It seems like a good time to take a brief pause and give you a better picture of the layout.
If you've been following, you know that the shop and driver's areas are at the rear and front of the bus and are separated by doors. We chose these spaces to work as buffer zones between the extreme temperatures of the outside and the mild of those we hoped to maintain within. Just like adding a enclosed porch to a house, these rooms greatly increase our ability to retain the temperature we desire inside, while reducing the amount of space that requires heating/cooling.
Directly in front of the shop, we positioned the bathroom and toilet, we plan to add a composting toilet when the time is right and add a skylight above the tub to both increase head-room and ventilation. With a few modifications to this area, we should be able to add a 60 gallon fresh water tank and hide an 'on demand' pump in the walls. A plan is in the works to outfit the bus with collapsible gutters to gather rain and we can always cart extra jugs if need be.
Ahead of the bathroom, are the bunks and closet. The bunks are attached to the wood stove to gather a bit of radiant heat through the walls. The stove, with its built-in hot plate is directly across from the kitchen area equipped with a sink, cabinets and counter-top.
On the front wall is the desk and computer across from which is the seating area, equipped with under-the-butt storage, a dining table and seat belts for the drive. The whole thing sits on a raised platform that makes an excellent, if tight, mattress storage area. A pair of windows give passengers a view of the road (and the back of the driver's head) while engine sounds are closed off by a wooden door.
The front looks like any other school-bus, just the floor's nicer.
Next week, we'll cover the construction of the seating area, cabinets and maybe desk.
Have a good weekend!
