Chopsaw

Thanks Joe, I did not catch that one like you just did with all your wisdom and experience. Ekshue, I will leave you in Eric's care if you are still stuck. Maybe you could include some of your critical info in your signature so we can help you better next time. Thanks.

I MIGHT BE WRONG BUT AM ASSUMING YOU ARE RUNNING "Chief Architect Premier X7" and I went back to check and this function "Floor Structure Definition" I believe is the same in X8 as X7. So all you need to do to get a third layer is click the "Insert" button that I circled in red and then select a material over on the right side of the DBX ( Dialogue Box ) and set your 1 1/2" thickness on the new layer you have created. I will search and see if I can find you a video on this for you. Do you have SSA? I would also be glad to look at your plan for you if it is X6, X7, or X8. P.S. I just took a look at CA training video #10053 it is X5 and not SSA and there is a explanation of floor finish layers that functions essentially the same a floor structure layers. https://video.chiefarchitect.com/?search=floor+structure

Yes I forgot to mention, the sleepers will be parallel to and directly over the joists. So I will give that a try tonight. Many thanks, you are always such a great help.

Joe, I am just starting a project that is almost exactly the same except I have 2x3 sleepers above the subfloor with the gypcrete and radiant tubing in between. Is it possible to have the sleepers ( 1.5" x 2.5" ) as a second framing layer on 19.2" centers? What would the best approach be? Ekshue, Check this out.

For a temporary solution until the next update see this thread. https://chieftalk.chiefarchitect.com/index.php?/topic/8702-living-area-label/#entry82378

Remodeling can be quite challenging but there are some older videos that might be helpful and you could start with #358 and #362 and several others in the same series. You will also have to learn a lot about roofs and framing. For each roof plane there is a "Retain Roof Framing" option under the Structure tab, you might find that useful. Some situations will require you to manually build a roof, so that is a good skill to have. I am just learning some of this stuff myself and am finding the forum works great if you have a specific question and post your plan with a few screen shots. Good Luck.

Here is an example that I drew with poly line solids and cad blocked and made into a symbol and put into my library as "Millwork" then inserted into a railing. Just be careful to align your axis and you can draw whatever you like. Not sure what style you are after but if you need help then post a picture of what you want. Belly Baluster.calibz

Otis, Just wondering how you are making out with the job and would love to see you post a few ray traces when you are done. My 8700 decided to take a "timeout" this morning after working all night on a video. A little shocking when it flashes a blue screen for 3 seconds with enough text that it would take 30 seconds to read and 30 minutes or more to understand then shuts down without warning. Hope it does not try that again!

If you would like to maintain the size of your 3D view you can separate your schedules by floor level or room. Just include that column in your list.

Sorry about that but you are the first person to answer one of my posts, still learning the Forum. Can I give you 2 stars **?

Thanks Michael, Option 2 works for now, that was amazing. I think that double wall will end up being "Split Framing". I did not know I had a room between my walls. Many thanks, Chopsaw.

C J, I just seem to get confused why we are all doing the same thing using the same plan and the same software and getting different results. I noticed that you are using a SSD. Do you think it is too fast for the software? I often think that a SSD is like the farmers son borrowing the pickup truck with the V8 in it, and when he comes back all the tools have fallen out of the back.

Sorry I was hoping that it was a simple problem and the plan was not necessary but please take a look. 23 Bird Lane.plan

Can anyone remind me of what factors affect Default Wall Heights other than the room structure specifications on each side of the wall? This might be rather simple but I have not figured it out yet and have several jobs with issues like this.

If you want to use live view you must use two separate cameras. Don't forget to update your signature for X8

C J , When you reflected did you loose any parts? I lost the casing on the right side of the TV. This sort of thing seems to happen to me all the time. (X8 v.18.2.1.2)

Michael's method works for me as well, all but the electrical outlet looks great! Thanks for posting guys, this is a great training tool for me when I am not busy with my own stuff.

Wow!! Thanks or finding the article. Just at a quick glance it looks like I did all that cad polyline solid work but did not bother to create the symbol because it was a one off. I will do some more reading and try to digest that one. Posting problem again. https://chieftalk.chiefarchitect.com/index.php?/topic/9308-forum-posting-issues/

Yes I think that the time is one of the factors as I am often researching from different sources as I am writing the post and testing theories with plans in CA. Which all takes time and is frustrating to loose when this is a volunteer situation. I have also just started using the windows clipboard. Not so sure if Google Chrome could be a factor as I have not upgraded to this yet. I would be more suspect of a slow internet connection. Unless there is any possibility that it is a Chief Software Problem?

Has anyone else had issues with their postings not posting when the post tab is activated? This has happened to me a few times now and either nothing happens or then after a few tries on the post button I will try the other button (More reply options) only to get kicked out. Yesterday this happened and I found my way back and discovered that the autosave had saved most of my post but would not restore it. I was able to copy and paste but I am quite sure that is not how it is supposed to work. I think each time this happened I was previously watching Chief SSA Training Video's with my company login and then switched to my personal login to post. I will try to be more observant as to the exact details next time but wonder if anyone has had anything similar happen that would help isolate the issue? Many thanks in advance.

Here are a couple more ideas that you might consider. Some you may have already tried and realized their current limitations. I don't have much experience with moldings so I cant say how well that will work but if it does not you can apply a brick material to a polyline solid that can be made the size of an individual brick and manipulated with Transform and replicate with great precision. The arches can be done by carefully rotating around the center x&y co-ordinates of your arc. Mortar can be done with a polyline solid backer recessed a bit from the bricks so you only need one piece for each segment or area. This technique will take some time to master but should give you the results you need for your situation. Not sure what your experience level is with Chief or what version you are running but if you have more questions just ask. How do you like your 8700? P.S. Your windows sills should be able to be done with a custom sill within the window DBX.

I recently did this for the first time and my engineer said it worked great. I believe only the layers that are on are recorded.

Nick, I did a little more checking into the situation for you and noticed that the adjustments that I mentioned above only make a slight improvement. Not quite satisfactory. I checked a plan of mine that I have files for in X7 and X8 and there is a definite deficiency in the default settings with both versions of the software. Not quite as bad as your example but definitely visible. Personally I use Vector view for my elevations but a 3D Technical Illustration often works well when printed in B&W. So there is a setting for Line Thickness that will improve the situation thanks to Perry I decided to look for that and found that it works ok. See attached .jpg's. I also noticed that turning on the colour seems to help with line weight and consistency. As well I often do that with my 3D illustrations to give a little more depth with shading even when printed in B&W. If anyone has more to add to actually solve the problem that would be great as this seems more like a work around to me. Hope this works for you for now.

Nick, I think you may be facing the same issue that was discussed last week, take a look at these settings I discussed here, https://chieftalk.chiefarchitect.com/index.php?/topic/9213-brick-pattern-issue/ If not post you plan and I will take a look tonight.

Chief Architect Training Video #5510 has all the new X8 stair tools and features.