johnny

There is a specific Forum for "HomeDesigner" https://hometalk.chiefarchitect.com/ This forum is the for All-Pro version of Chief Architect.

lol.... so I sent an email request for invite! Looking forward to it.

Id just add that if you go this route make sure you don't change your "angle" accidentally. Its easy to do, and I was having that problem until someone on the forums pointed that out.

I'm with Scott on this - paint what looks good and sometimes it can be more creative to use "tactile" tools like the "paint" tool.

I'm the JPC that never shows to workshops if you are the same scott that never sends me the invite through your normal email...=) I dont know why I never get whatever initial invite you send me. Whenever ive been able to make it is when you or someone else directly emails me. One of those workshops would be very cool.

so to be clear are you saying you keep basement and foundation plan on level 0? ...or are you saying you've never done it that way?

I wish I saved the file at that point, but what I did was go back and manually edit things to get it working again. I can tell you I had many "issues"...but mostly where Floor 1 areas not fully encapsulated by the floor 2 perimeter was causing problems.

So adding a foundation to the main (1) floor - so foundation on floor 0 - shouldn't the stem wall of the foundation be dynamic with the room height? Id like it to be, so is there a way to get that done?

lol...yep, I see it how. I was looking over at the wall settings thinking I needed to change the wall layer somehow. I feel dumb.

I've tried multiple things to get the upper section of a pony wall to align to the interior Sheetrock. Its got to be easy and I am missing it. Any help is appreciated.

So I recently tried using floor 1 as my "daylight" basement level with all sorts of problems. I've heard others on the forums use the 1st floor in CA for this purpose, and so I am curious if you guys had similar issues or if I am missing something key. My biggest issues were dealing with the roof, and how it treated lower walls which didn't have a "main floor wall" or floor platform above it (on Floor 2). Even when I went to all manual roofs I was getting wall edges wanting to build up to the roof-line, and when modifying the upper 2 floor (which was main floor) where the outline of the building was temporary disconnected several walls auto-generated themselves back from floor 1 to the roof. Is there something in particular you need to keep in mind when trying to use Floor 1 as the basement level? Thanks for any help!

Yep, would be nice to have usable information for annotations in the model.

Hey Charles....tough window condition to model in CA exactly as you show (though very rare from my experience). Personally, I would probably just use a glass louvered window (notice you can set the size of the glass panels) and add the frame detail in poly-solid (you asked in your video for comments on alternatives). Your way works too, i just consider this more a louvered window with individual reinforced frame than mulled sectionals. Its fairly easy to add 2D detail to the glass louvered window to match your condition if 2D is enough. I think you are correct though there is no easy way to model this exact condition in CA using the window tool.

If you have the type of of troubles you're having it typically means its bad architecture. Glenn touches on this as well....its a good thing to match you floor plan design with what is happening elsewhere in the structure.

Considering how many people helped me with videos on this forum I felt compelled to make one for you....enjoy. Its pretty easy.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DVeuxItO-a4&feature=youtu.be&hd=1

Yep, works good for B&B, ship-lap siding, as well as, modern cladding panels combined with the "coins" tool. Its actually pretty cool, but I do wish our material regions had corner settings to apply.

Can I ask what you are using for water texture?

Actually, if you set the finish layer of your wall to the proper depth of 2x the material, set correct color etc, and then come back with wall material regions that have the setting to "cut" the finish wall layer, you can very quickly duplicate those across each side of your structure. This gives you both vector and render views, and you don't have to model around the windows and doors since material regions auto-cut there. Here is a quick example (i didn't get the settings right but just demonstrated it could work with ease). The "recessed" area is actually the material region cutting the last wall surface.

Is this what you want to do?

Yeah, i have the same complaint. Even when you make any elevation into a CAD detail the amount of lines is ridiculous.

Just click on the "room" space of the 2nd floor stair area and select "open to below". However, you need to better align the stairs with your opening at some point too.

Sometimes forcing something like this to work is the wrong way to deal with a problem. Consider what you can do in your design to make this less problematic.

For what its worth i've done a fair bit of work in FL and I am in WA state. All those clients sought me out via internet and one client even showed up at my door (personal home). I'm not lic in Fl but work with a local PE who does all the structural. I think Richard has a point where you can ease into the market.

This industry is all about how good you are. If you are asking "if I bought Chief Architect and offered my services (having never done this before) can I make a living?"...id say keep your day job or go get educated in the industry. If you are really good, then your work product will promote itself and you will have clients search you out. If you are mediocre then your success will be based upon how well you market yourself. If your design ability needs improvement then you should look at trying to be a "mechanical" draftsman for an architect/designer. Typically a draftsman makes an average of $15-30 based on experience. There are "career draftsman" who are looking primarily to fit that role under the directly of an architect/designer, and id say they max out (average) around $30-35 hr. - and you'd have to be fairly good and fast to get that.

For MOST basic tasks Chief is unbeatable in its speed and simplicity. Actually a lot of the comments above are relative to the complexity of your projects. A basic straightforward home in Chief isn't going to cause you any issues and Chief is certainly the fastest app on the market for that type of work. Id recommend any new user to focus their attention to learning how Chief handles rooms and the default settings that control those rooms.