Like many of us, Michael Talley was sick and tired of paying a lot of money for rent month after month.

He thought of possible solutions and came up with something that may seem radical, but paid off in the end - Talley purchased an old school bus for cheap and started working on it to create the perfect tiny home. Since he didn’t have any building experience, this was an epic adventure for Michael.

Read on to see what he did with this rusty old bus.

Graphic designer Michael Talley lives in Austin, Texas. After years of paying $1,200 for rent and bills every single month, he decided that enough is enough and that he should do something about it.

Talley started looking for a long-term living solution and that came to him in the shape of an old school bus.

He decided he would ride the tiny house trend and create his new home using what was once a school bus, saving tons of money in the process.

But where should one even start when turning such an idea into reality?

“Ultimately I decided upon a school bus because I thought ‘Hey, there’s already four walls and a roof,’” he explained.

He initially thought that he would easily turn the bus into his home by putting up some wood and installing light bulbs, but it turned out to be more complicated than that.

If he had known the exact scope of this project, he probably wouldn’t have started it; but at that point, he had yet to understand this.

It can be easy to assume that a Texas-born man knows how to handle power tools and build stuff from scratch, but that wasn’t the case for Michael Talley. His profession of choice is graphic design and he has little experience in practical work.

In fact, he admits that he had never built anything, ever.

But it wasn’t like that’s going to stop him from creating the tiny house of his dreams. He created several designs for the house and just started to work.

But where could he find a school bus for sale?

Turns out Michael Talley was in luck. He found an auction that was held by PublicSurplus.com where there were 10 school buses for sale. What’s even better, the auction wasn’t very popular. Only a few bidders competed so Michael was able to purchase one bus for only $2,200 — less than two months of rent and bills. Another buyer bought all nine other buses.

At this time, Michael had just decided against making a tiny house and wanted to do a bus conversion instead.

Michael had it all figured out. He wouldn’t build a tiny house, but convert the bus into a full-size home with bedroom, bathroom, living room, and kitchen.

Combining several different ideas he had for his tiny house, he created a plan for bus conversion. He took ideas from anywhere he could find, including movies like The Lost World: Jurassic Park.

But ultimately, he had to cut many of those ideas and only keep the ones that had the best return in terms of practical living potential.

One of the biggest problems Michael Talley had with this project was the bus’s height. It measured at 6’1 while Michael is 6’6 tall. You can see why this was no good.

This left him with no other option but to try and raise the roof. Remember how we told you that he didn’t know how to do any of this work before starting? Well, he did the only thing he could — watched a ton of YouTube tutorials in order to learn how to adapt the height of the bus and make it livable for a tall guy like himself.

We mentioned that Michael was originally inspired by the Jurassic Park design, but he ultimately abandoned it and went with another idea. He figured it would be better to place the public areas of the home in the front of the bus.

His plan included a kitchen that was actually bigger than what he had in the old apartment, a big desk, his old couch, and enough room for a queen size bed. Of course, there would have to be plenty of storage room as well.

Michael was determined to work hard in order to turn his dreams into reality, even though some parts of the project seemed nearly impossible. He devoted all his time to it, moving out of his comfortable studio apartment in North Austin.

“I moved into a tent in order to save money while working on the bus, commuting 40 minutes to work every day, just to afford more steel and more wood,” he said.

A friend let him park his bus on his farm for free until he finished the construction.

Michael began by removing the bus seats. He never thought this would be a particularly difficult step, but it took him more time and effort then he expected.

“If I did this again, I would have used an angle grinder, but this was still only days into the build and I was terrified of power tools,” Michael said.

“A nice man came with his 7 months pregnant wife and 8-year-old daughter to cart away all these seats to the scrap metal yard,” he said. “Props to my stepdad for crawling under the bus and helping me remove every single bolt. If I did this again I would have used an angle grinder, but this was still only days into the build and I was terrified of power tools.”

But it wasn’t realistic to think he could tackle a project this big without using power tools at all…

After the seats were taken away to a scrap metal place, Michael moved on.

Despite not even knowing what impact drill was, he needed to use it if he wanted to remove the bus ceiling. He describes getting the panels off as “the absolute worst”.

