Paying rent for accommodation is one of the major expenses in our lives. This man felt the same but what can you really do when you can’t afford a fully furnished house? He knew what he wanted and now, the execution was the ultimate task.
Let’s take you through his journey of converting a school bus into his home and it cost him $2200!
Cutting Down The Expenses
Michael Tally, a graphic designer based in Austin, Texas had been paying for his rented accommodations for years now. He was fed up with $1200 that used to go into his monthly rent and bills. He decided to do something about it and wanted to get a home but was that possible? He started looking for alternate solutions and the best idea came in the form of a school bus. He wanted to slay the tiny house trend as it would solve his problem in lesser money.
In Search Of The Bus
To kick off his project, he needed a bus and he was on his search for the perfect bus. He decided he needed a school bus for the same. Initially, he thought it was all about putting the woodblocks and light bulbs but as it turns out, it was way more complicated than that. He had four walls and a roof on wheels but there was still a lot of working to do. If he had known the amount of work it would take, he wouldn’t have started it in the first place. But now that he had taken up the job, it had to be completed.
Not A Regular Texas Man
As you would expect a Texas man to be a handy person, Michael was unlike all of those. He knew nothing about power machines and building things from scratch. This graphic designer had little experience with practical labor. He had zero experience in any of that work but none of that was going to stop him from getting this home built out of a school bus. As a graphic designer, it was easy for him to make several designs and get the work started.
Bought The Bus
He was at luck and found the bus he had been looking for at a deal to steal. PublicSurplus.com had an auction lined up for ten buses. The best part was that the auction was not very popular. There were a few bids and that enabled Michael to get the bus for $2200. This amount was lesser than his two months of rent and bills. The rest of the nine buses were bought by a single buyer. It was time for Michael to be all set to build the dream house.
Conversion Of The Bus
He was in no mood to build a tiny house. He had plans to create a full-size home with bedroom, bathroom, living room, and kitchen. He took ideas from far and wide and it included the ideas from the movie “The Lost World: Jurassic Park”. He collected all he could and cut out all the unrequired ideas from the plan. He kept the only ones he thought had practical potential and had the best return. He created a structural plan for bus conversion.
The First Problem Hit The Plan
When he actually started working on the bus, he realized that the bus measured 6’1” in height. This was the problem for him as Michael’s height is 6’6”. He was left with no option. He decided to raise the roof and make some space for himself. As we mentioned before, Michael knew nothing about labor work and raising the roof of the bus was an unfathomable task. He then took the help of YouTube videos to adjust the height of his bod.
The Final Plan
After the discovery of the problem, he decided to ditch the Jurassic park plan and get a new one. He realized that it would be better if he placed the public areas in the front of the bus, rather than putting them at the back. He expanded the kitchen space and the space for his desk. He wanted to add his old couch and a king-size bed to his new home and even wanted to have extra space. That is exactly how he planned his future home.
Prep It Up
The dream seemed impossible but he was determined to get his home on wheels ready. He moved out of his comfortable home in Austin and parked his bus outside his friend’s home until he was done with the construction. He explained his journey and said, “I moved into a tent in order to save money while working on the bus, commuting 40 minutes to work every day, just to afford more steel and more wood.”
Removal Of Seats
Michael didn’t expect removing seats will be so tough. It took him more time and effort than he had expected. A helpful man came to his help and took all the seats to scrap metal yard. He said, “If I did this again, I would have used an angle grinder, but this was still only days into the build and I was terrified of power tools.” It was unrealistic to think of completing this project without power tools.
Errors On The Way
After he got rid of the seats, it was time to get the roof in its required height. Michael had never used a drill machine and he had to use it if he wanted to extend the height of the roof. He explained his regret by saying, “I wish that I had ended up keeping this insulation in. It was in remarkably good shape and would have saved me a few headaches if I kept it in.”
It’s All About Having Fun
While cleaning the bus, he came across a note that said, “Kick Me”. He couldn’t stop laughing on the thought that some kid must have put it on another one to have some fun. After cleaning, the next job was to remove the rubber floor and windows. He even considered keeping the windows but realized that privacy would be at stake with so many windows. Hence, he decided to remove them.
Height Resolving
After all major things were removed; Michael then got prepared to raise the roof. He wanted to stand comfortably in his home, so, it was an important part of homebuilding. He said, “As soon as I stepped onto the bus for the first time I knew me being 6’6 was going to be a huge problem. The ceiling is only 6’1, so I was going to have to do some MAJOR work to get this thing comfortable for my abnormally large (body).”
“Raise The Roof” Jokes
People around Michael were making raise the roof jokes and he was fed up with all the lame jokes. He had successfully done it and it was time to install new metal ribs that will hold the new roof. Michael could just think of one thing and it was the bus collapsing on him. He cut all the sides of the bus precisely and divided the bus in half.
Cut In Two Halves
It would have been nerve-wracking to divide the bus into two halves and basically ruin it completely. He had to cut the bus from two places. His friends helped him in the process. To complete the raise the roof task, he had to increase the height by 24 inches. He used screw jacks to raise the roof and had to alter the original plans.
