Joe_Carrick

Robert, A "Slab" - even with a footing - is on the "Slabs" Layer. A Mono Slab Foundation has the Slab on the "Foundation Layer" A Slab as a part of a Foundation Wall System doesn't even have a 3D Slab - Why not? These things are inconsistent and should be unified - but there should probably also be a "Patio Slab".

Here are a couple of details. The 1st is simply taken from the Chief CAD Details Library. The 2nd is the same detail modified to what a true Mono Slab Foundation would look like. That's how it would be built, with the footing offset to the exterior of the forming. This could/should have been done with some tweaks to the Foundation Wall Footing dbx to free up the settings. There are Check Boxes that are disabled and tied into code that acts more like Radio Buttons. It's a mess and any good programmer knows that Check Boxes are not supposed to disable other Check Boxes. This limits the flexibility to set dimensions, etc. In fact, many of those Check Boxes actually change the values in other fields when they shouldn't.

Scott, That's not a stepped footing. It's just a thick wall with varying depths. You know full well what I'm talking about. I know you were involved with the original mono slabs and you seem to have a vested interest in protecting them. They are not what they should/need to be and IMO they are practically useless in the current state. Even when I have a project that needs a Mono Slab (single pour foundation/slab) I can't use Chief's Monoslab Foundation.

Scott, I do work in the Big Bear Lake area and I do need frost walls. At 7000 ft elevation and temperatures that sometimes get down to -20 F ..... and most of the time I will have a slab only under part of the house because of the terrain. The mono slab as Chief provides doesn't give us any ability to step foundation walls the way I need to. The mono slabs I build with CA could be improved by giving me by being able to define the SLAB, STEM WALL, AND FOOTING in lieu of what I can control now which is THE SLAB and STEM WALL/FOOTING You said it all with that statement. I've said many times that we need a true "Foundation" rather than a "Room based system"

Scott, MonoSlabs are not a solution for me. They don't work the way they should - we've been discussing this since Monoslabs were first introduced. The only option I have found that is actually viable is to use the Foundation Walls and then add a Slab manually but that's a lot of work and requires even more work if anything is changed. It should be done automatically with the settings I have for the Foundation. btw, Larry's right about the Structure dbx being a PITA ..... and it extends to the Foundation dbx.

Ok guys, Here's a plan. Glenn's answer was as close as I could get to making it work but it's not ideal. This is not a "MonoSlab" Foundation - it's "Foundation Walls" with a 4" Slab at the top. With the Floor Surfaces Layer ON and the Rooms Layer OFF I can see the "Slab" but also the 2nd Floor Sheathing and the d%#m "Soffit" at overhangs. These "Surfaces" are just one layer thick in the Framing Overview. If CA can make a MonoSlab look right in 3D there should be no reason why a Slab as a part of the "Foundation Wall" shouldn't also look right. Foundation Example.plan

Glenn, Floor Surfaces gives me the "Floor Finish", not the Slab. It' like Chief just doesn't have the Slab on the Slab Layer when it's a Foundation Wall instead of a MonoSlab.

Why can't I get the Floor Slab to show in a Framing Overview when using Foundation Walls? It shows with a Mono-Slab but not with Foundation Walls.

Dan, That's not nice. I'm sure that a lot of users have those items checked since those are the OOB defaults for Rich Text. It also answers the question of why 6" Rich Text appears to be 9" tall, etc. When I uncheck those my 6" Rich Text becomes 6". I'm going to need to make a lot of changes to my Plans to eliminate those settings - but I will have to increase the size of all Rich Text by about 50% - or just live with text that's smaller than I want. IAE, the performance hit in Layout is not something I want to live with, so I will just have to bite the bullet and do a lot of editing of Templates and Current Plans unless CA can come up with a tool to convert all Rich Text in a Plan to "uncheck" those and edit the specified sizes.

select a roof plane, open the dbx and edit the material.

I believe that's call Skirl siding. I thought there was some in the Library but I can't find it.

Sometimes I give the wall cabinets a xhatch fill - but I don't use a "solid" fill other than the defaults as mentioned above.

I think #3 is the default OOB. I don't mess with it.

Johnny, There are different defaults for Text & Rich Text. - totally different (one doesn't effect the other) In addition, Text can be specified to use the Layer Settings, a Text Style, or a Custom Style.

Toby, Chief doesn't make that kind of LineStyle. However, you can make a 2D CAD Block that has that appearance or you can download the Bonus Catalog "Closet Accessories" for the Hanging Stuff

Ron, The Plan is X7. The Windows version shouldn't matter but you will have to make sure your system is trying to open it in Chief Architect X7, not Blueray. Or were you asking something else - just about the Asus computer?

Curt, That was a down and dirty quick plan and I didn't pay much attention to the vertical heights. The Rail sizes in the dbx are irrelevant since it's a "Panel". The Rails are actually a part of the Panels.

Robert, Here's a sample plan Storefront Sample.plan

Panel Railing Walls work pretty well. You can even put Doors in them.

The first 25 subscribers will get a bonus package of 3 macros: %Living Areas_Get Totals% accumulates the names and areas of each floor living area %Living Area Table% displays the area of each floor and the total as a table %Living Area Total% displays the total living are of all floors The first is simply added to the default room label to accumulate the areas. The other two can be place in a Text Box or a Rich Text Box to display their output as shown below 1st Floor 302.00 Sq.Ft. 2nd Floor 249.00 Sq.Ft. ===================================== Total Living Area 551.00 Sq.Ft. Total Living Area = 551.0 Sq.Ft.

I would suggest calling Chief Architect Support - assuming that you have SSA. Otherwise, open the "Object Layers" tool on the Edit Toolbar and see what text styles are being used there. One of them is probably controlling the text size.

Arrows do stick to PSolids but if Chief adds Labels for Polylines then the macro could simply be added to the Label instead of using Text Boxes with Arrows. I almost always create macros to work with either Owner or Referenced Objects.

Here's a video of Site Area Analysis using macros to accumulate the data in Global variables and displaying it in a variety of tables. I did this video in a metric plan but it works the same in an Imperial plan. Because the data is collected and updated on the fly, you can rely on it always being up to date. http://screencast.com/t/4RmyhGYV7

Mike, I would in that case have created the side rails using Molding Polylines drawn in a side elevation, then added the rungs (either molding lines or solids) in Plan. Then I would display it in 3D and convert it to an Exterior Fixture Symbol.

Mike, You can place a molding profile, convert it to a polyline solid & set the thickness. Then you can convert that to a solid. Scott was wrong again