Quote:
Originally Posted by oil pan 4
If you want to use battery power, then 12 batteries in series is not the way to go. Most solar power battery systems use 12, 24 or 48 volts.
There are few things that can be powered off 120 volts DC, also 120 volts DC presents an extreme arcing hazard.
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Yep, 12-48v of many amp hours of batteries with the appropriate inverter is what you would want. You'll be looking at 10-20kwh worth if you want to run an AC for a decent amount of time. Depending on how hot it gets where you are, even a 15k BTU rooftop RV AC will have a hard time cooling a whole bus in direct sun. Look into mini split heatpumps; they're generally more efficient at cooling and they can also be used for heating.
In my mind, mileage is one of the easier issues. It sounds like your lifestyle will be similar to a fulltime RVer. That means you'll have to deal with issues like where to park it, where to fill/empty the tanks if you don't have full hookups, internet, mail/address, and more. You also have to think of how you'll pay for the conversion and how long it'll take to do. If you have plenty of cash, skills, and time, go for it. If you're looking to finance the whole project, a premade RV would be easier to finance (not sure how easy it would be for an already converted bus).
I live full time in a fifth wheel at an RV park, pretty much just stationary.