Tom Grantham, 29, and Kylie Barnes, 30, spent $ 2,000 to buy out the old shuttle bus- and turned it into chic house on wheels for a family of five with all amenities and even a fireplace!
How did they do it? Let's see! 
When Tom Grantham and Kylie Barnes bought a 23-year-old shuttle bus for $ 2,000 in 2011, probably no one except them believed that this purchase would make sense. The couple had to invest many months of labor and about $ 15,000 to turn it into a super home on wheels, equipped with everything necessary for a family with three children. 
The spouse has personal memories associated with this bus: as it turned out during the purchase, for many years he had been running on route 51 from Grimsby to Loot, passing by the spouses' house every day. Now he's turned into their own luxury travel van. 
Tom and Kylie have three children - Henry, 3, Poppy-May, 7, and Logan, 8. They will not be cramped in the former bus converted by Tom's forces! 
The RV's main living room has two wide sofas. You can sit on them with the whole family, admiring the views, and if necessary, they are decomposed into two wide double beds. "This is the perfect car for a weekend trip as a family!" says Tom. He was mainly involved in the technical part and the manufacture of furniture, and Kylie became the interior designer. 
In the mobile home, Tom built all the necessary amenities, equipping it with a stove, oven, gas fireplace, sink, toilet and shower. From the previous bus, only the traditionally decorated driver's seat remained. 
To fit a bedroom for three children in the car, I had to work hard, using all the space vertically, from floor to ceiling. 
The kitchen-living room in the central part of the van is decorated with light wood and is maximally illuminated. 
In their mobile home, the family travels to music festivals throughout Britain, as well as vacations in France and Belgium. 
However, when trying to go to Italy, the former bus let the owners down: due to engine breakdown, they got stuck in Switzerland. “It was a nightmare,” Tom recalls. - The police took away our passports, and we had no right to leave the bus! I had to call a friend for help and change the engine. " 
However, this story did not make the family disappointed in their mobile home. Children especially love him: after all, it was thanks to him that they visited the French Disneyland! 
The conversion of the regular bus into a van for travel lasted more than one year. 
The floors in the car are finished with wood and covered with carpets, so that passengers feel at home. 
Tom had to make almost all the furniture for the van with his own hands. 
According to Tom, the kitchen gave him the biggest problem. 
Funnily enough, the family recently decided to list the fully finished and refurbished van on eBay. The starting price is £ 9,100, or about $ 12,000. “The kids are terribly unhappy that we want to sell the van! says Tom. "But we think it's time to try something else new and interesting."
Making a camper with your own hands is not too difficult for an experienced craftsman. But the timing of such a construction can be very delayed due to the constant improvement of the design. In order not to get into such a situation, you should think over the interior in advance, abandoning obviously unnecessary elements. This is especially important when equipping small cars, for example, when creating a home on wheels from a GAZelle with your own hands.
A mobile home has undeniable advantages - comfort, coziness and mobility. Moscow is a bustling city from which you sometimes want to leave. Trailer owners do not have to look for a place to sleep, and travel becomes very economical. If earlier it was not possible to use this original housing, you should first familiarize yourself with their classification.
Types of motorhomes and their classification
When choosing the type of future mobile housing, you can be guided by its division by:
- mind - there are trailed, van or combined with a car caravans;
- class - there are three comfort classes of motorhomes;
- type of trailer - there are trailers-trailers, hybrid and fifth-wheel trailers.
If with trailed view Since everything is clear in a mobile home, the difference between a van and a combined caravan is not immediately visible. In the first embodiment, the living space is located in the van of the car and is separated from the driver's seat.
This option is suitable when traveling together, when no one stays in the "house" during the travels. Thanks to this design, it is possible to fit more functional furniture using a blank front wall.
Motorhomes converted from GAZelles or minibuses are exactly combined.
The comfort class can be called conditional. Thus, class “A” mobile homes include spacious trailers made on the chassis of large trucks. Outwardly, they resemble a bus, they can have folding structures, but inside they do not differ in functionality from a small-sized apartment.
It should be borne in mind that the driver must have a category "C" license to drive this vehicle.
There is much less space in it, but it is still convenient to travel in them. What is important - you can drive such a car with a category B license if the weight of the car or the total weight of the car with a trailer does not exceed 3.5 tons.