“I wish that I had ended up keeping this insulation in. It was a in remarkably good shape and would have saved me a few headaches if I kept it in,” Michael remembers.

He did have some fun while cleaning the bus. One time, he found an old sticky note that said “Kick Me”. He laughed, imagining how the note must have been attached by a kid during one boring bus ride.

The next thing he needed to do was removing the rubber floors and the windows. He thought about keeping the windows for a while but ultimately decided that he prefers privacy instead. After all, he was about to start living in the bus.

After he was done deconstructing the ceilings and floors, Michael started preparing the bus for raising the roof. He wanted to a achieve a height that would allow him to stand comfortably.

“As soon as I stepped onto the bus for the first time I knew me being 6’6 was going to be a huge problem,” he said. “The ceiling is only 6’1, so I was going to have to do some MAJOR work to get this thing comfortable for my abnormally large (body).”

Michael got sick and tired of all the ‘raise the roof’ jokes people used to make as he was working on this part of the project. Yes, he has raised the roof, and it was now time to install the new metal ribs that will hold the new roof.

At this point, Michael had only one thing in mind — he prayed that everything wouldn’t collapse on him. He carefully cut the sides of the bus and finally cut the whole bus in half.

Michael had friends help him raise the roof for another 20 inches. In order to do this, they needed to cut it in half in two places. We believe him when he says that it was absolutely nerve-racking to destroy the bus like that.

They then used screw jacks to raise the roof and had to alter the original plans, because Michael wanted it to be 24 inches higher than it originally was.

Michael was very pleased with the result. “It’s remarkable how much more spacious the bus feels than I thought it would,” he said.

But he had plenty more work to do.

“I cut a section out of one of the steel ribs and took it to a metal fabricator,” Michael said. “I had him craft 25 identical steel ‘sleeves’ that could slip over either end of the rib once the roof was raised.”

This was the moment when the whole project finally started to come together.

After the new roof was done, it was time to put some walls on the bus. Michael Talley opted for metal panels that would close the middle section of the bus that once had windows.

Unfortunately, this phase left Michael with a bad wound on his arm, after he cut himself on a metal sheet that fell.

He refers to this phase as “easily the most painful and bloody part of the build” and we can understand why.

Talley never thought a moment would come when he would install an oven in a bus, but that was exactly what he was doing next.

“The bus is basically an oven right now, what being solid steel and in Texas. Though apparently, it’s also semi-bulletproof!”

For the time being, he decorated the inside of the bus with Christmas lights and cut holes for the new windows to be installed.

He still had plenty of work to do.

Michael was experiencing one setback after another.

This time, the bus was stuck in the mud and it messed up its power steering. He had to learn some new skills pretty fast. “You have any idea how hard it is to try and parallel park a 40-foot school bus with no power steering? I do,” he remembered.

The new insulation he installed helped with regulating the inside temperature — this was a necessary step if he wanted to actually live inside the bus.

Michael could do all this work relatively quickly because a friend let him stay in his farm. He basically didn’t have any other expenses and could focus all his money and energy on the bus's makeover.

He commuted from the farm outside of Austin to the city every day to go to work and came back to his project every day after that. It’s a good thing he could enjoy the farm life during that time, because the experience would probably be different in the city.

With the walls and the roof done, it was time for Michael to start working on the interior of his future tiny home. He built a wooden couch frame and moved on to make the kitchen.

He bought most of the supplies at IKEA for cheap. The cabinets and drawers cost him $30 while the big butcher block countertop set him back $120. The kitchen quickly started to come together and he realized it would be bigger than the one in his previous apartment.

He already owned an old IKEA couch, so he took it apart and used the parts for his renovation project. “I took my IKEA Karlstad couch from my apartment and took off the back, arms, and feet so I was left with the cushions and the box spring base,” he said. “I built that into the bus for added comfort and style.”

Next to the couch, he made a water storage system frame, and then the bathroom frame.

Another accident happened as Michael was spraying insulation on the ceilings. He somehow sprayed some on his long beard and didn’t notice until a few hours later. When he did, it was too late; he had to shave it off completely.

