rlackore

Two stacked doorways - the bottom wide and squat, the top one full arch - is one way.

I think it's better also. So now I know I can set the "Y" value to adjust the absolute "height" of my CAD lines in elevation. But I can't do this with a Level Line text marker. Why not? It's a level line marker for cripes sake - I should be able to set its level!

Discussed at length here: https://chieftalk.chiefarchitect.com/index.php?/topic/2203-how-is-living-area-calculated/?view=findpost&p=17212&hl=ansi This is the standard we use in our office. I know there are other standards, but I think this one is a good target for CA to shoot for.

This is an exercise so I can learn. I've drawn a simple box - put a roof on on it (trusses, no birdsmouth, 24" raised heel) - stuck in two sloped ceiling planes. I want the top inside edge of the ceiling plane (the drywall) to begin at the wall plate height - but I cannot figure out the Ceiling Plane dbx. I've consulted the Reference Manual, I think I've done all it requires, but I still can't get the ceiling planes to behave the way I expect. I'm sure it's a matter of ignorance with some aspect of the setup. I've drawn the ceiling planes over the walls. I've locked the pitch and set the Inside Bottom Height to the wall plate height (9' 1-1/8"). Still no joy. Also, I must uncheck Ceiling Over This Room in the Room dbx for my manual roof planes to work. When I do this, CA builds the exterior wall up to the underside of the roof deck. Other than manually adjusting the wall height in elevation, is there a way to force CA to draw my walls the actual height that I have specified in the Structure tab of the Room dbx? Ceiling Problem.plan

I assume you want a seamless texture - something the picture you included in your post won't do. Can you give us a link to the web-site?

Very clever. The end bearing conditions might be a problem, however.

Does the stair landing have a solid fill that could be hiding a wall underneath?

If you're using X6, check the Reference Manual for Material Regions. You can apply these to the wall in elevation, and may work for this application. You can also open the Wall Specification dbx and add Wall Coverings.

Well, duh. I'm Cartesianally challenged. In the other modeling programs I use Y is Z in elevation (or front/back/side) view. This is one of those annoying behaviors that I complained about recently.

Agree with the approach, though I plop in Level Line markers and dimension to those. I wish there was a way of setting a the absolute z-value for lines and markers in elevation - that would make this method more convenient.

I can confirm this behavior.

You can always draw a polyline and query the object for the enclosed area. You can even select a room, automagically generate the room polyline, and there you go. I can't however, control whether CA calculates the area correctly.

Perry, this is my biggest frustration with CA - too many strange behaviors and missing features that we have "live with." I admit that I'm retentive and extremely detail-driven, but surely you can see the OP's point?

The exterior sill usually wants to be just below the bottom edge of the window frame. Depending on where you're setting the window within the depth of the wall. The interior sill, however, is incorrect, IMO. I want flush casing. I want drywall returns. I want an interior sill that that is "flush", or level with the frame - just like a jamb extension. Really, we should be able to specify overall depth and inset for our interior and exterior sills.

You know, another thing Chief won't do is flush flat casing.

I'm no window installer, but I disagree. Chief places the top of the sill at the bottom edge of the window frame. I know there are different ways to do things, but I generally want the top of the sill to be level with the top of the edge of the frame so the sill will butt flush against the frame. Same with a drywall return. Chief DOES "wrap" the wall finish MATERIAL, but it doesn't wrap the wall finish THICKNESS. Just cut a section to see for yourself.

I seems to me that the interior wall finish should be intelligent enough to turn the corner at a window (or door) and "wrap into" the rough opening until it encounters the frame. This would solve my drywall return problem.

Interesting: if you add interior casing, zero out everything, then it will build "interior trim" from the sill to the frame. But you get z-fighting.

Same here. Newer version. A similar problem is how to show drywall returns. I don't see any way to automatically extend the sill to the jamb.

Oh, I get it. You can't discretely set the height - it's just CA eliminating the lower muntins.

Good point - I missed that. Probably a S6x12.5. There isn't any W-shape that fits within his designed width and depth.

How do you specify the vertical location of the horizontal muntin?

Adam, To explain further, when Chief cuts a section it auto-generates lines that can you can snap to (including dimensions). These lines are placed on the Cross Section Lines layer, and they are re-generated every time the section changes. To see the lines clearly, you can change the layer's default color to red (or something equally bright and bold). Unfortunately, Chief doesn't show these lines for elevations, so there is nothing to snap to. Brian's method is a decent work-around. Keep in mind that when you're in section view you can dimension to either objects (walls, floors, etc), or to the cross section lines. If you dimension to objects, the dimensions remain "intelligent" and will follow any changes you make to those objects (wall height, etc). But if you dimension to the cross section lines, Chief will use Point-to-Point Dimensions, and those dimensions will not "follow" changes to the building model.

Can you get structural shapes in A53? I thought A53 was just tubes and pipes. I typically spec A572 for shapes, plates and bars. By running the calcs for A36, the OP should be safe if he chooses a higher strength steel.

Maybe check your Display>Color Off settings in PREFERENCES>APPEARANCE. Is it set to Black and White, or Grayscale?