Living in a converted bus isn’t all sunsets, coffee with a view and perfectly organised cupboards. Some days it is. Other days you discover a puddle where there definitely shouldn’t be one.

After months of renovating my old Toyota Coaster, I finally reached the point where I could stop constantly building and actually start living in it.

Or so I thought.

Instead, I found another major repair waiting for me.

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The renovations are (mostly) finished…

Over the past few months I’ve tackled three of the biggest projects on the bus.

• Rebuilt the bathroom from scratch
• Completely replaced the ceiling and insulation
• Redesigned the entire solar and electrical system

Each one turned into a much bigger project than I expected (when does that not happen?), but together they’ve transformed how the bus feels to live in.

The bathroom is now genuinely enjoyable to use.

The new ceiling makes the whole bus feel lighter, brighter and surprisingly cosy.

And the solar system? That has completely changed everyday life.

Instead of constantly worrying about electricity, I can simply get on with living.

Of course… the bus wasn’t finished throwing surprises at me.

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Living in a bus is wonderfully easy… until it isn’t

One thing I absolutely love about living in such a small space is how quickly everything gets done.

Cleaning?

Five minutes.

Making the bed?

Almost instant.

Finding what to wear?

Well… that depends how organised I’ve been.

The downside is that any mess also becomes obvious almost immediately.

If I leave something out, the whole bus suddenly feels chaotic.

It’s amazing how tiny spaces magnify both the good and the bad.

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The solar system has completely exceeded my expectations

When I first bought this bus I honestly didn’t believe I’d be able to cook properly using electricity.

I assumed the induction cooktop would mostly be decorative.

I couldn’t have been more wrong.

The current setup includes:

• Three solar panels
• Two 300Ah lithium batteries
• An inverter powering my appliances

Now I’m regularly running:

• the coffee machine
• microwave
• induction cooktop
• fridge
• phone charging
• camera batteries
• laptop
• and even a pizza oven.

That still amazes me.

I originally kept my methylated spirits cooker as a backup, and I still use it occasionally for slow cooking, but most days the induction cooktop wins.

That entire solar upgrade has probably made the biggest difference to everyday comfort inside the bus.

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The biggest challenge now? Storage.

The renovations solved a lot of problems.

Storage wasn’t one of them.

At the moment there’s still plenty tucked under the bed that really deserves its own cupboard.

I’ve been debating what to build next.

Should I install:

• open shelves?
• enclosed cupboards?
• sliding doors?
• roller doors?
• some combination of everything?

Open shelving looks beautiful in so many van life videos.

Little plants.

Perfect glass jars.

Everything colour coordinated.

My concern?

I’m not convinced my real life looks anything like Instagram.

I’m leaning towards a mix of open shelving for display and enclosed cupboards for hiding the inevitable chaos.

If you’ve built storage into a camper or caravan I’d genuinely love your suggestions.

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Then I found… a puddle

Just when I thought the renovations were calming down…

I discovered this.

Everything underneath the front floor was absolutely soaked.

There was standing water.

Wet insulation.

Bugs.

And no obvious explanation.

Finding water inside any vehicle is never a good feeling because it could be coming from almost anywhere.

Which means…

…yes.

Another renovation series is about to begin.

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A change in life outside the bus

There’s been another big change recently too.

I’ve moved.

For those who are new here, I’d parked the bus on my brother’s property while helping care for my mum.

Thankfully Mum has been doing much better lately, which meant I was able to move the bus to a friend’s property while still visiting Mum every couple of days.

It’s given me a little more independence, more people around me, and a chance to start exploring the local area again.

Sometimes small changes make a surprisingly big difference.

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Discovering the Curtain Fig Tree

One of those little adventures was finally visiting the famous Curtain Fig Tree.

I’d driven past signs for it countless times but never actually stopped.

I’m glad I finally did.

The tree starts life when a bird drops a seed high into another tree.

Over time the roots grow down to the ground, eventually surrounding and replacing the original tree.

Nature has some very strange ways of solving problems.

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A small upgrade that gives me huge peace of mind

One issue with staying parked for weeks at a time is the starter batteries.

Unlike my house batteries, they aren’t getting charged by driving.

My solution was surprisingly simple.

I installed a small solar trickle charger dedicated to keeping the bus batteries topped up.

It’s one of those upgrades that isn’t particularly exciting to watch…

…but it gives enormous peace of mind knowing the bus should always start when I need it.

Sometimes the boring upgrades are the best ones.

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Life in a bus is never really finished

One thing I’ve learned is that van life isn’t a destination where everything eventually becomes perfect.

It’s a constant process of improving, fixing, learning and adapting.

Just when you think you’ve solved one problem…

…the bus invents another.

Honestly, I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Every challenge teaches me something new, and every renovation makes this little home feel a bit more like mine.

Now if I could just figure out where that water is getting in…

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What would you do?

I’d love to hear your thoughts.

• Would you choose open shelving or enclosed cupboards?
• Have you ever tracked down a mystery water leak?
• Any guesses where mine might be coming from?

Leave a comment below. I genuinely read every one, and your ideas have helped solve more than one problem on this bus already.

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Read Next

If you enjoyed this post, you might also like:

• How I Completely Rebuilt My Bus Solar System
• Replacing the Ceiling in My Toyota Coaster
• My Bus Bathroom Renovation: Everything I Learned
• Why My Bus Batteries Kept Going Flat

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