So Starts Camping Season 2014

Hapy Memorial Day.  I just got back from a weekend of camping, music and relaxing.  Today's post covers that.

Starting Again

middle row seat = camp couch

It seems like every Spring-Summer, I troll back through this blog to see if I posted a list of stuff to bring camping.  Every year, I'm disappointed that I didn't create such a list.  I have one now... on paper, that I'll try to remember to post.  We knew that where we were going, once we were in, we couldn't leave, but our tickets and camping spot were paid for.  Also, we had almost no money and the only things we could buy while we were there would require cash.  So, with the added pressure, Boo and I set off to plan for a weekend with Hapy.  She's quite experienced with car-camping, so between us, we remembered just about everything.  In the end, we didn't want for anything, and we didn't spend a cent.  We did find that we were the only bay-window bus there, and we spotted 3 Vanagons, including one tin-top.  Hopefully, one of my fellow bus driver/readers will feel inspired to join us next year.

To and Fro

Horning's Hideout

The drive was incredibly easy.  I checked the fuel log and concluded that we didn't need fuel for our round trip.  So, we fired up Hapy and nosed West to Horning's Hideout (North Plains, OR).  He purred the whole way.  Between the spring dampeners, removing the window screens and all the equipment we were carrying, he made almost no noise.  The only racket came from the belly pan when we got near 60mph on the freeway.  The ride home was equally uneventful, enjoying the views out the window, and the music from an iPhone.  The driver's seat belt is becoming problematic.  I may have to break out the wallet and buy a new retractable set, replacing the recycled-from-a-Mercedes set I installed a few years ago.

Horning's Hideout
I hadn't been to Horning's Hideout in probably ten years.  The last time was for the McMenamin's company picnic where a band I was playing with had a spot on one of the smaller stages.  That stage wasn't even there anymore, and you couldn't really tell where it used to be.  I was able to find about where it was based on my memory of the view.  Horning's has had trouble keeping music because of neighbor complaints and unruly patrons.  We were especially grateful that they allowed this multi-band multi-day event take place.  The Hideout hosts a stocked fishing pond and multiple 18 hole disc golf courses.  Our focus was the main stage where 10 bands played over two days.  I'll review the bands in another post.  For now, I'll just focus on the event.

Hootenanny

view from main stage

The Horning's Hideout Hootenanny was the brain-child of Scott McKay over ten years ago.  It started as a birthday party for him, and it's gotten bigger every year.  As Boo and I were saying our "thank you" and "good-bye", he described this year's event as the fulfillment of that dream.  It has been so successful, he's not sure how to move forward.  To grow anymore will require infrastructure, and more staff, probably more rules, and greater restrictions.  Facing that future, he posed that if he didn't do it, 100 people would probably show up anyway.  With the highest turnout ever, I think it also resulted in Scott's least sleep ever and shortest amount of free time to see bands ever as well.  For such a giving guy, it's truly a shame that he wasn't really able to enjoy the beautiful scene he created.  There were craft vendors, multiple food options (including coffee/espresso and smoothies), and even a pot-luck supper on Saturday.  He had the 10 staged bands, but there were pick-up jams happening in the upper camp zone all the time.  There was a 2-day disc golf tournament with prizes down to 10th place in multiple divisions.

I hope Scottie chooses to host this again next year.  Boo and I suggested a few ways to make it work, and he already had a few ideas of his own.  I think we will start with volunteering to help out however we can.  If we can get each attendee to do just one hour of effort for the greater good over the course of the weekend, we can keep the load at a manageable level.  Maybe then, Scott can see some of the bands he booked and not have that 100-mile stare from no sleep and managing chaos all weekend.

Camping
This has already gotten long, but I wanted to touch on how the bus handled camping after a Winter of improvements.  The new deep-cycle battery and supporting electrical systems worked almost perfectly.  The dome light, kitchen lights, and the 12V outlet by the slider door were flawless.  We strung up a set of 12V lights around the awning/canopy for night-time lighting, creating a nice mellow vibe.  The awning hadn't been used in years, and I'd lost the old rain-gutter mounts.  Instead, I used 2 vice-grips to hold the bus-side edge to the top of the pop-top scissor supports.  It ended up higher, and better, than before.  At a stop at Goodwill last weekend, I got a 4' square indoor-outdoor rubber-backed rug for outside the bus door.  I also bought a bolt of 2-tone blue fabric at the same Goodwill stop.  Between bands, Boo cut the material into thirds, creating 3 rectangular strips that perfectly covered the jalousie windows, the front windows and the windscreen.  It was so dark, we slept until 10 on Sunday morning; unheard of in the bus.  Last, we nabbed a full-size bed memory-foam from home, and used that on top of the stock cushions on the rock-n-roll bed.  Sleep was amazing.