Class "C" indicates the simplest motorhomes. It can be a small trailer or a minibus converted into a camper. There is no separate sleeping place - its function is performed by folding sofas or armchairs. But by equipping such a mini camper with a roof rack, a folding canopy and a set of camping furniture, you can get a comfortable stay with a minimum of costs.
Such construction trailers are also called hybrid trailers to distinguish them from simple trailers. Separately, it is necessary to note the Fiveswil trailers, the shape of which is designed for use in conjunction with pickups. Thanks to this, it is possible to reduce the length of the entire caravan, because part of the trailer hangs over the body of the car.
Mistakes in the construction of mobile homes with your own hands
The prices for mobile homes are noticeably biting. Not surprisingly, the desire of the skilled heads of families to save the budget and do everything yourself. It is important to be wise and learn from other people's mistakes:
- you should not do everything from scrap materials - you will have to live in the house for at least a week and you want to spend your vacation in comfort;
- serious revision of the body, heating system, wiring will be required - you cannot do without the skills of an auto mechanic;
- if you still managed to fit the shower and toilet, do not forget about the drain tank - pouring dirty water onto the asphalt or lawn is extremely unethical;
- it is better not to forget to make a connector for connecting 220V at camping sites, well, and a converter for 12V from a car battery.
Making a trailer in-house
If difficulties do not frighten, and the desire for action is unstoppable, you can try your hand at building a house. And to remake a GAZelle or build a trailer-trailer from scratch - the choice is strictly individual!
DIY GAZelle mobile home
To work you will need a grinder, a welding machine, a hand saw for wood and a lot of patience. The step-by-step modernization of the car looks like this:
- The seats are removed from the passenger compartment, the old trim is removed. All metal parts are treated with a special solution to prevent rust. The walls and ceiling are insulated with polyethylene foam, plywood sheets are laid on the floor. All wiring runs under the floor and wall cladding, this should be thought out in advance.
- A frame for furniture is welded directly into the body. If it is impossible to set the car straight, you can use a pipe resting its ends against the lower edge of the window openings as a level. After rough welding, the frame is removed and everything is welded, cleaned and again brought inside.
- Window openings are pasted over with Carpet. Carpet-pasted ceiling panels are also installed. After finishing the interior trim, you can fix the slats under the mezzanine and mount the furniture frames.
- For the front seats, you can make a swivel mechanism. To do this, you will need a front hub, for example, from a VAZ and part of a swivel stand. The circuit is pretty simple.
- The final stage is the installation of the furniture on the frame, connecting the lighting, installing the pump for the kitchen sink, lining the mezzanine and making minor improvements to the interior. For cooking, you can put a small gas stove on one burner.
- Instead of welding the furniture frame, you can use ready-made headsets, reinforcing them from the inside with corners and additional screws. You also need to fix the kitchen to everything - the floor, sofa, wall. This is to protect the furniture from loosening when driving on bumpy roads.
It should not be forgotten that such a modification of the car requires registration with the REO. To do this, you need to write a statement and receive a resolution from the technical department of the traffic police and the protocol of the authorized organization.
Stylish plywood trailer house
If the car has a towbar, it is a sin not to take advantage of the situation and not make a nice "drop" trailer for spending the night outside the city. For this:
- The side walls of the future van are cut and attached to the base. All openings for doors and windows, as well as for lightening the frame, must be cut out in advance, so it is better to think over the drawing well.
- Shelves are assembled from the furniture board and installed on the base. The same shelves will serve as the front and rear walls of the van.
- In the shape of the van, a plywood sheet is bent over the shelves on both sides, and a load-bearing frame made of timber is fixed on top. One side is lifted, giving access to the kitchen.
- The top hatch and skylight are cut out. The entire frame is insulated, the wiring is laid.
- Everything is glued on top with veneer sheets. When the door and window openings have been cut, you can proceed to the exterior painting and varnishing.
- Doors, top hatch and supply and exhaust ventilation are installed. After securing all fittings, side lights and fenders for wheels, you can safely go on a journey!
