Starting With A "Skinny" Conversion - Required Equipment and Cost Estimates

k9disc · August 02, 2017, 09:10:09 AM

Lots of suggestions here about starting with a previously converted rig...

What are the must have elements of a conversion? And what do they cost?

I'm looking for info on the minimum for full-time, liveaboard performance and comfort requirements.

I'm thinking: Inverter, Generator, Shore Power, Black/Gray/Freshwater tanks.

Am I missing anything? Ooo... insulation...

Estimated costs of required equipment?

Iceni John · August 02, 2017, 09:21:01 AM

No two people need the same from a conversion. Ask a hundred busnuts about what they consider essential in their buses, and you'll get a hundred different answers. Will you be full-timing or not, driving many thousands of miles a year or not, one person or a family, boondocking or on a pole, tin tent or a luxury conversion, basic skoolie or a Prevost, etc etc? What are your priorities? There are folk here with everything from one extreme to the other, so you'll get no shortage of answers!

John

bevans6 · August 02, 2017, 09:38:23 AM

So much depends on your ability to improvise, buy deals, what your standards of comfort are. My bedroom is rough and ready but has custom made mattresses. My bathroom is rough and ready but has hot and cold running water, a full size shower, sink and commode. Kitchen has oven, three burner hob, microwave and fridge/freezer. My TV has cable, antenna, but no satellite. I have vinyl flooring, not hardwood or ceramic, and mostly the stock windows (Peninsula in the bedroom). I have a portable generator that does double duty in the house in the winter, and a rooftop AC. Assuming I was starting from scratch and paying on-sale retail new, to duplicate would cost in the range of $10K to $15K, maybe even more.

Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM · August 02, 2017, 09:46:34 AM

If you want to build a bus on a budget and are anywhere within driving distance of Phoenix, AZ, you should go to Arizona RV Salvage. There you will be able to buy nearly every component you could possibly need for any conversion at a significant discount. The components are not new, but sometimes only slightly used. So what if a sink is 2 years and was pulled from a wrecked RV. A new one would look the same way after a few trips anyway. Check them out at https://www.azrvsalvage.com/. Tell them Gary sent you.

windtrader · August 02, 2017, 11:14:43 AM

If they are not greedy on prices, that place is a great resource. Thanks Gary!

Oonrahnjay · August 02, 2017, 01:03:10 PM

Quote from: Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM on August 02, 2017, 09:46:34 AM...Check them out at https://www.azrvsalvage.com/. Tell them Gary sent you.

They're Upstate New York/Hudson River valley, Gary.

k9disc · August 02, 2017, 01:09:50 PM

Quote from: Oonrahnjay on August 02, 2017, 01:03:10 PM
They're Upstate New York/Hudson River valley, Gary.

We'll be driving through AZ in May/June 2018. I'm down on a field trip.

Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM · August 02, 2017, 01:14:49 PM

I don't know of any places in Upstate NY, but if you want to make a trip to Indiana, you can get some really good deals there too on end of the year closeouts on many of the appliances you will need and they sometimes even have scratch and dent units for really good prices. I am not sure of the location but someone should know, but check out the RV factories there and see what they have. I just heard some places are having end of summer sales on A/C units now so if you have time, you can sometimes buy stuff cheaper off-season too.

Zephod · August 02, 2017, 01:42:49 PM

I spent $4K on my bus and I have no idea how much on the conversion.

A basic conversion would be...
A portable toilet $50 for a fancy flush model with a tank.
About $100 of 2x4 and about $100 of OSB plus $30 of screws.
The sink can be a plastic bowl. The water can be held in jerry cans and poured into a jug for use. Waste water can be put into a bucket with a lid.

If you just do a sponge bath, you needn't even have a shower. Indeed, my shower base is a $20 feed tray from Tractor Supply.
The bed can be a 2x4 frame with rope across it instead of a mattress.
The stove can be a $20 camp cooker from Walmart (like I have)
The fridge can be just a cooler fueled with ice.
You could get cloth from the fabric store and simply Velcro it over windows for privacy. Internal partitions could be cloth too.
I don't have running water in my conversion. I went for jerry cans and a battery operated shower head that pumps water out of a cooler. I boil a kettle of water and pour it in 2 gallons of cold water for a nice shower.