That's it for today.  As I mentioned above, I reviewed the bands separately; see these links for day One and Two.  It was a fantastic weekend. Hapy drove flawlessly, the company was spectacular and the energy of the whole event was deliciously mellow.  More next time-

Whatcha Hiding?

I realized that I hadn't posted about the screens I have been working on, or at least I can't find a post where I did.  So, I'll get remedial and cover that today.

Screens
In the later year campers, there is a closet blocking most of the left-rear window (on the driver's side, but all the way to the rear).  The driver couldn't see out this window anyway, so it doesn't create a blind spot.  I thought it would be neat to create a few screens to put over the window since the only thing a passing motorist would see otherwise is the backside of a closet.  When I built the ski rack (see Rack 'em, Snow Bum), I realized that I needed a screen if for no other reason to hide the equipment.

snow-themed screen lying on my garage floor

In the interests of spending no money, I went digging through my supplies.  I found the ceiling panel from the donor bus from which I got the Riviera Top.  It didn't fit my bus, and I didn't need it anyway, so I didn't bother with it.  Some careful measuring later, and I had 3 equal-sized screens that each completely blocked the rear window.  I set them on top of one another, and drilled mounting holes through so they would all mount the same.  Last, I held one against the inside of the window and marked drill holes in the steel.  A few minutes with the drill later and I had 3 interchangeable screens.

work in progress. top screen is the "Furthur" one
bottom screen was 1st draft layout

I base coated 2 of the screens with the same bright white that I painted the front bumper (see Front Bumper  part 4), thinking I'd use them as a landing zone for themes of stickers.  I hadn't really thought about what all of the themes would be, but I figured I'd have at least the one about snow.  For that one, I drew mountains based on pictures of various resorts around the Pacific NorthWest (the top picture).  Whatever stickers I had, or acquired, for snow would go on that screen.  I used the other white one first, just to block out the sun last Fall when I went to Eugene to see Furthur (see A Tale of Two Trips).  I just taped a picture and some inspiring words on there as a placeholder.  This Saturday, I completed my vision for a screen dedicated to music and music festivals: completely covered with images of ticket stubs plus the VW-your-face that was on the original screen when we went to Furthur.  I don't yet have a plan for that last screen.  Maybe, I'll use that as a spot for stickers, pictures, etc dedicated to camping, for those trips we take that aren't music-venue focused.

installed screen viewed from the outside.

That's it for today.  I've been driving the bus to work lately.  With the mufflers on the pop-top springs (see Spring Sprang Sprung), its conversationally quiet at idle.  With the window rebuilt (see Jalousie Window rebuild), its quiet enough to have an "outdoor volume" conversation while driving.  Its pretty fantastic.

Spring Sprang Sprung

I played with the bus a little bit this past weekend.  I made some headway on a few things, but only really completed one thing, so I'll post about that today.

What's that Racket?

sprang-sprang-sprang

Now that the jalousie / jealous window in the sliding door has been rebuilt, I thought the noise in the bus would have been greatly improved.  It isn't.  Okay, well, it isn't as improved as I thought.  When I'm at idle at a stop light, the engine drops to around 900RPM.  At any speed, there's an harmonic vibration, but at 900, the helper-springs in the Riviera pop top really get going.  They bang against the scissor supports and make a terrible racket.  It sounds like "sprang-sprang-sprang...".

Silence the Din

muffling the noise-maker

Now, I could remove the springs.  That would make the pop top much harder to lift.  The pop top has 6 springs, though only 2 are easily visible.  The other four are way up near the top, but still on the outside of the scissor supports.  There are no springs on the front or rear.  They are all just less than 1" in diameter and just less than 2' long when the top is up (and springs at their shortest length).  I've seen pictures of pop tops where the spring over the slider door had a cover that looked like it was made of cloth, which got me thinking about other options.

