A collection of projects we did and a list of products we actually like and use on our 2019 Grand Design Momentum 395m RV.
âš DISCLAIMER: Projects and products are for educational purpose. Build, buy and use at your own risk and peril. No guarantees whatsoever are made, even when explicitly stated.
All products listed here have been road-tested in good faith for more than 12,000 miles. We paid retail prices for all of them and are not sponsored in any way to review the products.
Also check out the RAM 3500 equipment (not just RAM specific).
Did we miss something or do you know better alternatives? We'd love to hear from you! File an issue or open a pull-request.
Hands-on RV modifications with photos, install notes, and lessons learned.
- Dishwasher The #1 quality-of-life improvement in the RV!
The information is free to use whether you use our links or not but if you choose to we would like to sincerely thank you for supporting this work.
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
- Couch
- Office
- Kitchen
- Bathroom
- Washer
- Bike Rack
- Master Bed
- Kids Beds
- Mouse Traps
- Water
- Curtains and Shades
- Furrion Vision S Backup Cam
- Griddle
- Generator
- Fridge
- Plumbing and Sewage
- Screen Doors
- Storage
- Outdoor Toys
- Other Indoor Equipment
- Other Outdoor Equipment
- Random Stuff
- Linsy Home Storage Couch. We have and love the Rubik I model but it's phased out. Ours has single-seat dimensions of 20.1"D x 25.6"W x 34.4"H which has since changed in the available Rubik III so check your measurements.
- 2 Pack 2.5" square corner utility hinges from Walmart (two hinges per seat, comes with screws)
- Fire TV Stick Turn any screen into a Smart TV. Too many ads but works nicely with the bluetooth speaker and screen.
- Switchable Power Outlet We like to turn off some appliances like the FireTV but want the plug to stay in.
- HDMI Switcher Switch between computer and Fire TV without unplugging HDMI. Only needed if your screen has only one HDMI input. I would've preferred my computer attached over DisplayPort but it's hard to find 15ft DisplayPort cables at a decent price, so I went with HDMI.
- Bluetooth Speaker Has a battery, aux input and also works over just USB-C to the computer.
- 15ft USB-C Cable Brings USB from the PC to the screen. Keyboard, mouse, USB drives etc. then all plug into the screen's USB hub.
- Magnetic Knife Holder Works great. Never lost a knife in transit either.
- Hanging Basket Great for storing fruit. Hangs on the side of a cabinet.
- Napkin holder Has a little weight on top that keep the napkins from flying away.
- Revolving Spice Rack We velcro'ed it to the counter and cover it with a Walmart bag for transport.
- Trash bin Mounts on the door and recycles Walmart Plastic Bags.
- Trash bags If you're ever out of Walmart Plastic Bags (like in Colorado)
- Air fryer Great for low-effort finger-food meals. Don't use together with other high-drain appliances as it will trigger the poor RV breaker.
-
Shower Very happy with this one. Needs some clear silicone around the edges but if you're not doing other silicone jobs, just get a little tube instead of the gun.
-
Cabinet Fences We use those in the bathroom cabinet, not the shower.
-
Shower Corners We use those for the shower corners.
-
Toothbrush Holder We use two of those for the kids' toothbrushes and toothpaste.
-
Toothbrush Holder We use this one in the master bathroom where it stays in the cabinet.
-
Vent Fan Motor Drop-in 12V replacement for the original.
-
-
Laundry Basket Works fine in the kids bathroom. Pictured below.
-
Toilet (white) Pictured below.
-
Slim toilet brush Space-efficient and works great, I'm only worried that a kid might accidentally drop it (retrievable).
-
Toilet Paper Holder Pictured below.
-
Hanging Cabinet Hang it on the studs
-
Washer Washes well and is great on water use. Comparing with others, it seems this one uses only about half.
-
Dicor Non-sag Lap Sealant Use non-sag sealant on the screw holes and the vent cover if you drill the vent hole through the camper yourself.
Works well for 4-6 bikes (2 wedged in between). Also fits all bikes in the RAM 3500 long bed.
- 30" gas struts 150lbs Get less than 150lbs for lighter mattress and/or without latex topper
- Latex topper Works well but leaves a permanent print with 150lbs person. That shouldn't be
-
Locking Carabiner Hooks 15 Pack. I also keep one on my key chain.
