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Hi @HeatherMcK, this design of yours has raked ceilings as shown by your section and this becomes a special case. As @solversays you can achieve that by lowering and raising your roof planes accordingly to the desired floor to rafter pitching point height. To get to 6 foot 4 inches on the wall where your arrow is. You would need to cut a section through your model and draw that line exactly where it is on the section above. That dashed dotted line is not at your floor level so you need a dimension from that line down to the floor as well. That should give you a reference point to know if your current roof height is set correctly. In order to help, you need to provide a dimension directly under the 6’4” dimension down to the floor level. Have fun. Edited: Here is an official training video that just might help you adjust your roof height and your ceiling height in your type of scenario ? https://www.chiefarchitect.com/videos/watch/1605/designing-a-one-and-a-half-story-roof.html?playlist=95

@DBCooper, nailed it on the head about what could be done with DWG/DXF export import. The time spent on 3D modeling again in a CA earlier version may be worth spending the money on the 50% off 1st year upgrade ??? Especially If it involves more than just a single project. I don’t know of many 3D/CAD systems that are backwards compatible or what’s involved in the process but worth researching. In the US the upgrade cost may actually be worth it and could eventually be recuperated too ???

Hi @HeatherMcK, click on your room with the single window and have a look at the structure tab, floor to ceiling heights. Then adjust accordingly (Deduct that value you have above in your post). If there are other rooms on that story then do the same for them. Then you will have to click and select all your top story roof planes and open them up and change the height setting by deducting the amount you have specified above once again. That should lower your roof planes. Hope this helps ? Edited: here is an official training tip on ways to do those changes: https://www.chiefarchitect.com/videos/watch/1515/raising-and-lowering-roof-planes.html?playlist=95

Hi @augusdo63, Please post your plan so @SNestor can take a look at what is causing those windows to disappear above your entry. It looks like you have a void or a double height entry on the inside as well ? By just looking at your 3D view above, I would try looking at that entry wall and go into the structure panel of that wall and check the Ballooning radio button. Then try again to see if those windows remain. Then try a few more settings in the structure panel to see if it builds as you want. If that doesn’t work you may post your plan. Have fun troubleshooting !

ML should be in your project browser. Please see it at the end of this training video. https://www.chiefarchitect.com/videos/watch/30/cost-estimating-using-structural-member-reporting.html?playlist=104 Edited: Please see this older post as well, hope that helps. https://chieftalk.chiefarchitect.com/topic/19306-materials-list/ I believe exporting and printing the ML is also similar as in Home Designer Pro. I couldn’t find one specifically for CA. https://www.homedesignersoftware.com/support/article/KB-00275/printing-exporting-and-saving-materials-lists.html

Clean up just means tidying things up that might be making your model not build or display correctly in 3D.

Hi @pj42pj42, can be controlled in a number of ways, by setting categories and by layers defining what is to be included in the ML. Here is a link to a video on ML but it would be good to watch all relevant videos in the playlist to see how to go about adding more rows etc. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CYLqbiX300

CA is very strong with timber framing, cabinets and quantity take off along with estimating. Also it is well organized and very user friendly, it has an automated framing system but you can use that then just edit the framing to suit your individual needs where possible. You may need to do your 3D connection details in Solidworks or some other specialized app. Have fun researching. Edited: As with all software you need to learn how to use it correctly otherwise it can be quite frustrating. Learning the tricks of CA can take some time becuase it is highly automated. At times you need to back track and make sure all your defaults are set correctly in order to build your 3D model correctly. There really is no perfect CAD software that will do it all with out using some work arounds.

Here is a link to a trial version of CAX15 if you haven’t already downloaded it. Give it a try I know many others import objects created in SU. Fine detail 3D framing modeling can probably be done with polyline solids in CA. But those suggestions above sound cool about Medeek BIM. I might also investigate. You will get lots of help from this forum too. https://www.chiefarchitect.com/ Edit: The level of wall framing control in CA is demonstrated in this video below. You can edit framing in elevation too, see the framing play list for more info. But to get down to the connection level of 3D detail, will require work arounds and may also require other apps. https://www.chiefarchitect.com/videos/watch/501/framing-wall-corners-and-intersections.html

Hi @NeilofOZ, Try this texture from PHG Bricks, it is a jpeg file. For CA use a Texture Ratio of, x = 1200mm, y = 1092mm. I tested it in X15 trial and no problems in the full camera. I will post a picture of my results too. https://www.abcbuildingproducts.com.au/product/pgh-bricks-granite-belt-inglewood/

Looks like that it is a direct consequence of using the PBR in X15 ? I’m sure someone here can explain more about how to edit that texture so it appears correctly in a camera view. If you have access to X14 or prior does the applied texture behave in the same manner ?