It was a beautiful Spring day and Boo had been spending the afternoon waging

slight bowing over drip rail

 a war on the dandelions in our yard while I clowned around in the garage.  About the time I was considering the springs she realized she needed some grass seed for the holes she was making, so we headed for Home Depot.  She headed for the lawn/garden stuff and I had this spring-silencer idea and headed for pipe insulation.  I got 2 6' lengths of the cheapest pipe-insulation they had for 1" pipe, costing about $2.25.  I figured I could cut them into 2-foot lengths and wrap the springs so they wouldn't make that racket any more.  I simply cut them into thirds, and slit their lengths so they could slide on.  I quickly had a muffler for each spring.  They installed in a couple minutes, and very effectively stopped the noise.  I didn't have the time to make a full test drive, but simply idling the engine in the driveway was much quieter.

The one drawback I've noticed is that the pop top doesn't sit as cleanly between the drip rails as it used to.  I may experiment with removing the covers on the the lower springs to see if the loss of noise reduction is made up for by the top sitting properly.

That's it for today.  Thanks for following along-

Setting and Re-setting Expectations

I've been maintaining this blog for years, and setting expectations for longer.  When it comes to the bus, it seems I am especially good at setting my goals too high.  For example, in November (Steering a Shed) I posted that I would take the bus out of operation until I "put in (door) cards and rebuild the 2 (jealousie) windows".  After 2 months, I have one window done and no cards.  Of course, I did get the deep cycle battery installed, painted a little bit and patched 2 holes.  Still, I could do better with setting targets.  So, that's my NewYear resolution: set reasonable goals with the bus.  Today, I'll give it a whirl.

Winter Goals (by Spring Equinox)
(X) - rebuild broken jealousie window in the slider door
(X) - patch the hole in the belly pan from the 1972 sink, tank drain and ice box
(X) - patch the hole in the belly pan from the 1979 sink and water tank drain
(X) - solve for accessory power
(X) - drive bus to work a few times to prove its road worthiness EDIT: drove 1/14-1/17
(O) - drive bus to SkiBowl one time to visit the snow EDIT: missed goal

Spring Goals (by Summer Solstice)
(X) - replace plastic film in front doors EDIT: done. see Film at Eleven
(X) - get door cards and put them in EDIT: done. see Hanging Cards
(-) - install the car stereo that's been sitting on the shelf for 3+ years EDIT: stereo needs lockout code. dropped goal
(X) - drive bus to one kid sports event EDIT: done. went to final tournament on 5/31

Summer Goals (by Fall Equinox)
(X) - remove most of the dings from the front bumper EDIT: done. see Front Bumper (part 1)
( ) - remove most of the dings from the rear bumper and modesty skirt
(X) - paint front bumper EDIT: done. see Front Bumper (part 4)
( ) - paint rear bumper
(X) - take bus camping near a mountain EDIT: done. see Black Sheep Family Reunion
(X) - take bus camping near water EDIT: done. see So Starts Camping Season 2014

That's enough for now.  There's no punishment for doing more, right?  Now that the weather has shifted from dry-veryCold to wet-cold, I should be able to drive the bus to work one of these days.  Ahh....
Thanks for following along-

Hapy New Year

Duh... Failed to put a title on this one.  I'll blame the post holi-daze. So, Hapy NewYear everyone.  I have spent a few hours playing with the bus, and I'll cover that first.  Otherwise, its been a week with the boys, and I'll touch on some of our adventures as well.

Slider Window Install

window in
color sanded paint looks shiny, eh?

The week started with getting the jalousie (jealous) window installed into the sliding door.  For all the other windows, there is a rubber seal that you really have to work onto the glass.  Then, you use the rope trick to get the seal-rimmed glass into the hole and sealed.  The jalousie window is different.  It is held in with a bunch of screws, and the rubber seal doesn't go over any lip in the door.  I tried to seat the window, but it wouldn't.  Maybe it was the new paint gripping the rubber.  I wasn't sure, so I color sanded the new white with very very fine sand paper.  Even then, and after cleaning the powder dust with cleanser the window wouldn't go in.  Finally, I ran a bead of KY jelly along the edge of the hole in the door.  This removed the friction problem, and I was able to force the window into place.  It didn't go easily; in fact, I needed to lightly smack the rear-end with a rubber mallet.  Once in-place, the window was simply screwed down.  Word of caution: do not use lubricant when installing a window that is not a-fixed with screws or bolts, otherwise it will not hold under pressure (read: collision).

