GMR Ambulance Build

[Gerty_GMR]

Hey y'all forgive my novice this is my first forum post. My truck was recently totaled and i'm a huge fan of the tiny house movement, so i bought a type 3 osage ambulance. Its a 2002 e350 7.3 DSL with roughly 80,000 miles (was a volunteer dept). Will add pictures soon. I'm looking for advice/possible help from those more experienced than me. I live a seasonal life, wildfire in summer and ski instructing in winter. I have right about 6 weeks until fire season and would like to get a good start on it. However I'm living in an apt complex where minimal work/storage can be conducted. I have lots of ideas, but not sure if they are all feasible. My main thoughts are full time living or atleast 3 seasons but definitely want strong insulation for winter ski trips, sleep 3 to 4 in a pinch, gear dryer, tiny wood stove and thinking about mounting the blazin bell tech rollover couch on bench side.

I'm fairly handy with carpentry, but seeking help for gut, reducing electrical/centralizing, insulation, and thoughts on brands to go for sink, fridge, solar, vent fan.

I also want to paint it... it has reflective striping which has been hard to get off. I have many more thoughts and will provide more details as the post progresses. But after reading most of the ambulance build posts in entirety, I figured I'd start my intro.

 

[Gerty_GMR]

Her name is Gertrude Mountain Rig or Gerty for short.

 

[Coachgeo]

Looks like an awesome platform to start with. This site is great for info as well as the site that is bit more specific to Ambo's as campers. It is at ambulancerv.com

 

[zuke]

Yup you definitely got a good starting point there, and an E350 that is already a 4x4 is a really nice plus!

As CoachGeo said, join us over on ambulancerv.com for specific ambulance conversion info.

A lot of the E-Series ambulance conversion threads on this board are actually in the http://forum.expeditionportal.com/forums/58-4wd-(and-2WD)-Camper-Vans Sub Forum, so be sure and look there too.

Unless you plan on doing a complete gut and refit of the interior, you'll find that these boxes are actually pretty well insulated already.

Fan-Tastic Vent seems to be the go to for Vents with the crowd here...

Your other questions are ones I'm asking too. So won't be much help on those (Right Now)

So I see where Gerty is from in the pictures, Is that your where abouts too? If so, you aren't to far from me, (Well, still a haul, bet less than half a day!)

 

[patoz]

Welcome to the forum, and it's good to have another fellow Firefighter also!

In addition to the threads already mentioned, here is another one that has sort of served as a meeting place for ambulance owners.

http://forum.expeditionportal.com/threads/135844-Ambulance-Camper-Expedition-Rig-Conversion-FAQ

I'm hoping at some point we will get our own subsection, since there are so many ambo/camper builds taking place.

Good luck with your build, and I'm looking forward to seeing where it goes!

 

[Gerty_GMR]

Hey John, I'm originally from Georgia. I bought the rig out of North Carolina. Thanks for the info

 

[Coachgeo]

Hey John, I'm originally from Georgia. I bought the rig out of North Carolina. Thanks for the info

hmmm.... GMR...... in GA? Does that have another meaning to you beside Gerty Mountain Rig? Just curious. Know of a long time family business in GA that is GMR.

 

[Gerty_GMR]

Nope, just a coincidence I guess..

 

[rossvtaylor]

I also want to paint it... it has reflective striping which has been hard to get off.

Welcome to the ambulance club! I have two words for you... Whizzy Wheel! https://www.amazon.com/Wheel-Pinstriping-Removing-Diameter-Whizzy/dp/B00FJF0O2K

You'll hear different things about the reflective decals. Either "they came right off for me" or "what a bear!" I found both situations on ours. The portions which were protected from the sun, underneath light fixtures for example, came right off. But the visible portions baked in the sun and no amount of heat or peeling would remove them. Enter the Whizzy Wheel and a drill and, 4 wheels and hours later, we got all the striping off. It's a messy job, but it will leave the paint un-gouged.

 

[Ozrockrat]

+1 on the whizzy wheel. I suggest buying 4 for a full size ambo. It took me 2 to take off the decals without touching the stripe.

 

[Gerty_GMR]

Thanks for the suggestion! Spent the weekend in Aspen, got lots of folks diggin the rig already. So much fun! Heres some pics.

 

[Gerty_GMR]

My first real project done.. from oxygen compartment to ski & gear locker! So happy with it.

 

[Gerty_GMR]

I think thats a better look. Lol

 

[Smooth Operator]

eepwall::26_7_2:

 

[Gerty_GMR]

Took a page out of AMBOTS build with the blazin bell tech rv sofa... love the versatility. I mounted mine 6 inches off the wall to be able to have gear and hanging storage behind via slat wall.