And the video shows a detailed assembly of the motorhome with the installation of solar panels:
A motorhome on wheels, and even equipped with your own hands, is the dream of many lovers of auto travel and outdoor activities. It provides its owner with amazing freedom when traveling, freeing him from the need to look for and book a hotel, purchase tickets, pack suitcases, etc. In addition, your own motorhome makes it easy to travel even big family, including pets - for this it is necessary to use the appropriate furniture, usually transformable.
When a caravan on wheels first appeared on the road, it is quite difficult to answer. The first such experience was implemented by the Jennings company back in the 38th year of the last century, although self-made models of motorhomes appeared much earlier. All motorhomes on wheels can be equipped with almost all the necessary attributes of a familiar and comfortable life - bathroom, shower, gas stove, full berth, which are present even in the smallest motorhomes, which are often based on the budget gazelle in Russia.
Depending on what type of caravan belongs to, it can be:
- trailed;
- van;
- combined.
A fairly common practice at the present time is the hand-made re-equipment of a suitable vehicle, the same domestic gazelle, into comfortable motorhomes for travel. But before making a motorhome on wheels with your own hands, you need to determine the main purpose of the conversion - long or short-term residence in the motorhome, as well as select or make the appropriate furniture.
RV classes
According to the generally accepted classification, all motorhomes on wheels are divided into three main classes:
Attention! Any class "A" motorhome made on the basis of a bus or a truck, according to the transport classification, requires the driver to have a category "C" license.
Speaking about the classification of motorhome trailers, the following concepts should be highlighted:
Trailer tent
A homemade motorhome on wheels does not have to be expensive and difficult to manufacture, especially if it is used relatively rarely and for a small number of people. Some types of motorhomes do not even require furniture and are used as a sleeping place. In order to independently make a caravan trailer, you will need to make some effort and a sufficient amount of time.
The main "power" element of such a motorhome is a frame, which can be purchased ready-made, or assemble it yourself, which will require skill and certain technical knowledge. When self-manufacturing, special attention should be paid to anti-corrosion treatment of all steel elements of the future motorhome.
The frame mounted on the chassis prepared for the motorhome can be either steel or wood. When creating it, the main attention should be paid to the quality of the connection of parts, since when such a motorhome trailer moves, the entire structure will be subjected to serious dynamic and vibration loads. Inside such a motorhome, you can arrange a fairly comfortable sleeping place, and at the time of rest stops, the design of the motorhome unfolds, and a tent is quickly set up on top. Such a motorhome on wheels, the photo of which is presented below, is optimal for short trips and simple outdoor recreation.
Another option for the device of such a trailer can be seen in the video:
How to make a motorhome on wheels with your own hands
In order to make a motor home on wheels with your own hands, you can use any minibus, truck or even a bus. In order to create it, it will take a lot of effort, time, and be ready for a fairly serious material investment, which later will more than pay off comfortably when traveling in your own motorhome.
The process of turning a standard gazelle into a motorhome on wheels will certainly be accompanied by a number of works that are mandatory:
In the event that a mobile home trailer is created with the aim of long journeys, it is advisable to provide for a good audio-video system and satellite TV... If financial possibilities permit, it will be good option installation of solar panels, which will extend the life of the generator.
Attention! In most cases, re-equipment of a vehicle into a caravan trailer requires that all "alterations" be legalized in advance in order to avoid legal problems in the future.
Internal works
Many lovers of travel with comfort are interested in the question - how much does a motorhome on wheels cost in Russia, but having learned the cost of the finished version, they prefer to create a motorhome with their own hands. And this makes sense, since making a motorhome on wheels from a gazelle with their own hands is within the power of any person who is ready to put in a certain amount of effort and spend his time on it.
The first thing that needs to be done inside the cabin of the future motorhome on wheels is to dismantle the partition located behind passenger seats... If it is bolted, there will be no problems; if a welded joint is used, a grinder is required. After dismantling, the interior should be completely freed from the interior trim. In parallel with this, it is worth checking the metal parts for the presence of foci of corrosion. Take measures to eliminate them, keeping in mind that it will be much more difficult to disassemble a finished motorhome.
Before proceeding with the insulation and interior decoration of the motorhome, you should carefully consider the water and power supply system, since all pipes and electrical cables are best hidden under the casing - this will avoid accidental damage. After that, a motorhome on wheels based on a gazelle requires serious insulation. In addition to special materials with vibration and thermal insulation characteristics, you can use basalt mineral wool or extruded polystyrene foam for a motorhome.
