Our Skoolie Conversion

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I figured I would show some pics of our rig Farold that my 13 year old son and I converted in 1 month (14 days of concentrated work). We decided to name the Skoolie Farold because the name means Powerful Traveler.<br /> <br /> I bought this bus 3 years ago and after spending the summer in our 35' park model at our seasonal campground we decided we wanted to extend our summer by traveling south for about a month so the work began.<br /> <br /> We have been on the road for 21 days and everything is going great. I am getting about 11 mpg average. We also installed a 45 watt solar panel array about a week into our trip.<br /> <br /> <img src="http://themillerfamily.travelinwithus.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/outside1.jpg" /><br /> We did a little touch up painting but still have some work to do on the outside. We figure we will tackle that project next spring when the weather is a little nicer.<br /> <img src="http://themillerfamily.travelinwithus.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/couchandcabinet21.jpg" /><br /> Here is a pic of the the couch and cabinet at the front of the bus. Under the couch is the electrical components that are shown in pics later.<br /> <img src="http://themillerfamily.travelinwithus.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/cookingarea1.jpg" /><br /> Here is a pic of the kitchen area.<br /> <img src="http://themillerfamily.travelinwithus.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/cookingarea21.jpg" /><br /> Another pic of the kitchen area<br /> <img src="http://themillerfamily.travelinwithus.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/bunk2up1.jpg" /><br /> Here is a pic of the right side bunk. The bunks fold down to make a seat while traveling on the road. Pic of the bunk folded down is below.<br /> <img src="http://themillerfamily.travelinwithus.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/bunk31.jpg" /><br /> Another pic of the right side bunk.<br /> <img src="http://themillerfamily.travelinwithus.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/bunk41.jpg" /><br /> Here is a pic of the left side bunk.<br /> <img src="http://themillerfamily.travelinwithus.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/bunkfoldeddown1.jpg" /><br /> Here is a pic with the left side bunk folded down and the seat belts out.<br /> <img src="http://themillerfamily.travelinwithus.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/bunkfoldeddown21.jpg" /><br /> Another pic of the bunk down.<br /> <img src="http://themillerfamily.travelinwithus.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/busfront1.jpg" /><br /> Here is a pic of the bus looking forward from between the bunks.<br /> <img src="http://themillerfamily.travelinwithus.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/toilet1.jpg" /><br /> Pic of the toilet. There is a little dust on the lid. I suppose I should have cleaned it before I snapped this pic but I was anxious to share the work with you all.<br /> <img src="http://themillerfamily.travelinwithus.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/shower1.jpg" /><br /> Here is a poor pic of the shower but you get the idea.<br /> <img src="http://themillerfamily.travelinwithus.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/bed1.jpg" /><br /> Here is a pic of the master bedroom, what you can see of it anyway.<br /> <img src="http://themillerfamily.travelinwithus.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/bedroomtv1.jpg" /><br /> Gotta have a TV in the bedroom<br /> <img src="http://themillerfamily.travelinwith...oads/2012/10/breakerboxandbatterycharger1.jpg" /><br /> This is a pic of the breaker box and battery charger under the couch. I have the battery charger wired into the breaker box so when we are not plugged in I can trip a breaker to shut it off.<br /> <img src="http://themillerfamily.travelinwith...ads/2012/10/batterybanksandpowerinverter1.jpg" /><br /> I currently have three deep cell batteries and a 3000w continuous and 6000w peak power inverter. I have cables with shut off ran from the bus batteries so when we are on the road we can use the bus&rsquo;s alternator to charge the batteries also.<br /> <img src="http://themillerfamily.travelinwithus.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/blackwatertank1.jpg" /><br /> The holding tanks are my favorite creations. I took two 55gal barrels and cut them in half vertically, butted the two pieces together top to top and welded 16 gauge sheet metal to the top. I have one for black water, which this one is and one for grey water which is pictured below.<br /> <img src="http://themillerfamily.travelinwithus.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/greywatertank1.jpg" /><br /> Here is a pic of the grey water tank. I priced 35 gal plastic holding tanks online and found they were around $200 &ndash; $250 each plus shipping. I have about $75 invested in both tanks between the two 16 gauge steel sheets I had to buy and the welding wire.<br /> <br /> I hope you enjoy the pics of our project.
 
Welcome, and nice job on the bus. I like the holding tanks, as well as the other builds. " Buford's big brother, i see!
 
Thank all of you guys for the great comments. We really had fun doing the conversion and are having a blast on our trip.
 
Love it! If I was younger and had some fixerupper skills, I'd love to do something like that.
 
Wow, really awesome job!&nbsp; Looks professional <img src="/images/boards/smilies/smile.gif" border="0" align="absmiddle">&nbsp; Are you gonna put curtains on all those windows?&nbsp;
 
Nice job!&nbsp; I learned to drive in a 48 passenger bus when I was about 11 yrs old...&nbsp; I can just see that old bus converted into something totally cool like this!&nbsp; Great job!&nbsp; Love the kitchen and the bunks!
 