Fixing a Hole Where the Rain Gets In

tools for patching a hole

In the 1972 Westy, there was originally a sink / ice box behind the front passenger seat.  This unit requires 2 drains: one for the sink and one for the melting ice from the ice box.  The drains route through a hole in the floor.  Well, 2 holes if you consider the hole in the floor and then another below it in a belly pan.  The sink / ice box units came with rubber seals to keep road moisture from coming up and in.  When I removed the old unit, I didn't address the hole that was left behind.  Years ago, when I bought the 1979 Westy interior, I installed the kitchenette / sink-hob down to the pair of holes in the floor.  Now that I no longer have the 1979 kitchen, I no longer need the corresponding holes in the floor.

driver-side hole patch

To fix a hole in a place where it really can't be seen, its much easier than "real" bodywork.  I got some aluminum sheets for the install of the radiator unit, and I had a bunch left over.  I cut a small square and bent it to fit the contour of the belly pan (see picture, there's a rectangular bump-out over a flat-file).  I drilled 3 (1/8") holes on each side and then a-fixed the patch with rivets.  I'll shoot the patch with under-body rubber stuff so it seals tight.  Later, I'll put something in the body cavity to reduce road noise.  We know we want whatever I put in there to be closed-cell, so any moisture that could get in doesn't get absorbed.  I have a roll of that foil insulation I could use, but I don't think it is very effective at absorbing noise.... at least not as effectively as it insulated temperature.  I may put some down on the bottom anyway.  Once I figure that out, I'll patch the hole in the floor.  While I think about it, I'll patch the floor in the belly pan from the original ice box / sink unit.

Holidaze
It's been an interesting holiday season, switching from no kids to a house full of them and, soon, back again.  Boo and I hosted my extended family holiday event and laid-low on the actual Christmas eve and day.  For NewYearsEve, we took 6 kids up to SkiBowl for Cosmic Tubing.  The Tubing was fun, and SkiBowl put on a great time even with hardly any snow.  The resort is effectively closed pending snow, and the others aren't much further along.  Without some fresh snow, they will have to start shutting down lifts too.  We hit Timberline on the 27th (our anniversary), and the snow was pounded flat with a little powder on top.  That was a week ago, and they haven't gotten any freshies since.  I don't think I'll go back until something comes from the sky.  Hopefully, that'll be very very soon.

That's it for now.  Thanks for following along.

Jalousie Window rebuild (part 2)

In my last posting, I detailed some or most of the dis-assembly of a jalousie (jealous) window.  Today, I'll cover the rest of the tear-down and the re-assembly.  Fun stuff.

Removing the Rubber

Some of the old seals are, quite frankly, brutal to get out.  In particular, the seals that run along the drip-edge on the top and the bottom edge are especially nasty.  I described hammering on the top (drip edge) seal with a chisel in my last post.  The bottom edge was more accessible, but the old seal had really attached itself.  I spent literally 4+ hours getting that seal out.  In fact, from the opening kick through the final score of the SF 49ers - Seattle Seahawk game I was working on that seal (plus over an hour the day before).  Ok, enough complaining.  Just be advised that some seals are just challenging.  The best tools are a putty knife, a thin-blade screwdriver and a small hammer to smack on the handles and drive the seal out.

New Seals
The rebuild kit (kit URL) from Wolfsberg West contains 4 types of seals: the grey outer seal, the drip-edge, the glass-to-metal u-shaped seals and a long spool of a "T"-shaped seal for all the openings.  I skipped the u-shaped ones, because those seals are completely fine on mine.  The glass frames separate the same way as the main frames: Phillip's head bolts from top & bottom at each end.  I found installing the seals to be similarly easy for some, hard for others.  Oddly enough, the ones which were easy to get out were the hardest to put in and vice-versa.  The drip-edge and bottom "T" seal were easy: start at one end, thread it in to start and then pull with a pair of needle-nose pliers.  For orientation of the "T" shaped seals, the flat half should be on the inner-side of the opening and the stripped edge should be on the outer-side.  To install the "T" seals on the sides, you will need to fiddle the louvers up and down while feeding the seal through.  I found a putty knife was a useful way of creating a tiny space between the louver arm and the seal channel so I could slide the seal through.