An important point in the interior and exterior of a motorhome on wheels is the protective treatment of the material used. Thus, additional metal elements outside the motorhome must have a high-quality anti-corrosion treatment. Internal cladding elements are usually made of wood. For their treatment, it is recommended to use a special fire-retardant impregnation, which will prevent the spread of flame, will not allow the formation of a fungus, which may simply be impossible to get rid of.
Certain ideas for creating your own project can be "borrowed" from the manufacturers of such houses by watching the following video:
Gas and electrical equipment
Any motorhome on wheels - a Mercedes or a gazelle, requires a special attitude in terms of electricity and gas supply. Do not naively believe that without proper education, you can perform high-quality electrical wiring and install the appropriate equipment in a motorhome. The same applies to gas equipment.
For example, few people know that for a gas cylinder in any motorhome, it is necessary to "allocate" a separate closed area, in the lower part of which there should be openings that communicate with the outside atmosphere. This will allow propane, which is heavier than air, to escape from the RV, if it leaks out of the tank, and will not cause poisoning or a fire in the passenger compartment.
An important point for a motorhome is the correct calculation of the battery capacity. To ensure maximum autonomy, the daily energy consumption of all devices in the motorhome should be summed up. The resulting value in watts will need to be divided by 12 (V), resulting in a value in ampere-hours (Ah) - it is this value that is indicated on the battery and allows you to judge its power. So, when the energy consumption in a motorhome is 50-60 Ah / day, it is optimal to purchase a battery of 120-150 Ah... Such a motorhome on wheels will be able to function autonomously for two days. It is advisable to provide an external socket for recharging the battery of the motorhome in parking lots.
Furniture
Despite the fact that at present it will not be a problem to buy ready-made furniture for a motorhome, according to reviews, it is not able to satisfy all the needs of car owners, especially those who create a motorhome on wheels according to their own drawings. That's why the best option becomes either her self-production, or an individual order for furniture production.
In most cases, making your own furniture is more optimal for a motorhome. Since for a small motorhome, for example, based on a standard gazelle or UAZ, not so much furniture is required, and it does not differ in particular complexity, you can save money at this stage of work. For the proper level of comfort in a motorhome, as a rule, the following furniture structures are made:
- dining table, to save space in a small motorhome, it is better to use a folding option;
- kitchen table with sink and work surface;
- open shelves or drawers located under the ceiling of the motorhome;
- if you have a toilet in a motorhome on wheels, you will need to make a partition with a door.
When a KAMAZ or a bus is taken as a base for a motorhome, the amount of furniture listed above increases. When making a motorhome on wheels with your own hands, to facilitate the task of determining the type and quantity of furniture, you can use special computer programs, or draw a detailed plan for the future layout of the motorhome on paper, where you can clearly indicate not only the type of furniture, but also its location.
How the most expensive mobile home can be made out can be seen in the photo - clearly visible how sophisticated and comfortable interior furnishings can be.
When building a house on wheels with your own hands, you should pay attention to the quality of materials. So, for furniture it is advisable to use moisture-resistant materials that are resistant to household chemicals, since cleaning in any type of motorhome - from a bus, a trailer or a gazelle - will have to be done quite often.
This type of rest and travel option is used by lovers of freedom and independence from tickets and flights. It is a good decision to have both a car and a home on a vacation trip. Thanks to the presence of a mobile home, a family can travel in comfortable conditions and stop wherever and whenever they want, without reference to time. Camping sites gained their popularity at the beginning of the 20th century.
DIY home on wheels
Through such an independent vacation, you can see those places on the way to your destination that not accessible from plane or train... In addition, camping during renovation of an apartment or construction of a house on the site can serve as temporary housing. You can also rent a camper van when there are no travel plans.
The cost of such pleasure is rather big, some options reach the price of an ordinary apartment, but to save money, you can create a camping or motorhome yourself.
The options for large campsites are being converted from buses and oversized vans, but this is too expensive for those who do not mind spending a lot of money on such mega-comfort.
Camping options
There are three budget options for self-taught:
To build a motorhome with your own hands, you need:
- Have wheels.