Will you be giving it a "Partridge Family" paint job?&nbsp; That would be awesome!
 
We are currently using some cheap blankets that we got at Wal-Mart to cover the windows. We use velcro to put them up when parked and take them down when moving. We like being able to look out all the windows while driving.<br /><br />You wouldn't believe how many people have mentioned the Partridge Family paint job to us, lol! Actually we are probably going to repaint it white again. However, a couple days into the trip I decided to have a "coloring contest". I told the kiddos to make two designs in any way they wanted our website address http://travelinwithus.com and we would all vote on all the designs as a family and then paint the winner on the side of the bus. They did, we voted, and our youngest daughter 6 years old won! So today or maybe tomorrow (being black friday and all) we are going to go get some paints and go to work on it. I will be sure to post pics of it when finished.
 
NICE! <img src="/images/boards/smilies/smile.gif" /> I really like your self made holding tanks. How big is your fresh water tank? <br />Are you going to make insulated window coverings? Looks like you'll need them if you are in cold country. <br />How long is this bus?<br />
travelinwithus said:
I am getting about 11 mpg average.
<br />Not bad at all. What engine? <br />I think you should be proud of what you have done so far. Thanks for sharing, and WELCOME to the forum. <img src="/images/boards/smilies/biggrin.gif" /> <br />-Bruce
 
I am trying to find that winning paint- job....&nbsp; maybe, because some of us are computer iliterate, you could post it here?&nbsp; <img src="/images/boards/smilies/biggrin.gif" />
 
Ballenxj said:
NICE! <img src="/images/boards/smilies/smile.gif" /> I really like your self made holding tanks. How big is your fresh water tank? <br />Are you going to make insulated window coverings? Looks like you'll need them if you are in cold country. <br />How long is this bus?<br />
travelinwithus said:
I am getting about 11 mpg average.
<br />Not bad at all. What engine? <br />I think you should be proud of what you have done so far. Thanks for sharing, and WELCOME to the forum. <img src="/images/boards/smilies/biggrin.gif" /> <br />-Bruce
<br /><br />We have a 35 gal fresh water tank that sits in the cabinets below where the stove is. I'm not sure what we are going to do for permanent curtains. The bus is 35' long and has a DT408 engine in it. I am very happy with its performance both mileage wise and also driving thru the mountains in PA. It truly is a Powerful Traveler.<br /><br />
Bodhi said:
I am trying to find that winning paint- job....&nbsp; maybe, because some of us are computer iliterate, you could post it here?&nbsp; <img src="/images/boards/smilies/biggrin.gif" />
<br /><br />I will be sure to post it here when finished. It will probably be a few days before we get to it.
 
So a couple weeks back we had sort of a coloring contest between the kiddos. They were each giving the task of creating two designs that said travelinwithus.com. Once the designs were finished we would all vote as a family on which one we liked best and then paint that design on Farold. They made their designs, we voted, and our six year old daughter won the contest. So yesterday we stopped to do laundry and while we were waiting for the laundry to get done we went to work. Here are the results:<br /><br /><img src="http://travelinwithus.com/images/travelinfront.jpg" /><br /><br /><img src="http://travelinwithus.com/images/travelinside1.jpg" /><br /><br /><img src="http://travelinwithus.com/images/travelinside2.jpg" /><br /><br />We had fun painting it on the bus and we all participated. Next summer we are going to be repainting the entire bus and we will decide then if we will leave it on or not.
 
Very nice!&nbsp; Have you gotten any more followers since you put it up there?
 
People really look now, even more than normal. It is fun watching people look up above my head to read what is up there. It is really an interesting experience driving a Skoolie. I have had people wave and people stop and ask about it. At PirateLand in Myrtle Beach the receptionist asked what type of motor home we had and I told her a Skoolie and she said "I think that is cool." I have not been put out at all at any campground we have stopped at.<br /><br />We put a black border around the yellow letters today. Makes it stand out much better. It is too early to tell how many people are actually visiting the website because of the lettering on the bus. Once a couple days pass I can look and see where the visitors are originating from so for example we are in Florida now so if the traffic increases from Florida I will know they saw the lettering on the bus.<br /><br />We are so enjoying this trip in our Skoolie. If you are interested check out our travelin' website I posted a screenshot I took on my phone of our current location. Best campsite yet! I am uploaded a video, 360 degree view of the beach walking distance from our campsite and uploaded some photos.
 
Bodhi,<br /><br />I saw you registered on http://travelinwithus.com but didn't activate your account. Did you not receive the activation email? If you are having an issue let me know and I can activate you manually. <img src="/images/boards/smilies/smile.gif" />
 
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