Michael continued to work on the walls using Masonite, a light and sturdy material that’s on the cheap side. He also used it for the kitchen wall to make future cleanups easier. The next thing he did was finally start bringing everything together.

Michael decided to get his energy from solar power. After all, there’s plenty of sun in Texas. He installed solar panels on the roof during one of the toughest days of the entire project.

“This was the most frustrating day of the build,” he remembers. “I was doing it myself, it was very windy, and things kept falling off the roof.”

But it was worth it, because solar panels would enable him to generate electricity on the go and not have huge bills.

Michael Talley finished the walls and the ceiling with wood. He was in luck — instead of investing a lot of money in wood, he found a way to repurpose some that he found.

“I need to say I SUPER lucked out with this wood,” Michael said. “It’s reclaimed floorboards from a house here in Hyde Park in Austin, from 1941. I just flipped it upside down and used the unfinished sides for all my accent walls/couch.”

Being a graphic designer, Michael definitely needed a proper space to do his work. He was fed up with tiny desks in the past, so he made sure to leave enough space for a comfortable workspace with a massive desk in the middle of it.

“Being a graphic designer, I need a proper workspace. Most tiny houses have these little dinky desks that flip up from a wall or are tucked away in a small alcove. This desk is 5 feet wide and 2 feet deep, the largest desk I’ve ever owned!”

In his new bathroom, Michael installed a shower and a toilet. For the bathroom door, he used wooden barn door that he restored. But he soon found that he’s not using it as much as he anticipated.

“I can use the bathroom in it, however, I rarely do. I pee outside like the good Lord intended,” Michael revealed. “As for showering and stuff, I built an awesome little outdoor shower or I shower at the gym.”

When all the important inside work was done, Michael wanted to paint his bus in something different than the usual school bus theme. White turned out to be the best choice for many reasons.

“White is best for the heat here in Texas, and leaves me open to add colors down the road,” Michael said. “I also couldn’t think of what colors would go with my wood interiors. I park it in South Austin, in someone’s shady side yard and pay less than $100 a month in rent and utilities.”

How long did it take him for the whole project? Around five months. Michael would need much more time if he hadn’t been so dedicated to hard work and went all in with his time, money, and other resources.

But unfortunately, there was something else he needed to sacrifice for this project. His long-term relationship with his girlfriend ended right after he started working on his bus. In addition, during those five months, his grandfather and his dog passed away. It was a real emotional rollercoaster for Michael.

Michael Talley now lives in his converted school bus full time and pays less than $100 for rent and utilities together. Now that’s saving money!

He is currently working on his van so he can travel around the country more. In total, Michael spent around $15,000 remodeling the school bus into his new home.

“I design T-shirts for a living. I lost my last job while building the bus actually, but got a much better one once the bus was completed,” Michael Talley told Chron.com. “Perfectly enough, I work for the company that is responsible for all those “Keep Austin Weird” shirts around town.”

But Michael learned plenty of things during the bus remodeling and he can’t wait to apply them to his next project. After all, he’s been saving a lot of money living like this and he needs to invest that money elsewhere.

“I have a composting toilet that works great, and it just so happens that I get by using the one at work. The bathroom is mostly used for storing materials for my current van conversion project.”

We’ll let you know how his van makeover project is going!

Most people have never heard about it, but right outside of a major Canadian city one of the world's strangest and best-kept secrets lies buried, hidden deep underground.

Placed there by a single man with a unique vision, his epic project has inspired countless people - and angered many others, including local authorities. Who is this man, and what is this project that he's dedicated his life to? Read on to find out.

Since the early '80s, Bruce Beach has been secretly buying school buses and burying them underground in an undisclosed location, somewhere in rural Canada.

His strange project has drawn criticism, praise - and the intervention of law enforcement, and while it is not very well known, those who have heard of it can't help but have a strong opinion about it, one way or another.

Recently, Beach has decided to share his work with the world - as well as his reasons for working on it for so long.

So what is Bruce Beach's secret, and why is it so polarizing?

Bruce Beach was born in Kansas in 1934.

