Popular Mechanics - USA (2019-12)

DEMOLITION

You’ll start demolition by remov-

ing the seats, followed by the floor,

then the wall and ceiling panels

(as desired). Then there are odds

and ends to remove, as well as wir-

ing issues to address.

The two most useful tools you’ll

need for the demo process are a

power drill and an angle grinder.

For hand tools, you should have

a standard and a metric set of

socket wrenches, a combination

wrench set, screwdrivers, a pry

bar, and a couple pairs of locking

pliers.

SEATS / Most seat bolts are cor-

roded or have a nut under the bus

that turns with the bolt. Instead

of using a wrench, aim your angle

grinder cutting wheel at the base

of the bolts at a slight angle to slice

into the bolt.

WALL AND CEILING PANELS /

Removing the wall panels in your

bus can be as easy as unscrewing

a ton of Phillips screws or as chal-

each wiring change. If the bus fails

to start, you’ll know which wire(s)

caused the problem.

Overhead speakers were origi-

nally used for intercom systems,

but they can be connected to a

stereo. You may opt to leave these

speakers in place, replace them

with higher-quality units, or

simply cover them up. Another

option is to replace them with

lights, which requires replacing

the cabling (12- or 14-gauge wir-

ing is sufficient for most 12-volt

lighting).

PASSENGER HEATERS / These

heaters use coolant from the

engine to generate heat that radi-

ates into the passenger area. You

first have to disconnect the cool-

ant input and output hoses and

connect them together to bypass

the heater. You make the connec-

tion with a barbed union fitting

for hoses.

Underneath the bus, below

where the heater is located, you

will see two black hoses going up

through the bus f loor and con-

necting to the bottom inputs

of the heater with clamps. Use

locking pliers to pinch the hoses

closed, clamping the pliers a cou-

ple inches away from the ends so

there’s room to fit on the barbed

union. Then loosen the hose

clamp on the input hose with a

f lat-head screwdriver and slip

the clamp out of the way. Pull the

hose from the heater input. Insert

one end of the barbed union all

the way into the open end of the

hose, and secure the hose over the

union with the clamp. Repeat this

step with the other hose from the

heater to connect it to the other

end of the union. Be prepared

for coolant spillage and have a

5-gallon bucket handy to catch

any coolant that spills from inside

the heater.

lenging as grinding or drilling out

a ton of rivets. Regardless, remove

the original thin metal interior

siding to inspect for rust, allow

for better insulation, and open up

options for custom wall paneling.

Demolishing the original ceil-

ing panels is done exactly the

same way as the wall panels. A

lot of air temperature is lost and

gained through the ceiling, so

you might want to replace the old

insulation with newer, more effi-

cient insulation.

FLOOR PREP / The original

f loor needs to go. You don’t want

to build your skoolie over a f loor

that may be rotted and rusty. And

removing the original f loor allows

you to add a new insulated surface

to help maintain a comfortable

temperature inside. Insulation

also cuts down on road noise.

Most school buses have a top

floor layer of thick rubber over 1⁄2-

inch or 3⁄4-inch plywood that sits

on top of the primary metal f loor.

As you get the rubber to pull up,

you can grab it and peel it back

by hand. It helps to have someone

prying along the bottom edge of

the rubber as you pull.

Next, remove the plywood layer.

The plywood is usually glued to the

metal in various shapes and sizes.

The pry bar is your tool of choice

for this step, and a second pry bar

doesn’t hurt. Once you pry up an

edge of each plywood piece, you can

begin pulling the wood up by hand.

WIRING / Many of the smaller

demo items—alarms, speakers,

lights—involve wiring. In many

cases, you can remove an item that

has wiring running to it and sim-

ply cap off each wire with a wire

nut. Sometimes, however, wiring

configurations are interconnected

with the bus’s starting system, so

make sure the bus starts up after

Use the proper protective equip-

ment—gloves, a dust mask, and a face

shield—while working on your bus.

66 December 2019