SusanC

Rob, In the Chief Architect Brizo catalog there is a faucet that looks like the Litze you are showing, but in the Chief catalog it is listed under "Solna". Maybe mis-named in the catalog? There is also a "Brilliance Brushed Bronze" finish available which might pass for the Luxe Gold finish? Susan

We use several different brands and Blanco is one of them. Do you want to see if we can get them to put a catalog in Chief? Susan

Hi Rob, I believe Mark was suggesting you download a trial version of Revit then go to the BIM object link for Bain Ultra and download their Revit file into the trial version of Revit. From there you can open the file and export it into a file type that Chief will accept. Btw, after I posted on Bain Ultra's Instagram page last Friday, I received a message back from them with the contact info for a person at the company who is in charge of 3d formats. I've emailed them and requested a catalog for Chief and connected them with Chief. Susan

Hi Angela, Thank you for the link! I will check that one out. Have you tried Substance Player? I've used it quite a bit for creating custom tile and it can also be used for custom wood and custom fabric. Susan

Even sending a short request through Bain Ultra's contact form on their website is helpful. I'm just one voice and the companies definitely listen if they have multiple requests! Thanks!

Rob, Are you on Instagram? I posted on Bain Ultra's Instagram page requesting a catalog for Chief and I'd be happy to help you add your voice to the conversation. I would also love to see a Bain Ultra catalog in Chief! Thanks, Susan

Angela, There is a "Bead Chandelier" in one of Chief's catalogs for download that is similar to the one you are showing. Catalog is called "Mediterranean No. 2" Chandelier is called "Bead Chandelier" Might be an option if you cannot get rid of all the polka dots on yours! Susan

Hi Angela, Thank you for sharing this tool to make seamless textures. This is going to be great! One thing to mention: Do not click on the big "START" button. That takes you to a page to pay for content. Just follow the directions on the page, import your image and adjust. Susan

Last month another Chief user posted an amazing tool he found for creating stone textures. It is pretty easy to use and customizable. Your custom texture looks fantastic, but this tool could also come in handy.

Sorry about that. I should have re-read the thread.

Mark, Very clever idea! I have a couple of questions. If I'm following you correctly (and I know I'm missing a step somewhere) : Right mouse click on the 3 solid. Select Convert to Symbol (Does it matter if it is an interior or exterior fixture in this case?) Click on Show Advanced Options Click Ok Select Options Click on Inserts into Wall and make it 5" Click on Sizing tab Lock Sizing (How did you accomplish this step? I don't see a check mark for "lock") Insert a small wall inside the symbol. Attach an outlet. As an alternative, couldn't you also just place a half wall inside the 3d solid as it is and attach an outlet to that buried wall? Not trying to be critical, just trying to figure all this out! Thanks, Susan

Charles, Thank you for the explanation of why you are using a 3d solid for a wall. Sometimes 3d solids are just a better solution for unusual situations. Regarding skiing...I would still rather be on a beach in 80 degree weather lol! Susan

Oh my, I'd love to be on a beach in Hawaii!!

Charles, My other suggestion is to take a regular wall and tweak it to fit your needs - change the finishes on it, for example - then rename it as a new wall type and save it. I have to admit, I'm with Ryan - I'm not being critical, but I'm curious to know why are you using a 3d solid to build a wall? Susan

As DB mentioned... "Treat as on object" will allow you to place the block into the schedule as one unit. This is helpful when you are doing a custom cabinet order of inset cabinetry and you've combined several cabinets and want that combination to show up in your schedule as one object with one label.

Thanks Mark! You are the master of Chief cabinets. I've worked with your countertops method in the past and I'll revisit that.

Mark - If you take a cabinet door out of the library, drop it in plan, and add a simple molding detail in elevation view, select both in plan view, then save that combo as a door symbol to your custom library, do you have to deal with stretch planes? Aren't they are already built in to a library door? Rob - Seems like you were very close to being able to create your own symbol. You had a simple molding drawn on a library cabinet door. If you made a copy of that cabinet, removed the toe kick, the countertop, the drawer, any separations, and set the cabinet depth at zero, that should have left you with a cabinet door and molding that you could select and save as a symbol into your custom library. Please correct me if I'm wrong, I still struggle with custom door symbol creation just like many other users!!

I assume there is an actual wall somewhere in your plan behind the 3d solid wall? You can place an outlet on the real wall and change the "distance from the wall" number so it offsets. I'm showing a 3d solid wall in the middle of the room and I offset the outlets 48" from the wall behind it. Shows up in the electrical schedule. Hope this helps.

Just what Mark said - make an architectural block of the cabinets you want to combine and you will be able to place them as one unit. Select the cabinets with labels turned on. Block the cabinets by using the "architectural block" tool. Add the architectural block to the User Library using the "add to library" tool. Schedule will report the cabinets as individual. If you need to move the cabinets individually in the future, just "unblock" them.

I also send the Schedules (as CAD details) to their own dedicated layout page. I've watched how our contractors work and they tend to take the floorplan page and the schedules page out of the construction docs and tape them to the wall for each room. There is also a duplicate copy of construction docs on site if anyone needs a full set.

Jeff - Thanks for sharing! This is an amazing tool, kind of like Substance Player, but for stone. I played around with the section of 3d downloads which are just the geometries to place in plan (see the red and the person) and then I went back to the Stone Designer section and downloaded a jpg to apply to the 3d download. Endless combinations. Thanks!

You could use the Orthographic Floor Overview camera to take an overhead view of the room. Move the camera so you are directly overhead. Go into cabinet dbx and turn off the countertops. Select the Vector View, the Technical Illustration, or the Glass House option to see what is inside the cabinets. Unfortunately, there is no way to add dimensions or text to this view, but you could send to layout and add text on the layout. Not ideal. Also, there is no way to control the thickness of the cabinet sides, but there is an active thread right now in the Suggestions Forum asking for the ability to control the thickness of the wood used to build the cabinets. Maybe your original idea of creating a generic CAD block and overlaying it onto the floorplan is easier? Susan

Yes, thank you for sharing! I downloaded your library and played around with different woods on your doors. This will helpful even in a simple color watercolor view to demonstrate to a client which way the grain will be running on a cabinet door. Susan

Steve, I agree! Hafele would be a great addition to Chief. The best way to get their attention is for Chief users, including yourself, to contact them. You can do this by commenting on their FaceBook or Instagram posts (be sure to include #chiefarchitect ) and/or you can send them an email using the contact box on their website. Tell them how much you use their products and would like to see them available in the design software you are using - Chief Architect. Be sure to mention you create renders for client's projects and that material lists populate with product info. Please see example attached. I commented on one of their recent Instagram posts, left a #chiefarchitect, and then sent a copy of the post to Chief. Let me know if I can help! Susan

I was trained on Autocad when I was in school at Boston Architectural College and when I graduated in 2010, the design firm I joined chose Chief Architect over Autocad and we have never questioned that decision. Autocad has it's strengths, but Chief Architect was a much better choice for us for so many reasons - ease of use, 3d renderings, schedules, help videos, several options for training, and an incredible team behind the software. Good luck!