you can simplify the "furniture" part, the easier the "murphy" concept becomes.
The walls on my 102DL3 are straight but have an offest at the windows of course.
You can lay out any kind of an interior you like, and someone can give you the wall-to-wall inside dimensions, and if you look in the "Bus Projects you will find some layouts that have already been done. Maybe that's what you need and you can decide what and if. You will have to adapt it when you start to build of course, when realities begin to intrude.
Jim
time to actually purchase a shell.
For -initial- layout, including runs for ducts, wiring and plumbing, I use Solidworks.
But, that's an expensive and difficult to master program and I use it because I already have it for professional reasons. Google SketchUp can do the modeling and is easier to learn. Fusion 360 from Autodesk is another alternative.
A compact 35' layout
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Car-Truck-Inspiration/Campers-and-Vans/Coach-Conversions/Interior/i-NbRKMFx/0/5bbb929e/L/3d-L.jpg)
That model does not take into account wall slope or ceiling shape.
If you take time to make the model accurate you can pull dimensions from it to build the pieces.
I used this process to design and construct a custom Model T body. Every cut in wood was made to the dimensions of the 3D model plan.
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Projects/Veteran/Project/i-z7HXvhv/0/f57e8476/L/DropSideT-L.png)
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Projects/Veteran/Project/i-CvtggzP/0/8eb79bdd/L/IMG_5795-L.jpg)
When I started the build from scratch, on my second bus, Gary from B&B, a renound coach builder told me of two options he liked the most, taping the floor for the simpler, quick look, but he liked getting cardboard boxes, the approximate size and shape of the major components and place them in the preliminary spots imagined. Even overhead bins. Moving boxes in your limited space really does reset your thinking...
I agree 100% on the tape and cardboard box solution. I did it in my bus conversion and for my truck conversion I laid it out in my garage. Put tape on the floor and then used/made cardboard and boxes to make a mock-up. Works great and would seriously recommend it!!
Yes, just taping the outlines on the floor doesn't cut it. You need to make actual sized copies of what you install. Things change when real height components impede or intrude into area. Works real nice if you have wife, and or kids to do this for you. Gets them into your endeavor more.
I used Google's Sketch-up. It's easy for non-cad folks. It also has a free 3d object library, measurements, walk-throughs, etc. Once we had a basic layout, I mocked up the bulkheads in hardboard so we could get a feel for the size of each room. I'm pretty good at imagning how something will look based on a 3d render, but it also helped to do the rough fit with the hardboard. Check out my build thread in my signature and you should be able to find my sketchup file for our 102 DL3. Be forewarned though, it's not an exact model.
After all will most know the joke of when the poo hole becomes the boss, right? :o
Here's the very first sketch of the 40' 102C3. I eventually reversed the sofa, to help shifting the weight to the passenger side because of the generator placement on the driver side...
Hey guys. We have a way of scaring off nobodies. He hasn't been here in over a week. Oh well, we can design our own new bus.
Weight distribution is a factor as just mentioned. So more things to consider than interior layout. You need to think about all the utilities layout below other than just poo hole. He'll never come back. we gotta stop this nonsense. LOL
Layout your floor plan with regards to your bus design. Where you want the water tank (mine is under the master bed to keep fresh water plumbing above the floor), gray tank, black tank, propane, generator, etc. I had to modify my floor plan a couple of times to get everything positioned correctly. Good Luck, TomC
Remember that he stated he was in the initial planning stages of a conversion. Maybe he took my suggestion and is out looking for a shell. He could be busy with something else right now. Not everyone lives on here.😅
We have over 150 back issues on our website that all subscribers have access to and we are adding more back issues weekly. Every issue has a featured bus and shows lots of photos of the inside and many have a floor plan. I encourage anyone considering converting a bus to review as many of these back issues as possible before laying out your own to get as many ideas as you can. This may potentially save you hundreds or thousands of dollars in changes you may require later.
Click here to see the back issues.
https://www.busconversionmagazine.com/back-issues/
Another thing easily missed is the standard placement( in 98% of RV parks today) of the power pole and waste openings on the drivers side rear of the coach .>>>Dan