Plumbing Our Bus! All of the Supply-Side Plumbing for a Skoolie/Bus Conversion

Рет қаралды 24,306

2 жыл бұрын

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In this video we did all of the supply side plumbing for the @ourwildcaravan ( ourwildcaravan) Skoolie/Transit Bus conversion. We plumbed in the kitchen faucet, kitchen valves, water heater, water pump, shore water inlet, fresh water tank, L port valve and various push to connect fittings. I've done my best to link everything used below:
Bosch 7 Gallon Water Heater: amzn.to/3JocBqY
The L Port valve that allows us to fill either the tank or send the water directly to the fittings: amzn.to/3LEowmu
That great kitchen faucet: amzn.to/34BKO7B
1/2 inch Sink Valves: amzn.to/3Jqiunh
12V DC 3.3 GPM Seaflo Water Pump: amzn.to/3uKuHiT
Seaflo Accumulator Tank (makes pump cycle less often therefore reducing noise): amzn.to/3oIlNhI
Sharkbite 1/2 inch check valves (we used 3): amzn.to/3Jrwxcx
Sharkbite Elbows (buy in bulk, we used about a dozen): amzn.to/3JkLpt4
Sharkbite valves (we used 2): amzn.to/3oIiCaa
Sharkbite T (we used 3 or 4): amzn.to/3LntdRv
Valterra shore water inlet: amzn.to/34wfs2m
Red and Blue 1/2 inch Pex from Home Depot, Lowes, or Plumbing supply store. Local stores will likely have better pricing on Sharkbite fittings than amazon. Good luck and enjoy the process!
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Drop your comments or questions below!
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Пікірлер: 68

@BartBourg Жыл бұрын

Great job on the installation and explaining. ✌️

@cynthia2867 2 жыл бұрын

I love how you break things down for us to understand

@joyhouse2334 2 жыл бұрын

Me and my husband are building a skoolie and have went to habitat for Humanity and got so much stuff we could use as far as cabinets to sinks and shower floors and didn’t spend a Fortune. It’s always a good idea to save when you can.

@MobileDwellings 2 жыл бұрын

Yes! That's awesome. That place is such a great resource.

@timothyswatzell221 Жыл бұрын

Great videos and great tutorial. Keep up the fantastic work and be safe

@lovek2us 2 жыл бұрын

Hey, Justin and family and friends. Always love watching your videos. I learn a lot. I'm building out my short bus here in Egg Harbor Twp, NJ. I'm sure you know it. Hopefully, I will be done soon. I'll be looking forward to the next one. Stay safe

@unboxedtravels Жыл бұрын

Thank you for the tutorial !

@wendylynn7117 2 жыл бұрын

Even though I am not building I love your videos love the bus all you have done find it fascinating ..love seeing your beautiful girlies ..an dinner did look delicious .. love to live on a bus one day thanku so much for sharing much love and God bless always x

@Aaron-P 2 жыл бұрын

Seems a clean & efficient set up! Versatile yet simple. Good call on reinforcing the wall of the tank -- that bulge looked worrisome. Really enjoy hearing your thought process in making decisions in all your videos. 😎👍

@MobileDwellings 2 жыл бұрын

Glad you got some value out of it. Yeah that bulge did not feel good long term!

@worldfamouspopcorn19 2 жыл бұрын

I love this

@lauriepayseur5897 2 жыл бұрын

Loving the creativity and the can-do attitude. Also enjoying the “no prescribed way” of doing things. Making it all work safely is all that should’ve EVER mattered... seeing people coming back to the seemingly lost art of creating with their own hands seems magical! Then add that beautiful little Nova in there and I can’t NOT SMILE! 😍

@MobileDwellings 2 жыл бұрын

Haha Laurie I hate to do this to you but now you need to go and watch our first build series. You really get to see little Nova shine and grow up.

@lauriepayseur5897 2 жыл бұрын

@@MobileDwellings planned on it ☺️

@ilda2206 2 жыл бұрын

Hola..disfrutando de su musica..desde Panamá

@mark.mahorney 2 жыл бұрын

Hindsight haven't built out one myself but want too, when I do I will definitely house as much of my water system as possible in a tub with a drain back to outside or to a waste tank, so if anything ever leaks I won't flood my interior. Probably too late to be off any use to you now.

@Annnn-vx6bb 4 ай бұрын

Awesome work I was wondering if you could give me the link to the shut off valves for the sink you used. The water pressure valve you used for the water heater I can’t find it! Do you mind giving me a link for that as well? Thank you in advance 😊

@r8edrv4fun65 Жыл бұрын

Low flow reminds me that I'm limited on water. If it was the same pressure as city or in a house, I would definitely run out.