The Job Was Not Yet Done
He was happy with the result of the raised roof. He said, “It’s remarkable how much more spacious the bus feels than I thought it would.” He further explained, “I cut a section out of one of the steel ribs and took it to a metal fabricator. I had him craft 25 identical steel ‘sleeves’ that could slip over either end of the rib once the roof was raised.” Now the project was starting to take the shape as he had imagined.
Nothing’s Complete Without A Wound
After installing the roof, it was time for the walls to be placed. Michael chose metal panes to cover the mid-section of the bus that initially had windows. During this phase, a metal sheet fell on him and left a wound on his arm. It was the most painful and bloody part of the build according to Michael.
Baking Time
Well, not exactly. Baking in this bus would take a lot of days. However, Michael was now preparing to bake as he planned to install an oven in the bus. He even decorated the interior of the bus with Christmas lights. He was planning to cut holes for the new windows on the bus now. Plenty of work was still remaining and it needed a hell lot of effort.
Messed Up The Power Steering
The struggle was not yet over for Michael. Everything was going wrong, one after the other. This time, his bus got stuck in the mud and that ruined the power steering of the bus. He had to learn new driving skills in a short time. He recalled, “You have any idea how hard it is to try and Parallel Park a 40-foot school bus with no power steering? I do.” The next step in the home building was to install insulation as it was necessary to live in a bus.
Farm To The Rescue
Michael’s friend let him stay on the farm and that is what helped him the most. He didn’t have any other expenses, so, he focused all his finances and efforts in building the house of his dreams. He traveled every day from a farmhouse outside of Austin to the city to his workplace. He is glad that he got to do the whole process in the farm as the city would have had a different experience and he might not have liked it.
Gigantic Kitchen
Now that the walls and roof were set, it was time for the interior to get in place. First, he made a wooden couch frame and moved to set up his future kitchen. He got IKEA products for cheap to set his home. He got the cabinets and the drawers for $30. On the other hand, he got a big butcher block countertop for $120. The kitchen started coming in shape and he realized that the kitchen on the bus was bigger than the kitchen in his previous apartment.
Revamping The Previous Furniture
He already had an IKEA couch and he took parts of it to revamp his renovation project. He explained, “I took my IKEA Karlstad couch from my apartment and took off the back, arms, and feet so I was left with the cushions and the box spring base. I built that into the bus for added comfort and style.” A water storage system frame was set next to the couch and adjacent to the kit was the bathroom frame.
Shaving Off The Beard Was Part Of The Renovation
As Michael was spraying insulation on the ceilings, he got some on his beard as well. By the time he realized the blunder, it was too late and he had to shave off his long luscious beard. There was no time for stopping, so, Michael continued working on the walls with Masonite, light and sturdy material. Things were now coming together and looking great.
Solar Panels
Michael decided to go all-natural and take help from solar energy. He planned to install solar panels and get energy from the same. He recalled the day he installed the solar panels. He said, “This was the most frustrating day of the build. I was doing it myself, it was very windy, and things kept falling off the roof.” All of it was worth it as there was no hassle of paying huge bills.
Finishing With The Wood
Tally decided to take some wood and give his home the finishing touch. He didn’t invest much in the wood. He used the one he already had. He said, “I need to say I SUPER lucked out with this wood. It’s reclaimed floorboards from a house here in Hyde Park in Austin, from 1941. I just flipped it upside down and used the unfinished sides for all my accent walls/couch.”
The Graphic Designer’s Desk
As a graphic designer, Michael needed a proper huge desk to work. He had had some experience of working on small desks and this time he made sure he gave his work the proper importance and gets a big desk for work. He said, “Being a graphic designer, I need a proper workspace. Most tiny houses have these little dinky desks that flip up from a wall or are tucked away in a small alcove. This desk is 5 feet wide and 2 feet deep, the largest desk I’ve ever owned!”
Fully Functional Bathroom
The bathroom had a shower and toilet. For the door, he had used the restored wood. However, the use of the bathroom was limited to him. He explained, “I can use the bathroom in it, however, I rarely do. I pee outside like the good Lord intended. As for showering and stuff, I built an awesome little outdoor shower or I shower at the gym.”
Painting The Home
Michael didn’t want his home to look like a school bus, so yellow was out of option. He narrowed down to white color for his home. He had many reasons to paint his home white. As it is hot in Texas, white is suitable as it absorbs the least heat. It also leaves room for him to be creative if he wants to be. He explained, “I also couldn’t think of what colors would go with my wood interiors. I park it in South Austin, in someone’s shady side yard and pay less than $100 a month in rent and utilities.”
The Losses On The way
Yes, he must have got the house at quite a cheap price but he lost many things on this journey of getting his own home. It took him five months to build the dream house. It would have taken a lot more time if he wasn’t this hard working. When he started building his house, his long term girlfriend left him. Also, during these five months, his grandfather and his dog passed away. It was nothing less than a roller coaster ride for him.
Life On Wheels
Michael Tally now lives on a school bus and spends less than $100 dollars for various utilities in a month. Presently, he is working on his van as he wants to travel more often and in a convenient way. The total cost of remodeling the bus was $15,000. He managed his expenses from the job he does. He said, “I design T-shirts for a living. I lost my last job while building the bus actually, but got a much better one once the bus was completed. Perfectly enough, I work for the company that is responsible for all those ‘Keep Austin Weird’ shirts around town.”