My underbelly waste tanks are old 15 gallon sodium hydroxide drums from a car wash. I paid $4 each for them!

Luxury is what you pay for. My motorhome is basic, colorful and has solar powered ventilation.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

k9disc · August 02, 2017, 02:34:00 PM

Quote from: Zephod on August 02, 2017, 01:42:49 PM
I spent $4K on my bus and I have no idea how much on the conversion.

A basic conversion would be...
A portable toilet $50 for a fancy flush model with a tank.
About $100 of 2x4 and about $100 of OSB plus $30 of screws.
The sink can be a plastic bowl. The water can be held in jerry cans and poured into a jug for use. Waste water can be put into a bucket with a lid.

If you just do a sponge bath, you needn't even have a shower. Indeed, my shower base is a $20 feed tray from Tractor Supply.
The bed can be a 2x4 frame with rope across it instead of a mattress.
The stove can be a $20 camp cooker from Walmart (like I have)
The fridge can be just a cooler fueled with ice.
You could get cloth from the fabric store and simply Velcro it over windows for privacy. Internal partitions could be cloth too.
I don't have running water in my conversion. I went for jerry cans and a battery operated shower head that pumps water out of a cooler. I boil a kettle of water and pour it in 2 gallons of cold water for a nice shower.

My underbelly waste tanks are old 15 gallon sodium hydroxide drums from a car wash. I paid $4 each for them!

Luxury is what you pay for. My motorhome is basic, colorful and has solar powered ventilation.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Thanks Zephod. We're going to start out a bit less spartan than you, but only by a bit...

Pretty inspiring, man. Good on you!

Thanks Gary for the Indy info. We go through there as well.

Peace~

lvmci · August 02, 2017, 03:03:24 PM

Hi K9, a lot of people start out with a 35' single rear axle, some skip it and go to a 40'er from the start, some get a factory conversion, some a school bus. Have you seen or been inside any conversions? You should see and go inside as many conversions as possible. Drive a few if possible. Go to a few bus getogether, they happen all over the Americas, there are some very friendly people at those getogether, except for those 2 guys from Vegas! There are places in every region, that have parts, repairs and even sell previously converted busses. My starting point was how good a shape were the mechanicals, for my 1st 35' bus, second one, rust was included as a priority, lvmci...

Zephod · August 02, 2017, 04:13:56 PM

He's right - rust and mechanics are priorities. Bad tyres are a definite sale killer too. For my bus, taking 6 x 10R22.5 tyres, a new set could be $1,200 - $3,000 depending on brand. You can shave a few dollars by getting remolds but that'll give you a max safe speed of 65. I have remolds on my rears and the governor is set to 55. I have no intention of changing the governor.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

windtrader · August 02, 2017, 09:29:29 PM

Zephod - First time I got the details on what you have in your bus. I think it's great to have you here to show the way on how minimalistic a busnut can be and live aboard. Still, you sing the same song when it comes to mechanicals and the many ways to lose the dream if you're on a limited budget. Something as everyday as tires can really put the hurt on if you need to reshoe the whole thing. I'm sure you can get creative and find some not so great treads for the rear and find some decent (safe) ones for the steers. Anyway, glad you're here.

TomC · August 02, 2017, 11:57:40 PM

I bought my AMGeneral 10240B for $4,000. After engine overhaul, transmission rebuild, then turbocharging, rebuilding everything in the engine compartment, new air bags, two sets of tires, batteries, building the bus over 6 years, I've spent well north of $100k on it. I plan on spending around $130k on my truck also. Considering now $130k will buy you a 22ft Mercedes Sprinter van conversion, I'm not sorry about spending the money. Good Luck, TomC

J_E · August 03, 2017, 02:23:11 AM

Something that will affect your budget is tools. Tools to work on the bus and tools for the conversion. If you don't have it and can't borrow it, then you will have to buy it. Even the cost Harbor Freight tools will start to add up. If you are buying tools for the sole purpose of the conversion, then the less expensive tools should hold up long enough to get the job done.