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| Rose from the Dallas Arboretum |
I've been prompted to revisit this earlier discussion due to several factors, such as an upcoming design session being hosted on Saturday by the DFW Tiny House Enthusiasts and a Facebook discussion regarding conversion of overland vehicles.
The 2014 post listed the below reasons for why I decided to make a Skoolie my first tiny house project:
- School Buses can be bought for $3,000 to $5,000 dollars, sometimes even less.
- School Bus comes with its own framing, doors and windows.
- They have a higher ground clearance than RVs in order to ensure the safety of the children they were used to transport, meaning they are safer than traditional RVs.
- Their roof systems are designed so that in case of roll over, the roof can support the entire weight of the bus. Again, this design is much safer than RVs.
- They are solid steel frame construction, not aluminum like RVs. They use a medium density truck chassis was is totally better than anything a RV has.
- School Buses are designed to haul for 500,000 miles, though most schools sell them before they get to the 200,000 miles mark. This leaves lots of life in the bus for the new owners.
- School Buses are universal in every state and countries, so they're relatively easy to fix.
- They are designed to be self maintained.
- Because School Buses were part of public facility, they underwent regular maintenance.
- The ceiling height is right about 6' at the center aisle and slopes down towards the windows.
- Most School Buses are geared toward city driving not highway cruising.
- The diesel engine gets about 11 miles to the gallon.
- Conversion is hard work (but anything worth having is).
In the course of my research since the 2014 post, I have outlined some additional reasons for choosing a Skoolie as my first tiny house project.
- Traveling is no longer just a desire, it's a reality. I travel a lot and want to travel more. Skoolies are good house platforms that exists well off-the-grid and on the road.
- Towing a small car behind a Skoolie is relatively simple.
- Since I want to build more tiny houses, have a versatile and movable space while working is much more feasible. For instance, by staying on site of the build, I can help ensure the security of construction. Also, since the Skoolie will be off-the-grid compatible - this will allow be to build in remote sites and still have access to power and water needed for construction.
- A new reason is my sister-in-law is in a wheelchair and she loves going to places too. But she's limited when it comes to camping. A Skoolie with a wheelchair lift would be a great option for those times she wants to come with the family.
I'm thinking for my first Skoolie, I'm going to start small with a short bus and wheelchair lift. Like this one:
There are lots of different types of school buses and it's hard to design a construction plan without the exact bus. But for the sake of the design exercise on Saturday and future research, I'm going to be using the above dimensions.
For more information about Skoolies, check out these resources:
- Skoolie Conversion by Hoop House
- Bus Conversion Ideas by Chris Fagin
- School Bus House by Nikole S.
- Bus Conversion Goodness by Luke Wilson
- Skoolies! by Amelia Kaiser
- Skoolie Ideas and DYI by Danielle Cap
Blogs
YouTube Channels
- Simple Life School Bus Conversion
- Aaron Attard's School Bus Conversion: Part 1 through 8 (so far)
- Bob Dorris Jr.'s School Bus Project: Part 1 through 11 (so far)
- Devone William's School Bus Conversion: Episode 1 through 11 (so far)
If you have suggestions to add to the resource list, let me know in the comments section.
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