Having lived through the horrors of the Vietnam War and the tensions of the Cold War, Bruce and his wife decided to move to Canada, in order to live in a safer environment. They felt that Canada's seclusion would allow them a higher degree of safety, but moving to the Great White North wasn't enough.

In the late '70s, Beach was bothered by the rising threat of nuclear war between Russia and the States - and rather than sit around and wait for the bombs to fall, decided to do something about it.

His decision would end up turning into a project he named "Ark Two," and which would capture the imaginations of countless likeminded individuals when he finally revealed it to the world.

In the early 1970s, Beach moved to his wife's hometown - the Canadian village of Horning's Mills.

Approximately a 90-minute drive from Toronto, Horning's Mills is isolated, scenic and, most importantly - safe.

Standing smack dab in the middle of the Great Leaks, it wasn't just a beautiful location - it was also perfect for Bruce's plans, and by 1980, he had already sketched out an elaborate blueprint for what would prove to be one of the most interesting and outlandish projects the Canadian province of Ontario had ever seen.

Starting in 1980, Bruce Beach began acquiring old school buses. Buying them for approximately $300 a piece, Bruce wasn't interested in their engines or their mobility, but rather in their solid, sage structures.

Slowly accumulating a collection of 42 buses and storing them in a tightly packed formation in an old lot near his home, by 1985 Bruce was ready for the next step of his plan.

Bruce Beach had some very specific plans for his Horning's Mills project - and he chose to use school buses because they boasted several features which make them perfect for his plans - and infinitely preferable to any other similar vehicle.

First, school busses had roomy, open floorplans. But more importantly, school buses are required, by law, to have their roofs reinforced with steel beams.

This makes them safer for their child passengers in case they end up in an accident - but also allows them to carry much larger weights on their roofs. Weight that could result from dirt being piled on top of them, when they're buried underground.

After Bruce finished setting up the school buses in a tight formation in a large swath of his 12.5-acre property, he began the slow, difficult process of cutting their chassis and turning them into a massive, interconnected structure of winding corridors, rooms, storage spaces and bulkheads.

But Bruce didn't do it alone. As he began construction, a small army of like-minded volunteers began to show up, and over the next few years, would help complete the construction of the complex.

After several years of slow paced, but deliberate and thoughtful work, Bruce's bus building complex was complete, and he was ready to take the next step.

Making sure the buses' chassis were airtight, he began pouring concrete over the structure, encasing it forever in the thick, resilient substance.

After the concrete had set and dried, Bruce proceeded to cover the construction with an additional 14 feet of dirt.

When he was done, the entire underground complex was completely invisible to outside observers - and safe under a thick layer of concrete and earth.

Finally, the initial construction of Bruce's vision was complete.

He had built 10,000 square feet of a fortified bunker, capable of withstanding a nuclear blast - and of housing over 500 people within its underground walls.

Naming it "Ark Two," this megacomplex made of school buses and concrete is one of the largest underground structures in North America - a huge accomplishment on any scale. But building it, it turned out, was only half the battle.

You may think that a complex as large as Ark Two, made out of salvaged materials and old school buses, encased under tons of concrete and dirt and built by a single, untrained man, might sound a little… unsafe, from a structural standpoint. And if it was anyone else other than Bruce Beach building this monstrous complex, you'd probably be right - but Bruce isn't like anyone else.

Serious about his passion project, Bruce consulted with the same engineer who designed and constructed Toronto's subway system - who, after going over Bruce's plans and making a few key changes, approved the structure as structurally sound.

Describing the construction of Ark Two as a feat carried out by Bruce Beach alone would be false.

It's true that his single-minded determination played a huge role in making the underground fort a reality, but he wouldn't have been able to pull it off without the help of friends and volunteers.

As the project progressed, at least 50 people from Horning's Mills, as well as members of the survivalist community, came together to take part in the planning and hard labor required to create the structure.

But why would any well-balanced individual choose to take part in what seems like an insane project?

One motivation for people to pitch in and work with Bruce on Ark Two, other than the sheer awesomeness of getting to say that they got to help build an underground nuclear bunker, is the simple fact that Bruce has guaranteed a spot in his massive shelter for anyone who is willing to help in its construction and maintenance.

