Living out of a Bus Ed. 1 - 5-star Experience
Curious about the details of #tinyliving and what that looks like from the inside? Happy to paint a clear picture for ya’ll! But I think to explain how we have been living, we first need to talk about what amenities Ruby has! Because she’s not just a bus/RV, she’s a special bus :) I also realized we haven’t shared a ton on our Insta page about the “final product” that we hit the road with, so hopefully this helps fill in the gaps.
Ruby Amenities - a 5-star experience
An engine - duh, but for real. Some people just situate their bus on a piece of land for a while and use it as a tiny home. Although we are using it as a tiny home, we are also moving either daily or every couple days.
Solar panels - we have 2, 300-watt panels on Ruby’s roof and full solar conversion system in the bus including 3 large batteries for the bank. This gives us capability to go off-grid! We have yet to run into any low-power situations! Even when running the AC unit off of solar. This is the only thing that made us semi-nervous about our power supply & definitely gets hooked up to the shore power when we have the option.
Water tanks - we have 2, 40-gallon water tanks; one for fresh water and one for gray water (aka the sink leftovers). We estimate we could go ~7 days off-grid without refilling the fresh water and be okay. This does depend heavily on the shower part of it, see below. I have learned strategic ways to do dishes to conserve as well!
Stove / grill - we have a 2-burner propane stove in the bus that we use all of the time! It does warm the bus up quite a bit which can be a pro or a con depending on what weather you are in (our only heat source), but we use this in the AM to warm up water for coffee, to cook eggs, to make fried rice, etc. It’s heavily used. We also have a little grill which we took the legs off of which we use to cook nearly all of our meat on. It’s nice to be able to keep the meat cooking smell outside as the bus doesn’t always have the best ventilation…
Fans & stuff - we installed a nice RV fan in the roof of Ruby in our last weeks or preparation. We had high hopes for this fan as it was in the range of $350. It does a good job and has options of blowing air in, blowing air out, or just circulating the bus air. It can also be on while driving which is HUGE for us (as the AC unit cannot). We have another little 8” fan for the bedroom area of the bus; just because the bus is small, does not mean it ventilates well. The back bedroom, semi cut-off by the pantry wall and the bathroom wall, gets very stuffy, so this fan is necessary!
Window AC unit - god-send. We were not going to bring this with until it got 95F out in MN and we were trying to work on the bus. It was awesome for the first week through ND and parts of MT. Now that we are in the mountains, we haven’t had much of a need for it, but randomly we will have spikes of 90F+ weather, so it comes in handy! Even though it’s not much used now, it is a worthwhile addition for us even if those are the only days of it’s use. It also can ONLY be ran while we are stationary.
54-quart AC/DC Fridge - no, not like the band. We have a Linsion fridge that can be powered by either 12V or AC input. It opens like a cooler, and we have it installed on a slide out drawer that makes it a bit handier! It sits under our stove and keeps the goods cold. Thus far (on week 3), we have managed to fit ~5-7 days of food in the fridge. Of course, it depends how many meals we eat w/o meat, how much veg/fruit we keep cool, and the # of stocked sparkling waters…it’s been a good size for us and we could definitely stretch the 7 days, if needed! BUT I think any more than 2 people would want a larger unit.
Sink (hot water included) - our sink is great and BIG and I love it. The fact that we get hot water as well is wonderful. The reason I would say hot water is nearly necessary is for dishes. There is really no other way to get oil and meat fat off of dishes other than hot water. It’s also nice to wash your hands with :)
Outdoor shower (how water included) - this is probably our least-used amenity thus far, but it’s nice to have. When campgrounds don’t have water or a lake/dip pool, we have used this a few times to rinse off. We have also used it once or twice for a full shower, but it’s not something we use on the daily.
French press - this is our electricity-free version of coffee. My only complaints are that it gets cold rather quickly so sometimes we have to re-heat it & it doesn’t serve really any more than 2 with a single pot. All things we can work with :)
Portable toilet - for peeing only. We try to only use this when all bathrooms are closed due to COVID or we are on the road and don’t actually need fuel yet (which is uncommon) or when it’s late. The smell stays contained well; I advise dumping it weekly even if it’s not full! Imp. note to say again: for peeing only. Recently, I had to bike 3.5 miles at 7AM to a public bathroom because this rule is #serious; you do whatchu gotta do.
Pull-out couch - homemade craftsmanship at it’s finest, our couch pulls out into both a bench and a bed! We used the bed feature for the first time last week when some friends stayed with us. It was reviewed as comfy :) We wanted to make sure we could host family and friends at some capacity! However, I think Ruby maxes at 4-people and a dog :P
Internet solution - due to Jake still working PT and us needing to do research along the way about where to go next, internet is something we need some days. We have a couple options for this - a Verizon mobile hotspot (with 16gb of data) and a Wifi extender. So far, the hotspot has been the most helpful tool as we can just park where we have cell service and Jake can knock out the work day. The wifi extender is supposed to pick up networks in a few mile radius, but we have only really had luck getting a strong enough signal a couple times. Sometimes, even the common area will have wifi and we will be parked less than 2 blocks away and the signal is still too weak. Much of it seems to depend on the buildings and trees that separate you from the signal source.
