Staining & Varnishing

Early on in the conversion I decided that I would do the internal fitting in pine and stain it to look like aged Baltic Pine. I've always liked this stain and it goes very well with radiata pine which is very common here and reasonably priced. The finish tends to accomodate the imperfections that come with pine. If you like it's a rustic finish, but when properly varnished looks classy at the same time. I did a fair bit of looking around before I made the final decision on what to use. I finally settled on Feast Watson Old Baltic Stain. It really is the case that you get what you pay for in paints and stains. This stuff is not cheap. This one litre can was $38.00 and now that I've started to use it, I know that I'm going to need much more than 1 litre.

The quality is obvious when it is applied. I is so good that it almost doesn't need varnish, there is a real gloss on it after it dries. It does need to be covered though because it is not a durable finish on its own.

The pic below shows the rear panel of the bed which I had to take out to do the wiring and fix a problem with the framing after the water filler was installed. I took the opportunity to sand it and stain it outside. If you look carefully you can see a gloss on it already. This is one application of the stain without varnish.

The pics following show the back of the kitchen cupboard with after one coat of stain and one coat of the varnish. I have chosen to use Bondall Marine Varnish because of it's UV resistance. Although clear and very high gloss, this varnish contains an additive which prevents UV from yellowing the pine. Most varnishes, even external ones don't prevent UV damage.

I will apply another coat of varnish to this after giving it a light sand with 240 grit sandpaper and the gloss finish should be fantastic and durable.

It is really hot here today, but I'll try to get the undersides of the overhead cupboards started, then it is just some minor trimming and then onto sanding, staining and 2 coats of varnish.

I've also fixed the cuboard to the floor now that the wiring is done. I used small angle brackets which I found at Bunnings. These will not get in the way of the carpet tiles that I want to put on the floor in the cupboards.

The Awning

Before going into the staining & varnishing, I though that I'd better put up a pic f the new awning. This is a Carefree 13 foot model which has the special curved legs designed especially for the Mazda Bus. The old girl is at last starting to look like a motorhome from the outside.

The Electrical Wiring

As promised a post on the 12 & 240 volt wiring systems. I remember when I built a house some years ago that sound advice was to make sure that you get all of the wiring that you are going to need while the construction is happening. So, that's the philosophy I've empl0yed here. The pics below give a good indication of how I've done the job.

The 12 volt system had to accomodate a number of appliances including the lights, the water pressure pump, the fridge and the ignition for both the gas cooktop and the hot water system.

Because I had to get the power down from the solar panels on the roof and the 12 volts back up from the battery to the lights etc, I needed to run wiring up the side of the bus. I though of many ways of doing it in a way that it was hidden and eventually gave up in favour of this system using flexible mains ducting. I think it looks OK and will be hidden by the curtains anyway. I might paint it, not sure.

I used 15 amp 2 core automotive cable from Jaycar because it was both heavy enough and has insulation on the wire and a heavy plastic cover encasing both wires. With the lights, the simplest thing to do was to start from the battery, go up the wall to the underside of the overhead cupboards and run the wiring around all of the cupboards. Where I wanted a light, I put in a terminal block and ran two wires to go to the light. This means that all of the lights are in parallel, hopefully getting at least 12 volts right the way to the last light. (the outside light)

All of the lights are going to be very low wattage LED lamps. They are way more expensive than any others, but when you are relying on batteries to run light, fridge etc, the lower the wattage the better. We are all going to be using them in our homes soon anyway.

The pic below shows how I've run the lighting wiring under the overhead cupboards. The orange cables hanging down will be shortened once the underside of the cupboards have been panelled. The lights will all have switches on them. I've also put the fan for the rangehood on the same circuit.

This is the rangehood in its final position ready to be wired in and have the panelling either side of it. Not much stainless steel for $250.00 though. I decided to have the rangeood which flumes to the outside because there is nothing worse than cooking smells in a caravan/motorhome.

