Heh, you did cover a lot of ground! I wonder if it might be good if you edited the title to something like "coach charging/electrical system upgrade."I can understand how it gets "out of control" for one thread though: Because you really need to look at the system as a whole, so you can plan it intelligently. Thus.... HUGE.
I've been thinking about these things for years (mostly on boats) and doing some of them.... and I still get confused sometimes. I'm also not an electrical pro, although I have re-done my small boat (simpler than a Chinook, which is actually just about as complicated as a large RV).
Sometimes it helps to read through some already published material, such as that by Jack Mayer. I also find that the boating world is sometimes a step ahead of the RV world, although the systems are very similar.
So basically I think it starts with figuring out what you want your system to do for you. It's sort of like if a customer comes into a sporting goods store (and I work there) and asks me "What is the best raincoat?" Well.... how are you going to use it? If it's for a 6-month backpacking expedition to SE Alaska, a city/opera tour in Italy with porters for your bags, or a 3-hour ball game and then throw it in the dumpster? Those would be three very different "best" raincoats. The last one might be a contractor trash bag with holes poked for the arms
Our Chinooks (indeed, many RV's) look to have been designed basically to drive from electrical hookup to electrical hookup (or to run the generator a lot). And if this is how it is used, any upgrades would be very different than, say, someone (like me) who likes to boondock. I also think it's worth looking at some of the "assumptions" to see if they fit your scenario. For example, in my case, I virtually never used a microwave at home (even when it was easy, electrically), and I really had no desire to do so in the coach. I also don't tend to watch TV. So for me, those things are not a priority. Neither is keeping the rig up to the highest possible re-sale value for a mythical, "typical" RV-er. I save and store carefully anything that can easily be put back, and I make sure my mods are of good quality, but other than that, I bought the rig for me, not future owners. However, everyone is different that way.
Back to your use pattern: I think that's the most important thing to try to figure out first. Sometimes that's hard, as you don't know how you will use it until you use it, and it's a "vicious cycle" that way. Other times you do know. Essentially you should to at least try to figure that out.
For example, my use case:
1) I travel a lot, but also want to be able to stay in one place for up to two weeks.
2) I like to boondock with no hookups.
3) I like peace and quiet.
4) I don't want to have to park in the sun 24/7 at all times.
5) I'm a night owl (so will use battery power when the sun is not up).
6) Air-conditioning (coach) and microwave are not important to me.
7) My electrical needs are modest EXCEPT I must have my laptop/wi-fi hotspot, and be able to charge various AA batteries for camera, etc. I also like to be able to run power tools from time to time (away from hookups as I don't like to make noise in campgrounds).
7.5) That said, I would really like to be able to replace the 3-way refrigerator with an efficient 12-volt model (even efficient electrical refrigerators are energy hogs, especially in warm climates).
8) It's important to me to understand my whole system and know it is done right (proper over-current protection, plenty adequate wire sizes, labeling, etc.)
9) I don't mind making mods, but want to keep the rig looking good.
10) I don't mind spending money as long as I enjoy the return and it makes sense (i.e. not wasted).
11) I don't want to have to run the generator except for rare exceptions (using power tools, a really odd run of cloudy days, etc.)
I guess I'll stop for now and see what direction you want to take the thread in. Then I may post more.
Oh, but to answer one of your questions: I don't know of any practical (realistic) setup that would allow you to run an air-conditioner while off the grid unless your generator is running. You will be able to run your microwave (for reasonable periods of time) if you have a big/good setup (I have friends who do, with plenty of solar, a large inverter/charger, and a good battery bank).