-
- Quick connects Block water flow when unplugged with water turned on.
- Curtain Rods Apply Locktite to the screws retaining the rods since they tend to vibrate loose.
- Magnetic Curtain binders
- Actual curtains (cloth)
- Shades
-
We got this one and it works better than the stock antenna, but it would be better if the paddle was rotated by 90deg. I use it angled down rather than like a shark fin.
-
Must have. Always scrape it well and it'll last long. Ours has seen daily use for four years now. The stand is rather cheap but it's the best-value deal.
-
Replacement Screws for Stand We replaced about one per year.
-
Wind Guards An absolute must-have to use the griddle with just a little bit of wind. Also saves about 1/3 in LPG.
-
Always useful. Put one in every wind guard, then you'll never lose them. These have Philips heads. Let me know if you found a good set of self-tapping screws with Robertson (square drive) heads.
-
Griddle Quick-Connect Adapter I faintly remember the griddle coming with one, but if it did I lost it. This will help you out.
-
Gas hose with Quick-Connect One through the belly of the trailer and one as extension to the griddle.
-
Gas Y Connector Forks the fridge's quick connect behind the slide-out into an outdoor outlet. One quick-connect hose is then pulled through the underbelly to the entrance side (see picture above).
-
The hooks are great but the scraper holder is useless since you can't close the lid and it just dirties too quickly. The scraper above works on those hooks.
Onan 5500 Evap
- Vent for Outside Great addon, works really well, but when power cuts it needs to be put in manual mode by hand or it won't run.
- RV Fridge Outside Cover Clips Quite stiff, probably not as good as the original but those weren't really good either.. so far those worked.
-
1/2" PEX to 3/8" OD Valve 10Pcs Every time you remove a line that doesn't have a stop valve before the sink, do yourself a favor and add one to avoid having to shut the water and drain the lines to the whole camper.
-
Sewer Hose Support Note the little arch at the bottom that is useful for crossing with the power or water line.
-
Backflush Valve Regularly back-flush your tanks to keep their volume, functionality and the sensors working (sometimes).
-
10' Sewer Hose We keep three of those and a shorter one (included with the tote tank below).
-
28 Ga Tote Tank Great for sites without sewage. Hookable to a rear ladder. We attached ours to the roof with spare unistruts from the solar install. 28Ga seems unavailable, 21 or 36 are.
-
Drain Valve Lubricant Only use on black tanks and if valve gets sticky. Don't use as preventive measure. This one is water-soluble and doesn't contain silicones.
-
Wheel chocks (pack of two) Small enough to conveniently store away, big enough to be useful on slopes or the truck. The ones with ropes are nice to carry, but the 7$ price difference is definitely not justified. Standard chocks.
-
Heavy Duty Ratchet Straps Hold the legs together. As described and pictured below with the jack blocks, it's not such a Grand Design to have levels face outwards as it causes them to slip when extending far. The straps help even out the slippage. Get the 5,000lbs heavy duty ones because the ratchet on the cheaper ones won't let you tighten them much before breaking.
-
MUST-HAVE TWO 8" ones! Our Momentum has slightly outward-facing leveling jacks which is the worst idea ever because since it forms a triangle, as you push up the rig tension applies to the I-Beams and/or the jack pads start sliding. To minimize the sliding, you need blocks as high as possible. Andersen are a solid choice because of the little side-wall that prevents sliding. The magnets are nice but will stop working well if your metal jack pad is bent. Lifetime warranty story: One of our blocks that we had gotten used with the camper was replaced free of charge (except shipping ~15$) by Andersen when it cracked. While it lost about 2" in height, it still retained the camper! Fantastic customer service.
-
Set of 4x 8", 2x 4" We wouldn't recommend all big ones because there's plenty of situations where the trailer is too slanted to fit the 8" under the rear jacks, but the 4" would fit. If storage is an issue, get only two 8" ones and do the rest with leveling blocks. If storage is not an issue, this seems like the ideal set.
-
Andersend Fifhwheel Hitch Was recommended to us by a fulltimer-friend. Absolutely happy with it because it allows for two additional 28Ga storage totes behind the hitch (in a long bed). The hitch mounts to the gooseneck ball in the truck bed. Make sure to chock your trailer properly when hitching and unhitching because you have to push the front over the hitch, so it'll be inclined much steeper than with the regular hitch.