Hi, I am surprised that @johnny, hasn’t mentioned Vectorworks Architect as a very good program to design those modern houses in ? Edit: Slanted walls in CA present no major problems for experienced users here. As mentioned, there can be many work arounds and with the use of roof planes you can achieve slanted walls. You could post a plan here of a model you want to do with CA and some of the Chief Masters will help you get through it. You can start with a trial version of Home Designer Pro becuase the outlay is considerably less than CA for starters. If it suits your needs you can always upgrade to CA. Because you would like to design and build with time constraints in mind CA would be a good fit. Other CAD programs are not as user friendly and can take many more hours to learn and become productive in.

Hi @raltd9245, looks like that there are only a few Architects using CA ? In residential buildings, a curtain wall is quite rare. We can mull window components side by side but I haven’t tried mulling them vertically yet. Somebody here might a have a work around for it. I might see if I can test it in CA to see if it will work ? We also call them shop front windows in our region. I am not an Architect but an Architectural Technologist because I only do low rise residential buildings and light commercial. Have a look at this thread as it might help you in the process. https://chieftalk.chiefarchitect.com/topic/13909-glass-wall-with-grid-like-molding/

Hi @NeilofOZ, just looking above at the pattern settings and texture ratio need to be set separately. With the texture you need to have a look and count the bricks in the x direction first. 4 and 1/2 bricks for example, allowing a 10mm mortar joint. 310 x 4.5 = 1395 set for the x direction. If there are 5 courses high for example, 182 x 5 = 910 set for the y direction. I just did it the other day and it worked fine. Did you download a texture swatch from the brick company ? If so create a new material using that swatch. Then count the bricks on the swatch and calculate as above. See this video on how to create a custom material. https://www.chiefarchitect.com/videos/watch/38/creating-custom-materials-and-colors.html See how you go.

I used a demo of ArcSite on my iPad, it was quite good but it will cost after the demo period is over. Has to be easy to use. I have used redstick site cad pro data on my old Samsung device and it was excellent.

Hi all, here is a free floor plan app that I just downloaded and there are many videos on how to use it as well. It is in imperial measurements too. Here is an example. Looks ok to me for a free app to do what you want above. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NgC67dzgsOU

Thanks, I will look in that location. I am aware of the X15 create your own patterns.

Hi @antoine, time will tell but we were given fair warning about the changes coming. Many are still on the old SSA system and that’s cool for CA to do that for those loyal customers. After all many of them were paying SSA year after year. I believe it would be good to offer upgrades to the old system SSA and upgrade fees to customers but they would have to keep paying SSA every year after that or you must go onto a subscription. A year’s notice would have been better than just a few months. It’ no good crying over spilt milk as the saying goes but we must all move on. Just pay as you go from now on and the USA is mainly yearly subscriptions including Revit, AutoCAD, SoftPlan & Vectorworks. Archicad is still perpetual licensing and excellent software for Architects. Chief Architect is great for Architects and Project Home Builders because of its building quantity and estimating system including automatic framing. I am happy to pay a subscription if I ever have the need to use the upgraded version in the future.

Hi @joey_martin, that is exactly what I am doing.

Thank you @glennw yes that will do, is that in the custom patterns location ?

Hi @DBCooper, was looking at the fill pattern list to apply it to my external brick wall and it is no longer there. I also looked through the custom fill list and couldn’t find it. I settled for the single line angle hatch fill pattern but in the past I used the Metal fill pattern as that method is what we use in our region to depict brick walls. I might take a screen shot to post here.

Hi, I was working in CAX10 and I wanted to apply the metal double line angle hatch pattern to a wall but couldn’t find it. Was it removed sometime in the past or is it still hiding somewhere ?

Hi @TDzine, Home designer Professional by Chief Architect is an option to look at. I don’t think that is subscription based at least last time I looked anyway. You could probably just keep using X13 till enough new features are in HDP ? https://www.homedesignersoftware.com/products/home-designer-pro/ I hope the decision to go subscription only for CA full doesn’t lead to a mass exodus to other CAD products. Subscription based is a pretty level playing field there in the USA at the moment.

It’s not always perfect in CA on my machine but works extremely well in my other CAD app.

Hi @ValleyGuy, yes definitely a game changer and I have installed CAX10 & X15 trial on my Mac too. I have a cordless space mouse with my left hand and a cordless Cadmouse on my right and a number key pad at my left and a small keyboard on the right (Key pad and key board in the middle). If we are restricted to 4 on the radial commands, you can create different instances or groups of 4 commands if you want to. Smoother navigation in 3D is great when it is all set up correctly. I couldn’t go back to just using a mouse to navigate. Those tools are especially designed for CAD professionals.