New Cranks

Before putting the window back together, the new crank mechanism needs to be installed.  I hit the hardware store on the way home from work and picked up 2-pairs of fastener sets: 4mm*20mm bolt, 4mm locknut, 2 washers.  These fit perfectly through the crank-control and the window side.  There are 4 holes in the control, but only 3 in the window frame.  Use the 2 which are diagonal from each other.  Otherwise, the bolt
head will interrupt the operation of the crank.  Orient the bolt so the nut is on the outside of the window for the same reason.  Put on the crank handle and tighten it down.  Rotate the handle (moving the controller) all the way open.p

Putting The Crank Back Together
Okay, so the seals are in, the metal polished (sorta) and the glass has been cleaned.  We're ready to put it all back together again.  First, grab the louver control arm.  It needs to have the 2 little tabs that look like old can pull tabs put back on the arm, if they aren't already.  They need to point the same way.  Take the rod and fit it into the crank / controller thing such that the pull-tab looking thing points towards the outside of the window and upwards.  Push the louvers up as if the window was all the way open.  Now, pull the C-clip off the louver control arm, slide the pull-tab thing onto the end and return the C-clip.  Repeat the process on the other end of the control arm.  I may be overly laboring this description, but this is key to getting your window to work right.  Once the louvers are connected, assemble the lower half of the window.

Window Assembly
At this point, you have a control rod barely holding 2 louver control parts together.  Grab the lower window frame and set it into place, lining up the outer window edges.  The screw holes and channels should line right up.  Thread in the 4 screws, checking the alignment along the way.  Before you torque them all the way down, check the movement of the louvers with the crank handle.  Next, start installing the glass panes from bottom to top.  These should fit right in, bolting in 2 bolts at each end.  I found it was easier to do the bolt further from the hinge first.  Once its most of the way in, start the bolt near the hinge.  After the top pane is in, crank the window closed and then install the top of the frame.  The drip-edge rubber, at least in my case, really wants to flop under the top glass pane.  So, check that as you thread in the screws, and then tighten them down.  Now, the window is back in one piece.  Next step: re-install.  I have some painting to do first (if the weather ever gets above freezing again), so it may be a while before I post that part.

That's it for today.  Thanks for following along!

Jalousie Window rebuild (part 1)

lower screws, grubby
frame, rusty rivets

Like the title says, and like I threatened in my last posting, I've decided to tackle rebuilding at least one of my jalousie (jealous, louvered) windows.  Today's posting focuses on the teardown, as that's as far as I've gotten to date.  If you've visited Richard Atwell's web site, he describes this as one of the most time-consuming projects you could go after.  As my 12 year old sons would say "challenge accepted" :)

Out Comes the Window
The removal of the jalousie window is actually somewhat well described in the Bentley manual covering the body.  The drawing in the Bentley shows a rubber seal on the inside, but my bus didn't have one, and I haven't been able to source one.  The window is held to the body by ~20 Phillip's head screws threaded from the inside.  You need to remove the curtain and the screen first.  The screen is removed by sliding it upwards a few centimeters and then pulling it slightly away from the frame as you pull down.  The window is tilted slightly towards the inside of the bus at the top, so you can remove all of the screws without the window naturally falling out.  Still, its wise to keep a hand on it from the outside.  Once the screws are out, the window should easily lift out of the opening, bringing the grey outer seal with it.  Put the screws in a zip-lock baggy and label it.  It will be a while before you're back to re-install it.

Break the Seal

window panes held on
with 2 Phillips

Pull the grey seal off the frame of the window.  Note how the seal sits around the inner edge.  I didn't take a picture on the way off (though I should have), but I'll photo it on the way back on.  Getting that edge right will be key to seating the seal correctly (read: keep water and wind out).  I expect that to be much harder to do than it was to type.  Once the seal has been removed, clean the window, frame and all.  I soaked mine in my bathtub with some dish-soap (while I sanded the opening in the bus for painting later) and then scrubbed on it.  Once clean(ish) and dry, take the window to a cleared area where it will remain for the rebuild.

Dissemble
Start with the end of the window that doesn't have the crank.  There are 4 Phillips head screws holding the side panel on: 2 from below and 2 from the top.  These can get stuck, so you may need some PB Blaster to get them loose.  I had all but one come free by hand.  That last one I needed to bang on with a rubber mallet to get free.  Set the parts down relative to where they were so you don't lose track of them.  Screws in a baggy.  Label it.  Once the sides have been removed, remove the glass frames from the louver mechanism.  Each pane is held in with 2 Phillips head bolts on each end.  Working one side at a time, remove the one closest to the hinge first.  Mark the windows top-middle-bottom in some way and set them aside.  We'll get to those later.

windows separated
from louver mechanism

Last, if your window has not been opening / closing properly or if it doesn't hold open/closed, now is the perfect time to replace the crank mechanism.  I ordered a pair of these so my windows will operate like brand new when I'm done.  If you want to change your window so they both open from the front end of your bus, the Pelland folks offer a left-handed one too, so you can mix and match.  Getting the old cranks out requires cutting the old rivets with a hacksaw (the way I did it) or drilling them out.  Either way works.

