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Man Converts School Bus into a DIY Motorhome


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This is one man’s fantastic school bus-turned-DIY-motorhome.

From the outside, you can see vestiges of the house’s former life as a vehicle for transporting students, but the exterior of the bus has been painted burgundy. The body of the van has been enveloped in wood-siding to give a more “house-like” look and feel. The coolest part of this bus transformation? It runs off of vegetable oil!

When you go inside, you’ll find beautiful fir floors and an entirely wooded home. The roof has been cut off of the bus, allowing for a 2×4 construction house with a taller ceiling to be built in its place. The bus includes a wood stove and right next to the home’s heating source is a door that leads below the bus where he can load wood from the outside to fuel the fire. During the winter, he heats his house and water with an antique-looking oven, but during the summer, he has a smaller stove and oven that runs off propane. He has a typical RV water tank system, with grey water going into one tank and black water into the other. His stand-up shower has a beautiful pebble floor and a skylight for brightness. Watch the video below for more details!

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He turned this school bus into a custom motorhome!

Images © Exploring Alternatives via YouTube

Video Tour and Interview

Resources

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Natalie C. McKee

Natalie C. McKee is a contributor for Tiny House Talk and the Tiny House Newsletter. She's a wife, and mama of three little kids. She and her family are homesteaders with sheep, goats, chickens, ducks and quail on their happy little acre.
{ 13 comments… add one }
  • Marcy
    February 13, 2016, 8:26 am

    Wow!

  • Debbie Johnson
    February 13, 2016, 8:26 am

    WOW! This is awesome, but I am curious about the skylights? They are different cutouts I have never seen before. Where can you find something like that. I would love to have those in my tiny house.

  • Marsha Cowan
    February 13, 2016, 9:46 am

    Fabulous! Absolutely fabulous! So beautiful and exceptionally functional. Great job. Interesting concept of sheathing the outside and inside and leaving only a few Windows. I’m sure this helps tremendously with heat/air. I love this!

  • Andrea Hardy
    February 13, 2016, 10:12 am

    That rock mosaic in the bath is GORGEOUS!!! Wow

  • Sharee
    February 13, 2016, 12:32 pm

    After seeing the first 2 homes in this issue, I wasn’t sure I wanted to look at the other homes. These first 2 homes were showcase homes. This converted bus feels like coming home. Nice job!

  • Bill
    February 13, 2016, 2:11 pm

    Fantastico! I’m curious what’s the mileage as far as fuel consumption? What type of engine and displacement?
    You’ve done a great job! Good for you. Bill

    • Will
      May 2, 2016, 7:23 am

      Bill, you can see a badge on the hood of the bus…hard to read, but it says DT466 which is an International diesel engine commonly used in buses and med duty trucks. You can google that engine and find out more. Cheers.

  • Michael
    February 14, 2016, 11:04 am

    Very nice. I get so excited every time I see someone realizing their dream with a tiny home! Congrats!

  • Kris
    March 5, 2016, 9:45 pm

    Love, love, love this! Thank you for sharing. I have been dreaming and planning for this kind of lifestyle for several years now and this is one of my favorite “tiny” living spaces I’ve seen yet.

  • April 5, 2016, 8:30 pm

    Wow! Beautiful Conversion! I need to rebuild the coach on my old motorhome and want to use wood to side it too. How do seal it to you keep water from getting in at the seams?

  • April 5, 2016, 8:36 pm

    Wow! Beautiful conversion! I have an old motorhome that I need to rebuild so I can live in it and I want to use wood on the outside too. How do you seal the seams so that they don’t leak?

  • Leslie
    July 7, 2019, 11:18 am

    Beautiful work!!! I am trying to do a pebble floor in my camper trailer and I was wondering what kind of grout you used to hold the rock in? I’ve been looking for something flexible but durable.

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