- Visually draw a plan of a camping house, drawings - this is one of the main points in creating a mini motorhome.
When drawing up a plan, you need to think through all those comfort details that are in an ordinary apartment.
Internal communications of the motorhome
As in any regular campsite house too need communications- This is electricity, water, gas, toilet and, possibly, shower. Without these amenities, mobile housing will not be comfortable. In order to have light in the camp, it is advisable to purchase a battery with a battery and a device for recharging. It is worthwhile to think over the internal wiring well in advance. It is necessary to take into account the external connectors when charging and the fact that they have different capacities.
To drain waste through a hose hidden in the floor, it is easier to use a regular bucket by placing it under the body of your motorhome. Kitchen water can be stored in large containers by submerging pumps to feed it to the tap. To drain the used water, a reservoir is also used inside or outside the room. A small shower can be built as a tap, for example, above the sink.
Unfortunately, the usual toilet in mobile home it will not be possible to build, since there is no place and it is difficult to drain the waste constantly. A dry closet is perfect here.
The camping lighting system will require :
- battery;
- charger;
- wiring.
What is needed to heat your motorhome.
At the ready for an autonomous heater, you can purchase a battery and a gas cylinder, because it will also come in handy in the kitchen and the operation of the refrigerator. You should not use a lot of electrical appliances and equipment for two reasons - this is an additional power consumption and a load on the wiring, since this is a small room compared to a house. The services of an electrician should be used when working with gas, since it is extremely risky to do it yourself if you are not an electrician.
Interior arrangement of the camping
Ventilation system.
It is also important to deal with ventilation so as not to clog the room with odors.
The location of the holes is important as it is best not to expose them in plain sight for reasons of beauty. It is best to place them at the bottom of the walls above the floor, you can also put a gas cylinder there.
Furniture.
Practicality and compactness when arranging furniture is a guarantee of comfort in a camping, given the small space, as well as the layout. Folding or pull-out berths, tables with attached stools and so on will create the necessary comfort and the desire to relax in a self-made motorhome. There are special compact headsets on sale, but if there is a desire and time, it is quite possible to make furniture yourself using old boards, tabletops, and for a sofa and chairs, you can take seats from the same car or old wheels can also be converted into chairs or stools.
Carpenter at the campsite.
In such a dwelling, if it is one-story, it is recommended to make two windows so that you do not have to consume electrics during the day. It is better to make the door double-leaf so that it does not sag and the wind does not blow into the room.
Minibus or caravan, let's look at the principle of transforming each one.
To start transforming a Gazelle minibus into a camping, you need to clear the body, remove the seats and upholstery, make holes for windows and a valve for gas supply:
Body preparation
To process the body you need:
- against corrosion, a primer is applied inside, and then you need to insulate the walls, floor and ceiling with thermal insulation;
- cover with plywood or carpet;
- what glue, what plywood needs to be selected good quality so that the insulation will serve you for a long time;
- after the stage of insulation, you can start electricity and gas, then go to the kitchen, think over a place for the sink and oven, install water tanks, a bathroom and at the end arrange the rest of the rest furniture, beds, chairs or stools, cabinets and shelves, depending on what is available space.
A house from a trailer is different in that there are only wheels and you need to do everything from scratch, like on a plot, first build a box - the future room.
Housing from a trailer is done as follows:
To make a roof for a motorhome, you will need :
- assemble a frame from supporting structures - beams, if you want a triangular roof;
- further, we sheathe it with plywood;
- you need to cover it with a water-repellent material.
After that, a rain gutter can be made and attached to the back wall from the outside and from the inside to drain waste. You also need to veneer the outer walls. Internal wiring and thermal insulation must be covered with fiberboard and then the stage of manufacturing one or two doors.
To protect the tree from drying out, and pests, you need to cover the outside and inside of the wall with a primer, apply a layer of paint on top. For an aesthetic look, you need to close the threaded holes and also paint. All these procedures will reliably protect the house from the influence of external harmful factors... At the end of the work, since this is a trailer, you need to install the headlights and fenders.
This kind of mobile homes fall into three categories:
Travel in your homemade RV, of course nice and comfortable... However, you need to decide for yourself whether you can independently master all the work on the construction of a motorhome.
