20+ Grand Design Momentum Upgrades We Did FIRST and Why (Momentum 395MT)

1 month ago
Chad

Every new RV comes with an instant list of projects — things that need fixing, things we want to tweak, and things we simply want to make our own. We've been in our new Grand Design Momentum 395MT for a couple of months now, and while the list isn't finished, we've knocked out a solid batch of upgrades along the way. Here's a room-by-room rundown of what we've changed so far, starting up front and working our way out to the garage and exterior.

Bedroom Upgrades

The washer and dryer stack isn't something we installed ourselves — Grand Design handled that one for us as a favor, just like they (or our dealer) have on our past two rigs, a 397TH and a 410TH. Three RVs in and we still haven't installed one ourselves, so our real advice is to order the stackable unit through your dealer at the time of purchase and let them handle it.

The TV mount was the very first project done in this RV. There's a backer behind the wall, so finding solid mounting points was easy, and the 43-inch Vizio fits the space perfectly. From there, we tackled the bed: we brought our RV Mattress by Brooklyn Bedding over from the 410 before ever spending a night in the 395MT, and upgraded to 150-pound bed lift struts to handle the extra weight. We also pulled out the stock under-bed shelf so we could fit our own storage containers underneath.

Bathroom Refresh

Like every RV we've owned, we're using Command hooks in the shower for towels — as long as you follow the instructions on prep and cure time, they hold great and never fall. We swapped the stock shower head for a HOPOPRO high-pressure version, which looks the part but actually delivers real water pressure, unlike the factory head. Toilet paper holders never come pre-mounted from the factory, so we used adhesive mounts to tuck ours inside the cabinet doors — one horizontal, one vertical — keeping them out of the way without any drilling. We also replaced both toilet seats with the Bath Royale slow-close seat, the same one we've used in all three of our RVs.

Steps, Shades & Entry Door

Our dog Daisy has never been a fan of the hard factory step material, so — like we've done in every RV since 2017 — we carpeted the steps. It's a simple job: pull the steps, lay carpet over the top, fold and staple.

The RV comes with the Lippert Thin Shade prep but no actual shade, so that had to be purchased and installed separately (not a difficult job). Paired with it is the Easy Peasy Access Screen, a zippered flap panel on the door that lets us open and adjust the screen shade without stepping outside first. We're still testing it out, but so far we like it.

We also switched to Bauer Bluetooth keyless entry locks. Our Trek (by RVLock) lock on the 410 never gave us trouble, but it was out of stock when we needed to order, and we didn't want to go back to the RVLock V4, which leaves unpainted gaps on the door. The Bauer has fewer code combinations but built-in Bluetooth, so we can lock or check the door right from the app.

Security, Network & Climate

Our Ring alarm system moved over from the 410 almost entirely — smoke detectors, under-sink and basement water sensors, and interior and door cameras, plus a new Ring doorbell. Only the door sensors had to be replaced since the old ones were screwed in place. The new equipment cabinet above the stove now houses the Ring base station, our network-attached storage, router, and pass-throughs for Starlink (the rooftop Starlink install itself is still on the to-do list). We also swapped in fresh air filters throughout.

Office & Garage

We moved our desks into the garage/office in place of the factory Happy Jack benches — a simple build using countertops that we've covered in a separate post. Our storage cabinet made the move from the 410 as well, repositioned against a different wall to clear the door swing. We had a friend 3D-print a cover plate for the old control panel cutout and moved the control panel itself out into the open — now guests staying back there can run the AC and lights without needing to find us.

Outside & Underneath

We moved our RoadTech TPMS sensors and repeater over from the 410, and it's still our favorite system for how fast it picks up sensor signals when checking pressures before a trip. New Mopeka propane sensors also made the immediate projects list — we've used them since our very first RV and trust them completely for keeping an eye on propane levels from the app. Snap Pads went on the landing jacks for a bigger, non-slip footprint, and a MORryde slide-out tray now lives in the basement. Grand Design squared off the angled wall and found about eight inches of extra room for this build, giving us noticeably more basement space than the stock layout. Inside, we mounted a power strip, our DeWalt battery charger, and a fire extinguisher to the wall.

We also mounted the Furrion Vision S+ rear camera for driving — the full multi-camera side and garage setup is still to come. And after years of running a mismatched setup of BuiltRight and RAM mounts in the truck, we finally switched the whole dash to Bulletpoint Mounting Solutions: all carbon fiber, stackable extensions, and a much larger mounting tray than we had before.

We're not done — Starlink, the rest of the camera system, and a few more garage tweaks are still on the list. We'll keep sharing those as we go, along with a full walkthrough of the 395MT.

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