The pic below is of one of the kitchen cupboards which I've decided to use as the mounting place for the power supply for the fridge and the battery charger. I didn't want to put these units in the battery box (under the right side dinette seat) mainly because of the possibility of overheating. Both of these units only work when the bus is plugged into the mains. The one on the left is the unit that came with the fridge and connects to the fridge and the battery. It works by sensing when 240 volts is present, and then automatically disconnecting the fridge from the battery. Of course when the mains are connected the 'smart' battery charger (on right) will also begin charging the battery. A power point will also go into this cupboard.

The pic below is the panel that I made for the solar regulator and the fuse box. The regulator is a little upmarket from some available and of course cost a little more, but it does more. Unlike some regulators this little box has an LCD screen and not only regulates the charging rate of the batteries from the panels, but it also constantly senses the voltage of the batteries and cuts out the supply to appliances when the voltage falls below a pre-set level. This is to prevent the deep cycle batteries getting too flat which will damage them. The regulator also has 4 stages of charging and is designed to maintain the batteries at their optimum charge at all times so that the motorhome is always ready to roll. Daily and current charging rates and usage from the batteries are also monitored and can be viewed at any time on the LCD screen. Jaycar sell this unit for about $170.00, however I was lucky and found it on eBay for $109.00. If you are going to use absorbed glass mat (AGM) batteries this is a must. Other regulators can overcharge your batteries and greatly reduce their service life - these batteries are not are not cheap.

On the right is a 6 circuit fuse box. Each of the circuits go though this box with the appropriate fuse installed. It even comes with little lables that go on the clear plastic civer to show which fuse is for what.

I have deliberately kept the 12 volt system independent from the body earth of the vehicle. This means that it is completely separate from the vehicles 12 volt system. To do this I had to run negative wiring to all appliances instead of simply running one +'ve wire and earthing everything back though the body, which means less chance of problems. If a wire rubs through it cannot short out on the body of the vehicle. Any short circuit can only result from the +'ve and -'ve wires in the system shorting together. This is why I have used plywood for the panel.

For safety reasons, I have installed a 60amp dual circuit breaker (pic below) which all power from the battery will flow through. These units are designed for high power car audio, but will do the job nicely. These are available from Jaycar for $30.00. If there is a fault anywhere in the system this will disconnect the batteries from the circuit and minimise damage. Two 120 amp batteries in parallel provide enough energy to weld metal and could easily cause a fire. One of the circuit breakers is for all of the applicances. The other one will be for a dedicated output to my amateur radio which draws up to 23 Amps on transmit. Again this will provide a safety measure if there is a short in the system.

The only remaining 12 volt wiring to be done is an auxilliary output for TV etc, wiring up the PV panels and the cabling from the battery to the point where the transceiver will sit.

240 Volt Wiring

I have completed the wiring for the 240volt system. I have run the wiring in purpose made flexible conduit. I had to do this so that I could move on with the conversion, however I will not be attempting the connection of the power points, the residual current device or the circuit breakers. That's a job for a licensed electrician. All power points in the motorhome must be double pole switches. This means that both the active and neutral lines are disconnected by the switch. In normal house wiring only the active line is cut by the switch. These are all for reasons of safety if portable generating systems/inverters are being used.

The pic below gives an idea of how the wiring is placed in conduit. The RCD and circuit breaker box will go on the outside of this cupboard.

Cutting Holes

Hi Again.

Its been some time since I updated the Blog. The one thing I have learned about fitting out motorhomes is that things never go exactly as planned. There have been been a number of delays in obtaining equipment and also with me being sick. Anyway things have certainly moved on since my last post.

Not having the confidence to go cutting holes in the bodywork, I had Peter come and do it. Below are some pics of the finished jobs. I reckon that if I ever do this again, that these jobs will be done first and the internal fitting installed afterwards.

This pic shows the right side of the bus and the install of the fibreglass gas box, the 240 volt inlet and the filler for the right side water tank. Peter used Sikaflex white sealant adhesive to make the gas box fit around the profile of the side of the bus as can be seen in the pic below. Of course there is a cover with a lock to go on yet.

