Browse 84 Captioned Photos of the RV Below:
(Use the side arrows to scroll left and right through the photos in each section)
Exterior (18)
With 2,700 Watts (i.e. 2.7 kWp DC) of polycrystalline solar panels, this is believed to be the largest solar photovoltaic (“PV”) system ever installed on a Class A motorhome. 
The panels can tilt fully towards both the driver and passenger sides of the RV. Due to the extreme size of the solar array, tilting has never been necessary since the batteries nearly always fully charge each day with the array in the stowed (i.e. horizontal) position! 
The PV system’s custom aluminum tube frame, designed and built by the current owner, sits above all the rooftop systems (e.g. AC, vents, etc.), precluding most panel shading and increasing power production. The bathroom skylight is still exposed to direct sunlight. 
The rear 3 solar panels have enclosed storage beneath them for lighter items like window screens, window EPS insulation inserts, etc. which don’t need to be frequently accessible without a ladder. 
The component on the left, above the passenger side of the windshield, is a spotlight with a wireless hand-held remote. The rear-view mirrors are heated and remotely-controlled. 
The exterior windshield vinyl shade snaps on and enables one-way private viewing (out, not in) while reducing heat flow into the cockpit. The shorter omnidirectional antenna is for a cell phone signal booster, and the taller omnidirectional antenna is for a marine WiFi signal booster. 
The 2008 Fleetwood Excursion 40x is actually 41.5′ long, and is easy to maneuver in most situations. Pulling a towed vehicle through heavy city traffic is another matter! The RV has an 84″ internal ceiling height and an overall clearance of about 13′ 2″ (on a cold day). In most states the legal height limit for motorhomes is 13′ 6″. 
This “diesel pusher” has a 360 HP engine in the rear, a back-facing radiator, an 8 kW diesel generator in the front, and a 90 gallon diesel tank which is fillable from either side of the RV. 
Washing the RV’s solar panels in San Diego County in southern California. 
While parked near a military base in California, this helicopter repeatedly circled the RV; glad they didn’t try to land on the roof! 
Boondocking by river in coastal Oregon; driver side view. 
Boondocking by river in coastal Oregon; passenger side view. 
Topside view of the RV’s solar panels. There is a narrow walkway along the passenger side of the roof which facilitates panel access for cleaning. 
Long-term stay in the Sandia mountains in New Mexico. External supplemental 100 lb. propane tank (secured to outer rear passenger tire) helped minimize trips to town for propane. 
Sunshine melts heavy snow which falls on the RV’s solar panels. I have never needed to shovel or brush the snow from them. 
Water heater door with Camlock latch. Added separate key lock and insect screen. Also added insect screens on the upper and lower vents of the refrigerator and both furnace vents. 
Added relocatable, weather-protected IP camera (Amcrest ProHD 1080P POE) with pan/tilt, 2-way audio, and night vision. Coaxial and Ethernet cables have already been installed between the desk area inside the RV and the rooftop. 
6 new tires (Sumitomo 275/70R/22.5) with less than 390 miles.
Basement: Passenger Side (10)
PS1 (adjacent to the RV’s door) houses Exterior Entertainment Center with folding 19″ Samsung HDTV; AM/FM radio; and CD/DVD. Added additional duplex 120 VAC outlet. Weather seals of all 14 basement compartments removed, cleaned, and reinstalled in the Fall of 2024. 
PS2 has removable pull-out wire basket. Added duplex 110 VAC outlet. Good spot for bulky items (e.g. Weber grill, pressure cooker for canning, electric smoker, extendable ladder, etc. 
PS3 houses height-adjustable rack for locking in the telescoping picnic table frame, adjustable legs with rubber feet, and wooden locking table leafs. 
Picnic table uses the telescoping ladder as adjustable horizontal support for the locking table leafs. The adjustable, movable metal legs are handy for setting up above logs, small boulders, etc. 