@henrycrader2756 Жыл бұрын

Other than the eas of using pex what would be a disadvantages of using pvc

@themadatheist1976 2 жыл бұрын

I would not trust that side water tank wall and would put some blocking against it to keep it from bulging out. Nevermind, finally watched the end of the video. 😁

@MobileDwellings 2 жыл бұрын

Hehe sounds like you haven't made it to the end of the vid yet.

@muzammildiwan4562 2 жыл бұрын

Hi bro hi is so good 👍👍

@sjf67gto Жыл бұрын

Sorry I didn't watch the whole video but you got it figured out that's all that counts

@MobileDwellings Жыл бұрын

Sure is!

@annaespinoza9795 Жыл бұрын

To be able to use your bus year round.. how do you use it without having everything freeze?

@steve3 Жыл бұрын

I know you’re supposed to put a check valve after the accumulator but doesn’t that make it difficult to drain the accumulator and water pump when it’s time to drain the system? Great video btw!!

@brandonsmith3060 2 жыл бұрын

I’d suggest adding some water to detectors/ alarms in those spots with the shark bites and sensitive areas with water storage. Just incase when the rubber gaskets in the shark bites fail in time and/or vibrations. …All plumbing fails eventually and water alarms are cheap.

@MobileDwellings 2 жыл бұрын

Hey Brandon. The cool thing is in a bus conversion if you leave your pump on at all times (which we do) the pump is actually a water alarm. If the pump is running and you are not using any water you know you have a leak.

@drewperry4555 11 ай бұрын

Hey man I've been considering bus life for a while and things have lined up where I might just have the money to actually go forward with a plan to buy a bus I was wondering if I could chat with you about a few things regarding your water heater and how you set up your water tanks. I have been watching you for a while and have some engineering background but I don't trust myself one bit and I'm sure you didn't either when you set all this up which is why I'd like to get the answer straight from the horses mouth. What was the point of the plug, and putting your water heater into a cabinet? I was planning on having most of my equipment including electrical and water connections central in the bus and under my counter space but every one I have watched seems to have wires and pipes moving all around cabinets for each individual item... can you give any insight into this as well as any other information. I'm super stoked to get into this community and promise I have some value to add and can help with engine/mechanical problems but I just cant seem to gather enough information. Let me know your thoughts thanks.

@Techgeekengineer Жыл бұрын

Thanks for using our products on your Skoolie. SharkBite fittings and Pex.

@magnoliathebus Жыл бұрын

Me again. Sorry, binging some of your videos today 🤣 I am curious what your thoughts are about a tankless water heater, and why you chose the 7 gallon Bosch water heater over that?

@MobileDwellings Жыл бұрын

Tankless propane is great, but we're not using any propane in this build. Tankless electric requires too much electricity all at once which means a much more robust electrical system. For $200 this water heater is just the perfect solution and 7 gallons with a low flow shower head has been plenty in our experience.

@magnoliathebus Жыл бұрын

@@MobileDwellings We decided to avoid fossil fuels other than diesel when we first conceived of doing this project, and if we could convert to an electric drive train we would do that, too. So we will probably follow your lead on the 7 gallon tank.

@LisaRaphael 2 жыл бұрын

Love your videos! I bought all shark bite connectors and a lot of people are telling me it’s a very bad idea because more than likely half of them will leak. I’m completely confused and now I’m thinking of returning all the shark bite stuff and use crimping method. Do you have an opinion? Thanks!

@MobileDwellings 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks! I'm not sure why anybody is telling you that. I've never seen one leak

@LisaRaphael 2 жыл бұрын

@@MobileDwellings I wish I knew! I also wish you were in Los Angeles.

@bethanymay7186 2 жыл бұрын

I talked to a plumber and he said to use the crimps, too. It's cost effective and easier to fix when they fail. He said that they do often fail, but not the crimps. 🤷‍♀️ Then again, he works in residential settings where the water pressure is much higher than in an RV.

@jennifermaupin8981 Жыл бұрын

Soooo wondering why no one mounts their fresh water underneath like they do the grey and black? I’m sorry if this is a stupid question, but I am so curious as to why it doesn’t make sense? Great videos! Keep it up!

@MobileDwellings Жыл бұрын

Really just so that it never freezes. It would suck to have your water frozen in subzero temperatures. If your gray water freezes though you can still get by.

@ohske 2 жыл бұрын

☺👍👍👌

@brutally_honest 2 жыл бұрын

dope video. 2 questions: 1. why do you use regular hose and hose clamps between the pump and accumulator and not pex? 2. the pump is way high above the exit from the fresh water tank, and even has an elbow joint before it. If that whole pipe is full of air, can the pump pull the water up that tubing and around the corner into itself?! or does that tubing need to be full of water (say from the fill up)? bonus - any reason you chose a 115v water pump vs a 12v?