The pic below shows the left side of the bus and the other water filler. Ive decided to go with two fillers because although one would have done for both tanks, it's my intention to plumb each of the two tanks to the pump separately. This will allow me to know when each tank is empty and therefore how much water I have on board. Because of the sizes of the tanks available, I have only 2 x 60 litre tanks. Any extra will have to be carried in portable containers.

That's it for this post. I'll add another one now about the wiring that I have done and also the start of the staining and varnishing.

More Work on The Kitchen Cupboard

After another a break of 3 weeks, I've managed to get back to work on the bus conversion. I came to a stop because I had ordered the appliances and other fittings and I've been waiting for them to arrive. All equipment required was purchased through Peter Booth at Tas Mobile Caravan Repairs Ph: 0458 615 003. Peter sourced the equipment through one of his suppliers and was able to provide very competitive quotes. He has 20+ years experience in the caravan repair business and does a great job if you need something done. Best of all he comes to you, no need to tow the caravan etc to a yard. - Advertisement complete.

This weekend I finished putting the shelves in the kitchen cupboard and cut the openings in the bench top for the stove and sink. I chose to go for the Smev 3 burner in bench type stove top. This was to provide the extra bench space that comes from the glass top and also to keep the distance as much as possible between the burners and the rangehood. The regulations stipulate a gap of at least 600mm between the burners and any combustible surface above, or 450mm between the burners and any non-combustible surface (the rangehood).

As you can see from the photos below, the stove top and the sink are in place, but obviously have to be moved so that the Laminex top can be fitted.

Peter is coming to cut the holes in the side of the bus and fit the roof vents. I could tackle these jobs, but I think that his experience will prove very valuable and avoid costly mistakes.

That's it for now. I hope the next post will show some more real progress, however there is now a lot of work to be done behind the scenes, wiring, plumbing etc. Thanks for reading.

Back After a Long Break

I have finally got around to doing another post on the bus project. I have had a break of a couple of weeks due to illness. I developed a bad chest condition which has finally begun to ease after two courses of strong antibiotics. Anyway, I have been working on the bus as and when I've felt able to and this post will bring you up to date with progress so far. It's going to be a bit of a marathon, so here goes.

My last post showed the overhead cupboard frames and shelving almost completed. The next most important thing was the completion of the rear bed/lounge. I had intentions of using the bus but being sick put pay to that.

At this point I had to start panelling with the tongue and groove pine along the front of the seats and the backrests. The pic below shows the finished job. There is still some trim to put around the top of the backrests.

The pic below shows the 'bed board' in place. this goes between the seats and makes it into a bed. I used 12mm plywood for this and strengthened the front edge with a 20mm square piece of pine and screwed this into place. The edges of the plywood have also been trimmed with pine to make a snug fit.

The 'bed board' stores neatly against the back wall of the tall cupboard as the pic below shows. I had intentions of using smaller pieces of ply, for ease of storage, but a couple of clips will keep the board in the cupboard nicely. See pic below.

The next job was to 'face' all of the cupboards and the toilet/shower. The most difficult part about this job is cutting the planks to conform with the shape of the roof. To help, I cut a template from plywood and used this. This is the wall behind the shower and shows the tall cupboard.

The pic below is one of the front wall of the shower/toilet and how the panelling had to be cut to the shape of the roof.



The next pic is of the front overhead cupboard which had to be faced and cut to conform with the shape of the roof. This turned out OK I think. Cutting out the panelling for the cupboards was made so much easier with a little trimmer router that I bought for the job together with a trimmer bit with a bearing on the bottom. This meant that I did not have to be super critical with the lengths of the T&G pine and I could trim them to a neat finish after the glue had dried.

This is the dinette seat behind the driver's seat. The backrest panelling has been extended beyond the seat for the sake of neatness and also to provide a mounting point for the fire extinguisher which is a must. I was lucky and a good sized one was provided with the bus.