When fully extended, the custom picnic table uses 3 sets of height-adjustable metal legs. The extended picnic table is partially shaded by the RV’s patio awning. 
PS4 provides passenger-side access to the RV’s side-to-side pass-through compartment, and houses the central vacuum system (Dirt Devil) whose hose is stored/connected in the livingroom. PS4 provides convenient storage for longer items like the hammock frame. 
Added brass fitting and gate valve on left side of basement compartment PS5 with hose for an external propane tank. Added hot & cold water faucet on right side. The fresh-water-tank dump valve is located in this compartment. 
Example 100 lb. propane tank (not included) connected via hose to brass fitting in basement compartment PS5. Facilitates long-term boondocking. 
Added heavy-duty welded support frame under PS6; bolted to chassis to support batteries for the 2,700 Wp DC solar electric system. The compartment liner rests on, and hides, this frame. 
PS7 is the only basement compartment with no lock. It houses the propane fill station (yellow fill cap on left), TIGO Ethernet gateway and emergency shutoff for the PV system, a separately added duplex 110 VAC outlet, and access to the liquid fill-point for the hydraulic leveling lifts (separate enclosure on right).
Basement: Driver Side (6)
DS1 (directly below driver’s window) is a handy spot for the doormat, pavement-protecting aluminum landing plates (14” x 14” x ¼”) for hydraulic leveling feet, road cones, funnels, siphon, crayfish traps, etc. The generator’s exhaust pipe is located below this compartment door. 
Added 12 covered, stackable, easily-removable clear plastic storage bins in both DS2 and DS3 for visible, quick access to goodies. 
DS4 provides driver-side access to the side-to-side pass-through compartment. It houses the dual water pumps, with the spare pump already plumbed in for quick replacement. Added duplex 110 VAC outlet and seasonal ceramic heater for cold-weather boondocking. 
DS5 is the utility compartment for emptying the holding tanks, black tank flushing, fresh water input/output, shower head with hot/cold water, etc. Added heated fresh water hose, macerator sewage pump with a 21′ dump hose, spare collapsible water hose on door bracket, and seasonal space heating. 
DS6 is the electrical compartment where the inverter/charger (white box) is installed. Added 50A voltage regulator/booster (yellow box) and 50A surge suppressor (both with LED screens), 50A (25′) & 30A (50′) input cables, and shunt for battery monitoring. The battery control center (black box) the and battery isolation solenoid are both wall-mounted in this compartment. The 2 chassis batteries are shown on the right side in separate enclosure. 
DS7 houses the present set of AGM batteries for the solar photovoltaic (“PV”) system, with heavy-duty DC cabling connected to (and already installed in) compartment PS6 for adding additional batteries.
Doorway (4)
Retracting electric steps (Kwikee; 24″ wide). Note blind-spot side-view camera. 
RV door with keyless entry, EPS insulation insert in window, lit entry-assist handle, and wireless doorbell. 
Added combination/key entry lock (RVLock; Atlas) with keypad and 2 remotes. Added water/scratch shield around perimeter of lock. 
Screen door with hands-free knee-bump opener. Inside steps include fold-down landing floor over steps in front of passenger seat.
Cockpit (8)
View of mudroom (i.e. cockpit) from the steps. Installed custom pleated heavy-duty marine vinyl wrap-around curtains on both the driver & passenger sides of the mudroom. 
Front panel for monitoring/controlling generator, chassis and house batteries, tanks (fresh, grey, and black water), slides (dining room and kitchen), Intellitec load meter, hydraulic leveling jacks, heating & AC, etc.). Plenty of space to add more. 
Replaced the television in the mudroom (one guy really doesn’t need 4 TV’s …) with a storage cabinet with a custom matching wooden door. Installed a door latch and heavy-duty struts on this new storage cabinet. 
There are 2 button-controlled power visors below the cabinets which extend all the way to the dash and black out the entire windshield side-to-side. The door awning and patio awning are also controlled from the mudroom. 