Volunteers are invited to spend a few weekends a year working around the structure, performing renovations and basic maintenance - and in return, to assure their safety in case disaster ever strikes - a situation which Bruce is quite certain will happen sooner, rather than later.

Getting inside Ark Two isn't as simple as opening a door and walking inside.

First, you must be granted access ahead of time. But even if you have been granted access, entering the bunker is an ordeal.

First, you must enter through a rusty old door - the only part of the complex visible from above ground - which house behind it a power generator, and the entrance to the underground labyrinth.

Visitors - or future vault-dwellers then descend down 14 feet of earth, before they reach the actual underground living area - which houses a staggering array of amazing features.

Making Ark Two safe for people fleeing a disaster doesn't just mean making the bunker safe from a nuclear blast.

Once the shelter is occupied at full capacity, one of the biggest dangers its occupants will face won't necessarily be from above, but rather, from inside.

Should anyone carrying a virulent or infectious sickness enter the tightly packed space, the consequences could be disastrous. But how do you screen for sickness?

Some healthy-looking individuals could be incubating a dangerous disease, and letting them into the shelter could seal the fate of hundreds of other survivors.

To avoid contamination, Bruce had set up a special decontamination chamber at the entrance to the complex.

Equipped with a stainless-steel double sink, a shower (and a bathtub, for children and disabled individuals) and a food decontamination area, the screening chamber is meant to minimize any danger of contamination and illness by any of the individuals seeking shelter in Ark Two.

But this prudent facility is only one of many specialized chambers in the underground maze.

In order to survive, the inhabitants of Ark Two will need more than just shelter from fallout and radiation.

To maintain any semblance of normal life in the underground environment, the residents of Ark Two will need to have access to fresh water, plumbing and electricity.

Luckily, Bruce had thought of everything.

Ark Two boasts an elaborate plumbing system, which runs throughout the complex and into an industrial septic tank - as well as access to a private well full of potable drinking water.

The shelter is also equipped with several diesel generators - and enough fuel to keep them running continuously for three months before there's a need to re-stock.

Impressive - but what do other survivalists think?

Bruce Beach is part of an international community of people who like to call themselves "Preppers."

Preppers believe that a catastrophic disaster of one kind or another is inevitable and likely, and that in times of need, relying on government infrastructure may not be possible.

Instead, they like to prep for these events themselves, making sure they're equipped to deal with these situations as individuals and small communities to the best of their ability.

But while many Preppers have stocks of emergency rations and water, Bruce's Ark Two project is as unique and mind blowing to them as it is to anyone else.

“When you go inside the bunker for the first time, it is a different planet," said one member of the Ontario Prepper Survival Network. "It’s like you’re on Mars. When you hear about this concept of 42 school buses underground, to fathom it is nothing compared to going in and actually seeing it… It’s crazy in there.”

Of course, one of the most basic needs Ark Two needs to answer is that of food.

Even if everyone inside is healthy, safe and clean, without food to sustain the shelter's survivors, they wouldn't be able to last long before they'd have to brave the hostile outdoors once more.

Luckily, Bruce has thought of everything. The Ark boasts two industrial kitchens - one primarily for cooking, while the other mostly for washing dishes.

Next to them, Bruce has placed two large storage rooms full of food and pantry items - but food supplies have proven to be one of the shelter's biggest challenges…

A well-stocked pantry is essential in any survival situation - but keeping an underground shelter

continuously stocked with enough food to sustain 500 people is no simple task.

“I don’t know how many tons of food we have had to throw out over the years," Bruce told the National Post in one interview.

In the three decades the shelter had been on standby, even food items with long shelf lives, like canned beans and other preserved ingredients would have had to be replaced several times over.

Planning a shelter in which 500 people are meant to be able to take refuge for a prolonged period of time means more than just being able to feed them and provide them with a safe place to sleep.

Half a thousand people with no place to go are bound to come with a wide array of needs that will have to be answered.