One of the issues I had to deal with was how to obscure the glass that sits over the shower/toilet. Even though the inside will have panelling all across, I was worried that it would look awful from outside. I had contemplated painting the glass, but my advice from the experts was that it is very difficult to get paint to stick to glass for long periods. Instead, I went down the path of a product by White Knight paints which comes in a small spray can for about $15. It is glass frosting and is easily applied and is designed to stick to glass. I applied the whole can in about 4 coats to the windows. The pics below show both the interior and exterior finished job. Lets hope it sticks like it's supposed to.

Interior View

The pic below shows the completed dinette seat on the left side of the bus. In front of the seat is a small cupboard which will house the power supply for my HF radio and also provide a handy shelf to rest an arm on or sit a drink on. The bottom part of this cupboard has been cut open to allow access from behind the passenger's seat for storage of jumper cables or similar. I hope to change both the front seats to something more comfortable. The current left side seat is skinny and uncomfortable and will not tilt forward. Hopefully I can find some suitable replacements from a car/4WD etc.

This is a view from the rear of the bus looking forward. As you can see, I have put a top on the cupboard. I went down the path of 19mm melamine particle board for two reasons; The melamine provides some increased resistance to moisture and also prevents the underside of the panel being open to the air. The chemical stuff that they put in the particle board is not good to be breathing 24/7. By the time Laminex is stuck onto the top of this and a pine edging placed around it, the panel will be completely sealed again. I know that the Laminex should not be placed onto the melamine, but I am assured that if I attack the surface with the belt sander, the glue will stick just fine.

The following two pics are self explanatory and give an overall impression of the stage that the conversion is at at the moment. I have priced all of the fittings including the appliances and will order those this week.

What's next? Well I think that its time to start getting serious with the 12 volt wiring, solar panels, fuses etc then start looking for an electrician who will run the 240 volt wiring for me. I have to have a 15 amp system installed together with an earth leakage detector. I am going to get a power point placed at the rear near the bed and one outside where the awning will go. You never know when you might need it.

There won't be much done now for at least another week. I'll try to keep the posts more regular from now on. Thanks for reading.

Saturday - Shelving

Hi again. No post yesterday, I just felt too sick to do much at all. I got some done today though including the shelving in the overhead cupboards. Of all of the jobs I've had to do so far, I enjoyed this one the least. The ply I'm using is a hardwood type and quite heavy, and it also splinters really easily. Needless to say my fingers are a mess of splinters. Wearing gloves was a pain, so I had to battle through. The other problen is trying to handle a full sheet of ply and get it through the table saw alone is very difficult.

I got the fridge properly installed on a sheet of ply so I can raise it up off the floor a little to allow for the floor covering and also to level it up. The fridge naturally leans back to allow the door to fall closed. Trouble with is is the it looks wierd when inside the cupboard. All fixed now, level and secured in place.

I also ripped down some of the 42 x 19mm pine to 20mm square which I've used to put in supports for the cladding and some of the shelves. I'm waiting for someone to come around to give me a hand to remove the auto door opener so I can install the left side dinette seat and frame for the wall panels. Tomorrow morning I'll take an early trip to the hardware and get some hinges for the seat hatches, some more 10mm ply (for the left side seat and to line the bottom of the shower), some square ducting for cabling and some wool insulation for the walls. It's almost time to start looking for an electrician to to get the 240V wiring in.

Anyways, photos below are self explanatory.



Ive got somewhere to put the tools now. An early test for the strength of the shelving. seem to be holding up OK so far.



This isthe shelving in one of the kitchen cupboards and my new nail gun. Never used these things before, but I am a convert. They are great. I've also got a smaller C1 bradder and stapler, both of which have been very useful so far. See you next time.

Thursday - All Overhead Framing Done

Today was a very late start, still not well and didn't sleep much last night. I was determined to get the overhead framing done today, and apart from a few very minor matters, they're all done. I tackled the cupboard over the cab first and put it as far forward as I could. I want to be able to get from the cab to the back so I didn't want the cupboard over the cab to stick into the living space too far. Even so, I've already hit my head on the thing twice. All of the undersides of the cupboards except over the kitchen bench will be padded & upholstered to match the lounge and dinette cushions. This might help prevent further brain damage when I hit my head on them.