View of mudroom from the kitchen. Can see “out” of the windshield privacy screen, but not “in”. Added motion-sensing lights in mudroom, livingroom, bathroom, and the bedroom closet. 
View of kitchen and livingroom from mudroom. Added 3-section beige black-out curtains (which sandwich heavy, grommetted moving blankets) for insulation between mudroom and kitchen. 
The one-way windshield privacy screen and cabinet-to-dashtop power visors aren’t needed when boondocking! The mudroom’s large single-piece windshield and heated leather seats provide a great dry place to relax and watch nature. 
The blackberries just outside the RV door are tasty with my morning cappuccino, but how do I quietly get one of those elk into the RV’s freezers?
Kitchen (11)
After rolling the island halves together, the wheels are positioned and locked to prevent rolling. Upper and lower ratcheting box straps hold the halves together, forming a secure approximately 3′ x 4′ chopping block top. 
For travelling, the kitchen island halves roll separately into the hallway end-to-end, with the driver-side slide-out holding them securely in place. Alternatively, they can be left in the kitchen with both of the opposite slides in (but you then have to crawl over the island since there’s only about 4″ of side clearance). 
“Cooking-side” of kitchen island on passenger-side of RV. This side of island has 9 locking, smooth-opening ball-bearing drawers and plenty of cooking/standing space. Note the upper ratcheting box strap. 
Cooking-side of kitchen (Dometic electric/propane refrigerator, G.E. convection/conventional microwave (both 1,650 Watts), propane 3-burner stovetop and oven, stainless-steel double sink, etc.). 
Dometic (NDA 1402; 14 cu. ft.) frost-free side-by-side electric/propane refrigerator and freezer with ice maker, water dispenser, and front wood panels. 
Added quick-disconnect propane connection and gate valve on right-hand side-wall of cabinet below sink. Connection used for 20′ hose of catalytic space heater. 
“Prep-side” of kitchen island on driver-side of RV. This side of island has another 9 locking drawers and plenty of standing/preparation space. 
Kitchen storage wall (13″ x 13″ x 15″ compartments) providing handy access to cookbooks, electric kitchen appliances (e.g. crock pot, rice cooker, air fryer, pressure cooker, waffle maker, sandwich maker, blender, food processor, etc.), bakeware, dinnerware, snacks, etc. 
Hardwood butcher block top of walk-around kitchen island (36″ x 46″). 
View of components which move with the long (32″ deep x 15′ long) driver-side slide-out. 
View of kitchen from corner desk in livingroom.
Livingroom (8)
View of livingroom facing rear of RV. Ultraleather Sofa Sleeper with air mattress, Samsung 40″ LCD HDTV, dual-tuner Dish Network DVD satellite receiver (VIP722k), and DVD home theater sound system with surround sound speakers. 
Added 2 very sturdy ottomans with dining tops and deep internal storage, and 26″ electric (1,400 Watts) fireplace on 360° turntable. 
Portable AC unit (13,000 BTU/hr) is in addition to the Excursion’s 2 roof-mounted AC units. This AC unit was initially installed at dinette, but moved to the desk area upon installing the kitchen storage wall at the dinette location. 
Built this movable cabinet to hold the 2 repurposed deep drawers from the dinette. It serves as a sturdy base for the Dometic CF-80 chest freezer/refrigerator. 
Kitchen view from livingroom. The relocatable 2-drawer storage cabinet drawers and height-adjustable dining table were repurposed from the previously stationary dinette to make them much more useful. 
The height-adjustable repurposed dinette table has proven quite useful in both the kitchen (as an extension to the island) and the livingroom (as a work table), and is readily stored by simply removing the screw-on legs. 
Items adjacent to the kitchen storage wall (Dometic chest freezer/refrigerator atop 2-drawer storage unit, air purifier/deionizer, 3rd AC unit, and 20-pint dehumidifier) move with the driver-side slide-out. 
