An adventure in remodeling

We are a bit disappointed in the quality of our 2011 Rockwood fiver. We should have known better (have been RV-ing for 20 years) and done more homework, but my wife fell in love with the rig and we impulse purchased.

Then came the problems:

• Cheap blinds (the day/night kind, you know what I mean). Rockwood didn't even install the typical metal top clips - just turned the top rail 90 degrees and screwed it into the wall. So far, two years of RV-ing and three of the blinds have broken strings (a screw actually went through one of them)
• It should have been a 50-amp rig: microwave and fireplace can't be used at the same time - they put in a foot switch near the door that we did not notice. You can use either, but not both.
• Woefully underpowered A/C

We went to Bretz RV in Missoula wanting to trade in, but they would only give us only about 1/3 of what we paid. Our solution: upgrade the cheap parts to quality, and at the same time make it more comfortable, and tailored to our needs.

Regarding the blinds: Our home has fantastic cellular blinds - we're planning to replace all the RV blinds with the quality ones

Fireplace/microwave/A/C problems : Move the existing 13.5K BTU A/C unit to the rear of the coach and bring in a separate 20 amp circuit. Add the fireplace to that and do away with the foot switch. We'll not likely use the fireplace at the same time as the A/C unit so all should be good to go. Then install a 15K BTU heat pump in to the original A/C spot

Not a quality issue, but will make it more comfrtable: Take out the existing couch/sleeper and replace it with residential recliners (or theater seating) and get rid of the existing small uncomfortable recliners. Overall will save weight, give us more room, and definitely more comfort.

We're heading in to winter, so these projects will need to wait until spring, but we're excited to turn our lemon into lemonade.