This pic shows the cupboard over the cab. This will have side hinged doors also. It is a great spot for an LCD TV too. You can see it from everywhere in the bus except the toilet, but nothing a window wouldn't fix. OK looking out, not so good looking in! The 45 degree pieces on each end are to give me something to affix the panelling to.

This is the completed framing for the shelf on the right side of the bus. This will be upholstered on the underside and like all the other cupboards and lined on the top with carpet tile to stop stuff moving around unnecessarily.

This is the completed framing for the overhead shelf between the cab and the door. Depending on what goes on this, it will need some support on the end closest to the camera. I intend putting a decorative rail along the edges about 100mm high. Not sure of what yet. Another day done and time for a rest. I hope I'll feel better tomorrow, here's hoping.

Wednesday - Overhead Cupboard Well Underway

Today I achieved that which I set out to, namely finish the framing for the overhead cupboards. I didn't feel well again today, but I'm making myself get on with this project. Today I also ran out of 42x19mm pine for the second time, and also used the last of a box of 500 screws. S0 far I reckon I've used about 700 screws in the framing and too many metres of pine.

The cupboards down the right side are all framed up, just now waiting to be lined and panelled. The side cupboards are about 25cm deep and the back ones are 35mm. I had thought originally about making then over bench cupboards 30mm and the others 40mm, but it would make it difficult to see all of the work surface and probably result in me hitting my head each time I sat on the lounge. I think there will be enough room nevertheless.

Anyways the following pics sum up today's efforts.

This shows how I've doubled up the framing for stength. Each of these frames is screwed and glued to the wall plate and then glued and screwed together. As you will see in the following pics, this allows for each cupboard to have a 42mm face for the doors to fix to.

This pic shows the completed side over bench cupboards with their faces fitted. The rear side cupboard is 710mm wide and the over bench cupboards are each 555mm wide. This allows for 4 cupboards spread evenly over the full length of the kitchen bench. One of these will accomodate the rangehood flue.

This is the almost complete rear cupboard frames. This has to have a divider in the middle and some framing across the base of the cupboard. I would have done it today, but I ran out of timber. Anyway, so far so good. Now I have to tackle the cupboard over the cab and the shelving that will run from where the over bench cupboards end to the over cab cupboard. The over cab cupboard will house the LCD TV/Video and have storage behind. Thanks for reading, more tomorrow I hope.

Tuesday - Overhead Cupboards Begin

One of the greatest mysteries to me when I was planning the conversion was how I was going to build the overhead cupboards. The problem is that there is a secure place to fix them to just above the windows, but nowhere to to 'hang' them from the roof without cutting the roof lining.

After a lot of sitting and staring at the problem, I've solved it. The three pics below show today's progress and how the overhead cupboards will go together.

This is the framing around the bed/lounge that I mentioned yesterday. I have to leave these uninstalled until after the hotwater system and plumbing are in, but you get the idea. These will be fixed to the walls and clad in pine panel like the rest of the furniture.

This is the start of the overhead cupboards. One end of this one is supported by the cupboard wall behind the shower/toilet and the other end supported by the rear cupboard. I had several trips between the saw and the bus today working out the angles to fix the cross members to the timber plate that is tek-screwed to the wall.

This pic shows how the cross members fix to the wall plate and some idea of the angle. I haven't done the rear overhead cupboard yet, just installed a cross member between the wall plates on either side of the bus. Most of the fitouts that you see around use lift-up cupboards. I'm going away from this in favour of more conventional side-hinged doors. The main reason is that top hinged doors almost always have to be supported by your head while you grovel around inside looking for stuff. I reckon it will be much easier to have double side hinged doors on each cupboard. That way you can swing them both open and have both hands free to extract whatever it is you're looking for. Now that I've got the angles etc worked out it will be full steam ahead. Should have all the overhead cupboards framed up by tomorrow? We'll see.

Monday - Not Much Done

To say that I feel sick today is an understatement. Suffering from a real bad cough and not feeling well all weekend really. I managed to build the dinette seat for the left side of the bus. Once again I built it outside thanks to the pocket hole system.

