TheSamba.com :: View topic

Tue Mar 04, 2003 3:02 pm

it looks like i might have to move into my bus soon for financial resons. could anybody tell me info on mods theyve done to accomidate living in their bus? mines a 65 so-42, so i have a bed and such, and a roof rack. what about a second battery? my computer? please, any info would greatly be apreciated. also, any stories that would be of interest to the topic, or advice.
-splitbuschick

Tue Mar 04, 2003 5:43 pm

where do you live?

Wed Mar 05, 2003 6:41 am

I have lived in my bus for several months,I was in France,in a parkinglot by the beach, it was me and Seamus (my dog)...

Wed Mar 05, 2003 10:41 am

i would get a power inverter so that you have 110v i have a 400-800w one and would want one a little biger with dool battories and a isolating diod. good luck.

Wed Mar 05, 2003 4:29 pm

SplitBusChick:
Do you have someplace safe to park the bus?
If you're planning on staying at an RV park, it's cheaper to get long term motel rates, and safer too. If you can't spring for $1000 per month for RV or motel rent, you'll be staying in WalMart parking lots or some shiat. NOT SAFE for a person of the female persuasion.
Best of luck to you, though.

Wed Mar 05, 2003 4:39 pm

if you're going to be in parking lots and rest stops buy a pistol and a concealed weapons permit to go with it. Karma don't mean jack when some creep notices you live alone in your bus.
A safer alternative might be to rent driveway space. I've been able to do this for $25-$125 a month, most included use of the bathroom for showers and some let me use the phone line.

Wed Mar 05, 2003 6:17 pm

i have a cel phone so i dont need need a line or anything...i think i would probobly be parking in the cuties (residential off-roads) marin is a pretty high-income county so the danger factor is pretty low. probobly friends driveways and stuff like that. someone recomended a power inverter, what is this and how much does it cost?

Wed Mar 05, 2003 6:39 pm

A power inverter converts various voltages to other voltages (in your case, 12V to 110V). Large wattage inverters don't come cheaply (check ebay for a rough idea); your needs would be determined by how much power you needed at a given time. If you plan to use an electric heater, TV, hairdryer and microwave at the same time...well, you get the drift. Of course, if your friends will let you tap into their power, then an inverter won't be necessary.

Wed Mar 05, 2003 6:42 pm

Correction: large wattage inverters aren't that expensive...there's an 800w Coleman on ebay for only $55.

Wed Mar 05, 2003 7:08 pm

Inverters acutally take DC voltage and "convert" it to AC, which is what your PC power supply needs, and your hairdryer, and other "wall socket" type appliances. They use some sort of recifier circuit (wheatstone bridge or something) to make DC into AC. Not very efficient, but they do the trick. Be careful that you don't run your bus battery down, even using dual batteries..... You can get small inverters, less than 1KW, for under $300 new.

I agree with all other posts, a girl living in a bus is NOT SAFE. Not that I'm a chauvenist (sp?) but there are wacko's everywhere.

Turbo_g
66 Kombi

Wed Mar 05, 2003 7:51 pm

I wouldn't take the high income area to be to safe. I have some police friends, and you would be surprised where the crooks are. Be safe though.

Wed Mar 05, 2003 9:01 pm

I used to live in my bus (3 months) not too far from Marin.I didn't have a camper,it was a deluxe. All I can say was that it was pretty depressing for me. Lost a bunch of weight like I was on "Survivor". Took showers at the Y. Didnt have 24 Hour Fitness then. Man that would have made life alot easier! When Im out on road trips that's where I go know to get refreshed and cleaned up. Oh Yeah,, A Portable Potty is a must!

Thu Mar 06, 2003 2:15 pm

HOW ABOUT A SHOWER YOU SMELLY FUCKS!

Thu Mar 06, 2003 2:16 pm

EWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!!!

Thu Mar 06, 2003 4:08 pm

I'm wishing I'd a looked at this post earlier but here we go. Inverters are great provided they are big enough to meet your needs. Most appliances have there power needs on them. Take a look at what you need to have available and go from there. Also take into account how easy it is to manage what you use to insure that you don't run your battery(s) down.

An isolation battery is the best option. With this you are able to drain only one battery and still have one to start your bus to charge. They work alot like a check valve for water. Letting electricity flow one way but not the other.

As far as power consumption here is an example. Your typical space heater is rated at 1500Watts. Judging by the size of the interior of a Splitty one is all you would likely need to be comfortable in a moderate climate. Take into account now that to operate this you would need an inverter of at least 1500W. Even this would be pushing it.

You can even go one step further and do a couple calculations to find out how long your battery(s) will last before you need to start your bus. 1500 W @ 120VAC will give you a draw of 12.5 amps. Now converting this to a 12VDC battery set up is easy. That's 125Amps and that's alot of juice for your typical car battery. All batteries have an Amp/hour rating. Take a look at yours and it'll give you a rough idea of how long your battery(s) will run your load.

Hope this helps, if you need any more info I would be happy to do what ever I can to help. I install large inverters (4000W +) for a living and am sure I can help you out.

Mo
tmaurer@sunwave.net

Fri Mar 07, 2003 6:25 pm

thanks for all the help, guys. i managed to get my grubby hands on a few more bucks, so im not to poor while im camping. looks like ill only really be in it for a coupla months, but all the advise is great.
ooh, my best friend name is mo. and its his birthday tomorow. whee.
hey look! its Ian! everyone say hi to Ian!

HIII IIIIAAAAANNNN

haha....

Fri Mar 07, 2003 6:46 pm

Best of luck to you, take care of you and your bus. Keep us posted on your situation. Someone else mentioned getting in touch with the A.I.R.S. They're a great source when it comes to camping and travelling cheap. If you need help they are the first place to look. Cheers

Mo

Sat Mar 08, 2003 11:21 am

Get a looong extension cord.Check to see that your electrical hook up to the bus is working. Portable microwave-small fan-elecric blanket are some nice things to have.

Sat Mar 08, 2003 10:27 pm

you could just build a tree house behind the local home depot, if you are slick, tools and building supplies are free late at night..steal power with a extension cord either from home depot or a near by house.

Tue Mar 11, 2003 6:38 pm

Only becouse I,m new to this I reply.
I lived in a 1955 PANEL VAN for 5 months
on a Gulf island in British Columbia.
To battle the cold I installed a wood stove in the front
on the front seat, simply slid window open
and chimney out. The odd time a wind blew of ocean and smoked
me out. I did find a screen-in tent for a living room.
Anyhow those were the best days.