Removing the Seals
Some of the seals are easy to remove.  For example, the seal that runs behind the louver mechanism slides right out.  The top-side seal that has a little overhang, however, is a real bugger.  Atwell mentions this one too.  There's a little nub or bump within the channel at either end that prevents the seal from sliding out.  I had to manhandle the channel with a chisel to get the seal free.  In retrospect, I should have checked to make sure I took out the nub at the front (front is front) of the window.  My thinking is that way simple airflow past the moving bus wouldn't cause sliding of the seal.

Clean and Polish

crank assembly
removed

If your windows look anything like mine do in the pictures (or worse), there will not be a better time to clean them up a bit.  As RAtwell describes on his website, some of the corners have a black goop that helped create a seal.  This stuff chips off with a putty knife.  Once cleared, the windows clean up very nicely with simple steel wool, elbow grease and some basic cleanser.  I used a general use Armor-All, though it left a slight haze that I needed to buff off with paper towels.  I haven't resolved how I'll keep it looking nice, but the clean-up is tiring.  I have spent a few hours on this clean-up already and I've only done the side panels and the top, leaving the bottom, the louver control bar, the glass frames and the screen frame.  All told, I expect close to 10 hours of manual steel-wooling on a single window.

Thanks about it for today.  For those of you in the US, I wish you a Hapy Thanksgiving.  To everyone, I wish you a relaxing White Friday; may you spend it playing with your friends and family.  More next time..

Winter Breeze Across My Knees

Its been a busy week, and I've neglected the blog. Sorry.

Since the first Winter, I've had breezes through the bus as I've driven. After replacing rubber seals in doors and windows (I'll post on how to do that some time), I still had wind blowing in. I worked on replacing the heat system (post on that later) and it was still freezing cold and windy. I started trying to track down where the source of the breeze was, and determined it was coming from the sliding door. I spent the $80 on a new door seal before I noticed that the breeze got stronger just after hitting bumps and that the little curtain, as stiff as it was, would ruffle. I realized that the crank-out windows (jalousie, but I call them "jealous" because I can't pronounce jalousie) were the source of the wind.

So, how to fix it?
First, I thought I'd make a plexiglass replacement for the screen. I pulled the screen out, and soon realized that fitting plexiglass between the window frame and the mechanics of the window wouldn't work. This effort did give me an idea of the dimensions for the window.
Next, I remeasured the frame with a plan of cutting a sheet of plexiglass and constructing a frame that would attach to the outside of the inner frame. The frame is 14.5" x 41", so I planned to cut the plexiglass 14"x40.5". I went to Home Depot in hopes of finding old-school plexiglass, but they had some clear resin type sheets that were supposedly stronger. Okay, fine. $20 later, and we have our glass. I cut the rectangular piece and prepared to test set it on the window.
I discovered that the cranker-handle interrupted the plan, and would require cutting out a square. As I was removing the glass from the window frame, I was distracted and dropped the plexiglass. With a resounding break, I no longer needed to cut the square to fit the cranker handle. I needed to cut a whole new sheet.
Before cutting a new sheet, I wanted to be sure this would actually work, so I did a major hack: I duct-taped the partially broken sheet to the window frame. Fortunately, the broken part of the window was only in the corner where it landed. I put that end where the cranker-handle is.

So, did it work?
Yes, it did. This past week has been pretty mild, but windy here in Portland. The windows on the drivers side pop open a little with the wind and a little air comes in, but not at all like the passenger side used to. Now, with the "storm window", there is almost no draft and I can feel the heat system working. In fact, it works so well now, I need to crack the window if I am driving for more than 40 minutes.

I don't know how safe it is for family use, but the bus is a single-person driver in the Winter at this point anyway. Once I figure out how the plexiglass would perform in a traffic accident, I'll construct the wooden frame I described. Barring that, I'll have to figure some other way of Winterizing the jalousie window.
--more next time--