I couldn't install it because I need to remove the automatic door opener which is bolted to the floor. This is a 2 person job, one under the bus holding the bolts and someone inside undoing them. No one to help at the moment. However the seat is built and ready to install. Other than that, all I've done is cut plywood for the top of one of the seats, and begin the framing to go around the bed/lounge under the windows.

The three pics sum up todays work. The rain came and that was it for me. I hope to get more done tomorow.

The Dinette seat completed.

The Dinette seat ready to install. The door opener is at the bottom of the pic.

Frames like this will go onto the bed/lounge on three sides. They will be panelled and have a small shelf on the top. They serve mainly as a backrest for the seat backs as well as finishing the lounge so it looks good. I'm making this one removeable so I can get at the wiper motor if I need to.

That's it for now.

Back At It

After a break of a couple of weeks due to bad weather, I've managed to get back to work on the framing. Last weekend because of the bad weather all I got done was a trip to the timber yard to pick up some plywood. Having got the stuff, I've lined the kitchen cupboards and put the plywood top and hatches on the lounge/bed at the rear.

I did make a couple of purchases other than the plywood, namely two air operated nail guns which I've found to be invaluable, especially when fitting the plywood lining pieces. One of the nails guns takes up to 55mm nails and the other is much smaller and fires small 10mm brads just ideal for the lining. The guns weren't that expensive and for home use should last a long time. I already had the compressor and the hoses, so the guns were a good investment.

I also discovered that 'No More Nails' is now available in a water based glue and have started using this. It cleans up just like PVA, but is easier to use becuase it is thick and doesnt run away from the joints. 3 tubes f0r $12.00.

As you can see from this pic, the top is on the bed/lounge and there are 3 lift up hatches to get at the storage space. There is obviously a fair bit of finishing to be done, including hinges, but you get the idea. The plywood tops in the back corners are screwed rather than nailed down to allow for access to install the hot water system and water pump etc.

This one shows the lining on the cupboards. I have decided not to line both sides as it will save time and money and not really serve any purpose. So long as what is in one cupboard doesn't end up in another cupboard, then there seems little point. I may change my mind though, you never know.

This is the completed framing for the dinette seat immediately behind the driver's seat. It was a little complicated making the frame to go over back of the engine box, but the Kreg Pocket Hole jig worked like a treat. I was able to build the whole thing outside the bus and just put it in place. The bar across the top will support the hatch where it is hinged.

The fridge is in place and only now requires a little packing on one side (polystyrene wrapped in plastic) and a couple of pieces of trim on the front. I had to change the door so it would open from the left because otherwise you would have to lean over the top of the door while you are working in the kitchen. I could have left it the way it was which would only have been any good for getting out a stubby while you were in bed!

Other Stuff: Since my last post, the two 80 watt solar panels have arrived direct from the factory in China. I got them for $330 each and they landed here 5 days after they closed on eBay. If you are interested have a look at their website. The stuff looks to be really top quality and have a 5/25 year warranty. The communications were great and the panels arrived very well packed indeed. Go to www.wnsolar.chn for a look. They have some really good stuff at really low prices. All of the prices I had from local and interstate suppliers worked out at about $11 per watt. That means $880 for one 80 watt panel. I got two for less than this!

I also found a 20 amp solar regulator exactly the same as one being sold by a local retailer for $170, on eBay for $109. Quite a saving. The PPP (portable poo pot) als0 arrived. This was $80 with postage also off eBay. Good solid unit with a fresh water flush and a 20 litre capacity. I have elected to go for a removeable unit which will sit in the shower (try saying that 3 times fast) and go into a tent when camped for long periods. Better this way than waking to the odourlaflorium of your 'friend' snapping one off in such a confined place when you don't have to. This will also mean one less hole in the side of the bus to accomodate the 'cassette'.

I will post pics of this stuff as it gets installed. Anyway, keep a look out because there will be a lot of progress during the next couple of weeks I hope. If anyone at work is reading this, tell Rischard that the toilet cubicle is way to small for him to populate. See you next time.