In addition to living quarters, Bruce has also built classrooms, a radio communications center, a library, day rooms, an infirmary - and even a mortuary and a dentist's office!

It seems Bruce has taken everything into account - and that the people seeking refuge in Ark Two will be more than comfortable in his facility.

Still, Ark Two isn't exactly a five star hotel, as you'll soon see.

Ark Two was designed and built as a shelter meant to allow people to survive the harshest catastrophes imaginable. That means that space inside the shelter is at a premium, and things like keeping families together take second priority to comfortably housing as many people as possible.

For this reason, sleeping quarters at the shelter will be split into Men's and Women's - which means that families won't be able to share a living space. But the way Bruce explains it, it's for a good cause.

Even though parents would have to sleep in different quarters, Bruce has given a lot of thought to the kids who would have to spend time underground.

In addition to classrooms and a nursery, which would ensure kids are able to continue their education even in the direst of situations, he's also built a play area meant to serve as a playground.

In addition to toys and room to run around in, the chamber is also stocked with multiple chess sets, which Bruce considers important leaning tools.

While Bruce has built the shelter with a long period of isolation in mind, he also hasn't neglected the ability to contact other survivors after disaster strikes.

Ark Two is equipped with an advanced radio broadcast system, which can send and receive messages on both AM and FM frequencies.

Strong enough to reach both Canada and the United States, Ark Two's comms rig is likely to be the survivors' major means of communication with the outside world.

So what are "Preppers?"

Preppers believe that some sort of catastrophic incident in the future is not only likely, but imminent - and who've decided to take action to ensure they will be able to survive it without needing to rely on outside sources.

They spend much of their time and money on preparation, training and equipment for whatever event may occur, and try to be as ready as they can at all times.

But while Bruce may seem like the very definition of a Prepper - and was even featured on an episode of National Geographic's documentary series, Doomsday Preppers, he isn't comfortable with being categorized as a member of that community…

Bruce believes that most preppers are fiercely individualistic. He believes most of them are primarily concerned with their own personal safety, rather than that of others, and so he distinguishes his own efforts from theirs by saying that Ark Two and his preparation for a catastrophic event are driven by altruism and a desire to help others, rather than to simply maintain his own personal safety.

But while Bruce sees himself as an altruistic contributor to society, others have raised some resistance to his efforts.

While Bruce sees Ark Two as a public service, and has repeatedly stated it is a shelter that is open to everyone, local authorities are far from happy with its construction, and have repeatedly tried to shut it down.

Ontario's government has classified Ark Two as a public hazard - and has spent quite a lot of money trying to make it go away.

It doesn't help that Bruce built his bunker without proper permits - although it was constructed on his own private property.

Over the years, Bruce has had to appear in court more than 30 times!

The Fire Department isn't very happy with Ark Two, either - classifying it as a fire hazard.

They've closed the complex down several times, and even showed up at a gathering Bruce organized on his property in an attempt to shut it down once more.

Bruce believes these attempts to shut his operation down are not legitimate, and that they're merely distractions, taking away from the real work he's trying to accomplish.

Bruce has served in the United States Air Force as a radio control tower operator, and later in his life taught computer science at a college.

Based on his experiences, Bruce believes nuclear war will start after Pakistan bombs India.

“I used to always say the end of the world was going to be two years from now,” he told the National Post, “but now I say it is going to be two weeks from now — and if I am wrong, I will revise my date."

Bruce sees his project as a truly altruistic and humanitarian undertaking - and operates a network called SAFE to prove it.

SAFE is an acronym that stands for "Safe America For Everyone" - which means that anyone and everyone is welcome at Ark Two - regardless of their race, culture, politics or religion.

The SAFE website states that "Anyone is welcome to join the Ark Two Refuge Facility - so long as they do so before the catastrophe occurs."

Bruce has stated that "I am an optimist about the long-term future of mankind but a pessimist about the immediate future."

This means that while he believes catastrophe is imminent, he also believes that it will prove to be an opportunity to rebuild a better, healthier and more tolerant society when the dust finally settles.

His advice for others is to think about their priorities, and to ask themselves what their plans are in case catastrophe does ever strike.