Corner desk, window venting for 3rd AC unit, stowable desk return with removable leg, padded height-adjustable chair, and whiteboard (23″ x 36″). This is the central point for the router, power-over-Ethernet bridge, cell phone and WiFi boosters, IP camera, etc. Added duplex 110 VAC receptacles in both sides of the desk return.
Bathroom (4)
Added a duplex 110 VAC electric outlet on the lower cabinet for a small space heater. Also added a slow-drop quiet-closing wooden seat and top on the porcelain toilet. 
Added an additional shelf in the large medicine cabinet located above the sink. Installed additional towel rack. 
Removed the small combination washer/dryer from this lower cabinet and replaced it with wooden pantry shelving. 
A laudry hamper fits well in front of the pantry shelving in this lower bathroom cabinet. There is a deep 2-shelf corner storage cabinet directly above this lower cabinet.
Bedroom (8)
Bedroom has a wall-mounted 26″ Samsung LCD HDTV, a DVD home theater system, cedar-lined closet, a bedside remote on/off switch for the 8 kW propane generator, a switch for the engine block’s electric heater, assorted fuses, the RV’s main circuit breaker panel, and deep storage cabinets. 
The bedroom slide-out moves in until the foot of the queen-size (60″ x 80″) bed touches the 9-drawer dresser. The slide-out control switch is on the left-hand wall adjacent to the sliding wooden door at the bedroom entrance. 
The air pump and hoses for the Sleep Number mattress were basically inaccessible under the head of the bed. Rotated the mattress 180° and relocated the pump and hoses making them readily accessible. The fireproof steel combination safe is attached to the floor beneath the bed. Great place to store a small Malbec collection (wine not included). 
Weather station LCD’s for 9 separate sensors (showing both temperature and humidity inside and outside of the RV) are located on the outside of the closet and viewable from bed. Installed remote switches for the electric/propane water heater by the bed. Also installed an LCD display here showing the water heater temperature. No need to get out of bed before the water is hot and you’re good and ready! 
The 3 solar charge controllers, input fuse box, and output breakers to the batteries are mounted inside the closet on the left wall. Installed a small switched automatic fan in the closet wall to move the waste heat of the controllers (about 15% of their production) from the closet into the bedroom in the winter. 
Replaced the automatic transfer switch (“ATS”) with a nearly fail-proof manual transfer box mounted inside the closet on the right wall, together with an LCD display of the incoming voltage and current. This has proven quite useful in RV parks which have frequent power outages. 
There is limited access to the top of the diesel engine via a removable floor section on the right-side in the closet. To facilitate this access I’ve replaced the right-side closet doors with a curtain and store 4 portable tool boxes here, making these tools easy to reach and protected from the elements. 
Moved the 2 mirrored doors from right-hand side of the closet and installed them on the right-hand side wall at the entrance to the bedroom. These full-length mirrors are now much more useful for dressing.
Windows (6)
Automotive tint film (Gila) on inside of all windows throughout RV (except for some in Cockpit). The RV’s windows are dual-pane. Removed, cleaned, and reinstalled all outer window seals in the Fall of 2024. 
Gila tint film blocks heat and reflects UV rays, giving the windows a reflective mirrored appearance from outside the RV 
Example on one of this Excursion’s windows showing “with and without” the tint film before its installation. 
XPS insulation board (Owens Corning; Foamular-150) inserts were custom-cut and fit to this RV’s windows (layered up to insulation R-value of R12 for largest windows). They are removed and replaced from inside the RV, as desired for a given site and/or season. 
The insulating XPS inserts consist of multi-layers with written instructions on each regarding their location and layer level. Some have Corian-like contact paper added on one side which closely matches the RV’s solid surface countertops. 
The RV’s windshield has a vinyl snap-on fitted one-way-view (out, not in) shade for heat protection and privacy. There are also slip-on covers for the wipers, rear-view mirrors, and tires.
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