Bikes, good ol’ pedal bikes - see above note about how handy these come at 7AM bathroom trips.
So now that you understand that we can make a cup of Joe in the bus, rinse off with some warm water, and the #nopooping nature of it, it gives you an idea of our mobility and off-grid capability.
CAMPING / ACCOMMODATIONS
We have been staying at a variety of places mostly due to the whole internet piece of the pie. We have found pretty much ALL national parks, national forest, and state parks do NOT get cell service. Thus, on Jake’s work days, we can’t really plan to stay there. Many private campgrounds do, however, typically have WIFI. Private campgrounds are usually more expensive, but we do mix in staying at those and just parking the bus in town somewhere if it’s on our way to a next stop. I would say, we have had a nice split of camping in National Forests, private campgrounds, and free/public parking areas (i.e. fairgrounds, rest stops, Super 1 parking lots, etc.)
In the first 20 days of tracking, we have averaged ~$20/night on accommodations! Note that camping near busy areas - ex. Glacier or Flathead Lake - will be more expensive & hard to find - I suggest advance booking, even if it’s just a day in advance! We paid $65 / night to camp within 15 minutes of West Glacier, but it was within 15 minutes of the entrance!!
COOKING / THE NUMS
Cooking hasn’t changed a ton from what we would eat at home. The biggest difference in appliances is the size of our fridge and we don’t have an oven or microwave. Our stove top is heavily utilized as well as our grill. Our lunches are typically something quick and easy - sandwiches, salads, cracks & cheese, etc while our bigger meals are breakfast and dindin! See the display below of some of our most GOURMET chef-ery (I think I just made that word up).
EXPLORING
Without a toad or a motorcycle on board, this is probably the area that we are most limited in with living and driving around in a school bus. Aside from the obvious limitations that your house is also your vehicle (#RVlife), Ruby has some additional handicaps.
Some Ruby limitations:
Steep inclines - Ruby has now navigated ~5 mountain passes and we are still here today; proof that she CAN do it. However, it can be somewhat painful. The temperature outside plays a big factor in the level of pain we feel, but Ruby gets hot. Typically, when we have to climb more than 2,000 feet within single digit miles, we feel it. We have had the bus looked at, with a simple explanation of “this bus just isn’t meant to climb mountains; it was built for driving kids to school in flat MN”. Hindsight, we probably would have looked at a bus that was built for a school district in the middle of the mountains Montana, but for now, we will indulge in ALL of the pull-offs that mountain passes have to offer over some lovely hands of cribbage.
Off-road paths - this is one we didn’t totally think through prior to coming to head with it, but a LOT of hikes, especially the ones that summit something, have a somewhat treacherous dirt path leading to the trailhead. Ruby has power, but skinny, under-maintained dirt trails are not her specialty. Whenever we see things like “must have 4WD to get here”, count Ruby out.
Hot days - whenever we turn Ruby on in 90F+ weather, we know we are in for a long-road ahead, so we try our best to NOT do it. Ruby will overheat after driving hours in >90F temps. Mountains or flat roads, it will likely happen. Thus, we have found some work-arounds for this. AKA look at your drive the night before & come up with a plan to leave early morning or in the evening once the sun is going down.
Parking - we haven’t really ran into this much, but Ruby is about 25ft long meaning she cannot just post up in a regular car space. We typically do hikes in the AM or later evening and try our best to plan for busy places during the week, so we have been quite lucky with parking. Always something to consider though!
Other than those, Ruby is a champ! Sometimes we cheer her on, sometimes we tell her she’s being a wimp, and other times we stroke the steering wheel & promise we will make it together. <3
WORKING OUT
This one is just for funsies because I love me a good #sweatsesh. Quarantine trained me well for workouts on the road, aka less dependence on the gym. We do a lot of hiking and also biking, but I mix in some heart-rate boosters and strength circuits as well. I have a workout backpack called the #Empack that I fill with a water reservoir. It is probs ~20lbs or so, but supplements well with bodyweight squats, tricep extensions, and bent-over rows. I make up some of my circuits or pull a workout from my homemade workout jar :P I also have the #Peleton app; for when I want a variety of some serious cardio-work, meditation, and strength training. I do miss my Peleton cycles; a sacrifice I’m willing to make for this trip :) I go into more detail about #fitness on the road in this post.
TOUGHEST PART??
In all honesty, the toughest part for us has been needing to ensure internet on certain days. Verizon has maps available that we consult often showing us where 4G exists, however, we have been places where it shows it exists that it doesn’t actually. As I also mentioned, the wifi extender has been sort of a bust. We have locked down, for the most part, Jake’s schedule and try our best to plan our next stops around that.
Life in a bus is an adventure that includes everyday learning! We are only ~3 weeks in and we truly feel like we are getting into a groove, but still have a ways to go. Cheers to living tiny!
Peace, love, and happy trails,
yo’ girl Jen
PS) the chic'ken coop didn’t make the cut, but the chickies are nice and safe at their grandma and grandpa’s. I was able to bring along a memorabilia, however. :D
