I’ve begun tearing apart the bus. Well, the ceiling panels are off and the old insulation is out. The insulation covered maybe half of the ceiling by this point in its life, and clearly wasn’t doing much good anyway. I pulled all the wiring that we would no longer be needing—roof mounted radar detector, television antennae, cb radio antennae, and generator. I was impressed again with how little has been modified on this thing. I didn’t find one single wayward wire. On our boat I’ve pulled out enough miscellaneous wire over the years to outfit another boat top to bottom.
One ceiling panel is still up actually. I tried to remove the air conditioner but found that the connections have to be removed on the topside (outside) of the unit first. Again, the weather thwarted that plan.
I also discovered that a mysterious breaker on the generator panel marked FUZZ was actually the radar detector. Funny.
Oh, and it should be mentioned that all of the insulation was dry and stain free, other than a small section that mice had taken up residence at one time. Meaning, as far as I can tell, there are no major leaks, and probably never have been. The frame looks to have had some condensation now and then, but I can’t find anything that looks messy. Pretty amazing actually.
I finally tried out the ceiling vent fan, and it worked. As has every other thing on here so far. If it weren’t so cold out I’d hook up a new propane tank and I’m sure the stove, furnace, and hot water heater would work too.
We all went shopping/browsing today and found something we like for the ceiling. Soooooo, we’re sort of underway on the renovations. I hate to keep harping on it, but the weather is really going to slow this process down.
It’s tough for the kids too. They are accustomed to spending most of their life outdoors, naked—or nearly so. And they aren’t really handling the being cooped up thing so well. We’ve had lots more misbehaving than normal, that’s for sure.
But anyway, we’ve got family around, and some new experiences for the kids, so we’re doing our best to make the most of it.
18 Comments on “Cold and Ceilings”
HAPPY NEW YEAR BumFUZZle! Keep on keepin’ on! Y’all do it just about better than anyone I know! Xoxo
The best material for headliners is Expanded Polypropylene EPP sheet. It is easy to cut, easy to clean and never stains.
Fuzz! I love it. Pretty cool that everything works and I just like that it just looks so Bum!
Back in the olden times their was a well known radar detector by Cobra (Also a CB radio maker) that was called the “Fuzz Buster”.
Pat, what is that display panel with 3 gauges above left of the driver’s seat (pretty pics, please?)
Scrap that (I see it now 🙂
Please test any material you are considering for headliner matl. for it’s flammability, take a small sample and see if it will burn before consideration. My lesson in this was learned aboard a powerboat with a vinyl overhead, it burned like it was soaked in gasoline. The interior instantly filled with black choking smoke with molten globules of flame dripping from above, fire extinguishers only made it worse. Had to abandon in less than twenty seconds with my clothing, hair, and beard smoking. I was very lucky, I escaped with my dinghy, my ditch bag, and my life. The rest was a total loss, but I consider it a fair trade for what I learned from it. That was 24yrs ago and I still find that when boarding someones boat,or motorhome that my eyes instantly go to the overhead and I always sit within two steps of the door. You have an excellent opportunity to protect your family by not allowing flammable building matl. in the living area. I hope I haven’t intruded, I’m just a little jumpy about flammable ceilings.
Thanks, I’ll do that.
Ah yes, cabin fever. Tell me about it. Being without family and on the boat in winter sort of… well it sucks. But we have found ways to cope here and there… like going to Hawaii 😉
Hope you guys roll our way when you start moving again. Come in the spring and we can take you for a sail!
I was just 6 (64 yrs ago!!!) in Ann Arbor, MI, when my dad bought a city bus, ripped out the seats, built a 2nd story in middle third as bedroom for us 3 girls – with a picture window in front so we could be lookouts for low overpasses and fitted it out into an RV. Then we took off for CA, towing a Crosly minicar and lived in it for a year and a half. This is a treasured memory of mine – as I hope yours are to your family. With all the pics documenting your life, memories will be up front and fresh. I have a few photos packed away but nothing compares to what you have!
Happy New Year!
Arlie
Have you checked into denim insulation? http://home.howstuffworks.com/denim-insulation.htm
From Urban Dictionary:
fuzz buster
a radar detector.
“I laugh at the pigs hiding out on the side of the highway now that I got my fuzzbuster. Better stick to Dunkin’ Donuts.”
I would leave the TV coax in case the next owner wants to install a TV. I might suggest adding a coax cable from the dash to the rear. Someday you may want a remote camera for backing the rig up. Helps to be able to see behind you and to see (and hear) the person behind directing the driver.
+1 to both suggestions and, while at it, a class 5 UTP backbone front to back might come handy sometime. Certainly broadens hardware options and does not take much space, nor weights much.
Or you could install a wireless backup camera http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_odkw=wireless+backup+camera&LH_BIN=1&_sop=15&_osacat=6028&_from=R40&LH_PrefLoc=1&_vxp=mtr&_trksid=p2045573.m570.l1311.R6.TR10.TRC0.A0&_nkw=wireless+backup+camera+mirror&_sacat=6028.
Some of them come with a display inside the rear-view mirror so there is no clutter on the dash or the windshield.
Everything old is,new again,
Well done..
H
Hey guys! Long time. I just wanted you to know that I have owned 2 Dodges in my life. They were both from the sixties and the biggest problems that they had were their master cylinders. They had a single master cylinder that, if something happened in the system, well, you were shit out of brakes, and it happened twice, with two of my brothers driving, Blah-blah, just make sure you have a dual master cylinder in your brake system, because if your back brakes fail-then your front brakes will still work and visa-verse. I also own a 1999 Chevy Surfsider with a big block v-8 that gets 16 mpg! It is awesome; goes down the road at 75 miles per hour and is extremely safe. I love everything you guys have written about and done, but I just wanted you to check that out. love always, Stew
I’ve quietly enjoyed your adventures for years. If you find yourselves broken down in North Missouri please don’t hesitate to ask for help. Traveling with our 6 and 8 year old’s in our ’76 GMC Motorhome, we’ve had many roadside crises. Those trips wound up being better stories than the uneventful ones though. 2 tips: ’99 Suburban junkyard seats have built in seat belts and are pretty comfy. Also, make sure you don’t have any roof leaks before putting in the new headliner; seems like common sense but…. https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1184049327183&set=pb.1406730593.-2207520000.1389209380.&type=3&theater