-
Safety Chains Much better value than the Andersen original . The knock-off has fully satisfied us and also comes with the hooks for the Andersen hitch adapter. Some states may require chains when not using a standard fifth-wheel hitch. Even if not, they've come in handy for other purposes: I hook my roll-and-lock tonneau cover int it and it works on tow hooks for people stuck on the beach.
-
Screen Defender for 30" Door One for the front and one for the back door. Great with little kids. Also works for dogs and cats that don't jump above the door handle.
-
Screen Repair Tape Not as pretty as replacing the whole screen but it works really well and doesn't look too bad.
-
Screen Repair Kit Great tool to push the spline back in when it gets loose.
Under the bed storage bins. The bins are good but the clips come off a bit too often. Better than the clip breaking off, but a tad tighter would help.
-
Butt connectors for smaller wires. Used it on fridge, trailer lights, 4" roof lights, ...
-
Wire brushes for 1/4" impact Removed some rust from the trailer's I-Beam that I resprayed or to clean bolts on the car, ...
-
BA15S Bayonet LED Replacement for burnt out filament-bulb flood light. We used cold white for the flood light because it's brighter. Check picture which you prefer.
-
Ladder Safety Pins Great because they're actual stainless steel that doesn't rust
-
Refrigerator Vent Cover Plug 4Pcs The plastic seems a bit stiff but they work and I've done a few on/off cycles. Maybe the trick to not breaking them is to use pliers instead of a screwdriver.
-
Inflatable Stand-Up Paddleboard Great paddleboard. Very happy with it: feels sturdy on the water, durable, non-slip and comes with paddles for SUP and kayak styles.
-
Inflatable Kayak One of the few inflatable 3-seat kayaks. Seems the best of its class but not satisfactory enough for us. Noticeable drag from slight deflation after an hour of use. Would not buy again but go with a second SUP instead or a hard-shell that costs twice as much.
-
Auto-Shutoff Pump Pump with set-point and auto-shutoff. Perfect for the SUP. Takes about 10-15min for the SUP. Used many times, comes with different adapters that work for both the kayak and the SUP. Handles the 15psi SUP perfectly. Plugs into the car's 12V cigarette lighter socket.
-
Outdoor Cart Perfect to store the kids helmets, the griddle cover or shoes outside but covered. When the front is too low, it fits under the slide-out.
-
Spare ceiling lights 4.5" Warm white (factory)
-
Door Seal Brush Strip Seals the bottom of the sliding door
-
-
6" Slim Storage Shelf Next to the couch in the living room
-
Book Storage bins Fits the 6" shelf. Great for the homeschool workbook collection.
-
Vacuum Extensions For the built-in vacuum. Ours were missing when we bought the trailer.
-
Vacuum Bags For the built-in vacuum. Reusable a few times if you're willing to pull out the dirt.
-
Tripod Stabilizer Works with the Andersen hitch. For a regular fifth-wheel hitch, use the
King Pin variation Must-have item for everyone with washer/drying in their front. Nice to have for everyone else. Measure your height and make sure it's enough. We need some leveling blocks in some cases to keep it straight or extend it to the necessary height. Also check out the DIY rear stabilizers project.
-
Outdoor rug Rug works fine, USB broke off after less than a handful of uses.
-
RV Propane Regulator Ours started leaking and this is a drop-in replacement.
-
Awning Motor Idler Cover Lost one on the road. This one replaces it. Needs both halves replaced even if you still have one as it doesn't have the same curving.
-
Eternabond Roof Repair Tape Lifesaver for little roof tears after scraping branches. Careful, once it's on it stays and will not come off. We also use it to reinforce the side of the awning fabric against potential tears.
-
Magnetic Work Lights Doubles as bicycle light if you're willing to hold it while riding.
-
Magsafe Phone Holder/Charger We got one on the driver and one on the passenger side of the pickup. Needs a Magsafe case (e.g.
Case for Pixel 7) if it's not an iPhone with magsafe.
-
Universal USB Charging Cable Non messy cable that rolls up. Very sturdy, we had those for over two years around youger kids. Not for data transfer but very handy for anything not fast-charging. Especially if you have both Androids and iPhones. Batteries live longer if you don't fast-charge them all the time anyway.