@brutally_honest 2 жыл бұрын

re: 2 i see its because of the "self priming to 6 vertical feet" - so does that mean it can pull water up 6 vertical feet of air?

@MobileDwellings 2 жыл бұрын

Interesting questions. The pump gets flexible vynil pipe because it reduces the noise and vibrations that the pump makes while running vs pex. And yes the pump can pull air through itself to get to the water and being above the exit is not a problem.

@brutally_honest 2 жыл бұрын

@@MobileDwellings what about the AC pump vs 12V DC?

@ravenbridges2962 Жыл бұрын

I did my plumbing system basically the exact same way but all the joints are leaking. Any advice?

@MobileDwellings Жыл бұрын

Never had a joint leak on these ever. Did you for sure push them in all the way? Did they freeze?

@DiamondFaithNetwork Жыл бұрын

What type of wood is that on the walls and ceiling?? Doing mine and want that exact look for the walls and ceiling!

@MobileDwellings Жыл бұрын

Purebond birch plywood from home Depot. We patiently picked through hundreds to get the nice ones!

@DiamondFaithNetwork Жыл бұрын

@@MobileDwellings Thx man and LOVE the videos, they are helping me tremendously! 1 more question lol, what is the thickness of the plywood? My bus has bowed walls and im nervous about the flexibility of the plywood being able to form against the bowed frame. THX A BUNCH!!!!!

@MobileDwellings Жыл бұрын

@@DiamondFaithNetwork the ceiling is 1/4". if you have a really tight bow it won't work so well. Glad they've been helpful!

@sjf67gto Жыл бұрын

I hate to be a wet blanket you won't be able to fill up your tank completely where that's at it will only be able to fill up to the outside connection because it's lower than the top of the tank because water seeks its own level and doesn't run uphill.

@Ijustmetagirlnamedmaria 2 жыл бұрын

You can put a magnet light behind the water tank to be easy to watch the level too

@MobileDwellings 2 жыл бұрын

Ah good call

@cwaite487 Жыл бұрын

I would be leery of all the shark bites. Crimps are super easy and so much cheaper and less likely to leak. Literally can buy a 10 pack of fittings for like 10 bucks

@MobileDwellings Жыл бұрын

I'm gonna go that route moving forward for myself but I've never heard a solid argument against sharkbites except for the cost. For the diyer with a small system it adds cost but takes out the complexity..

@jmangus83 3 ай бұрын

@@MobileDwellings as a plumber for a larger metropolitan city, I've seen more damage and leaks caused by failed shark bite fittings, especially when dealing with freezing conditions. I do keep some on my truck as a stop gap to complete emergency repairs in a pinch, especially if I know I'm going to come back and rework the piping. I would never use them in my own build, even if they were the cheapest fittings I could buy. Shark bite has just developed a new line of fittings to help solve the problems they were having with the original line, but I'd still steer clear. Me personally, I prefer expansion rings or crimp rings with PEX. I also wouldn't ever use the cinch clamps.

@bethanymay7186 2 жыл бұрын

Do you need an accumulator tank at the water pump and the water heater? I bought a pump that has a two gallon accumulator tank that it sits on, so I am wondering if the one after the water heater is necessary.

@MobileDwellings 2 жыл бұрын

Hey Bethany. So we do have an accumulator tank after the water heater but it is way smaller than 2 gallons! This helps the pump not cycle too frequently which really only increases its life span and makes for a less unpleasant noise. Now an accumulator tank after the water heater would be necessary if you are using the 7 gallon water heater we used and also putting it on max temperature and leaving it own. At that point it will drip through the pressure relief valve. However we set the heater to "ideal" which is hot enough for our needs and it doesn't ever leak. Hope that helps!

@MobileDwellings 2 жыл бұрын

@bethanymay7186 2 жыл бұрын

@@MobileDwellings Wow, thanks for the fast response! 😁 We do plan to use the same water heater but we won't be leaving it on and plan to do the 20 minute warm up before a shower, then turn it off after. So we won't need another accumulator tank after the water heater, correct? Just one after the water pump?

@MobileDwellings 2 жыл бұрын

Yeah I'd skip it! Just keep an eye on that pressure relief valve. You can always install one later if you need to

@bethanymay7186 2 жыл бұрын

@@MobileDwellings thank you so much for your help! I greatly appreciate it!! 😁

@kevins1242 2 жыл бұрын

No way to "by pass" water heater if you wanted to winterize plumbing system with RV antifreeze?

@Mr.Ramirez95 2 жыл бұрын

That's a great point, I assume most skoolies chase warm weather and most of them live in their bus year round. After watching a few other channels I came to this conclusion.

@MobileDwellings 2 жыл бұрын

Not really a concern of ours since this is a full time home for people who don't plan to be living in freezing areas. Even with a freeze all plumbing is interior and the bus will be heated.