Square Foot Schedules

[krrbnsn]

I feel really dumb asking this but I'm getting frustrated. I need to include a square foot schedule in my drawings. Something that essentially looks like the following. I know how to make a custom schedule that is similar but breaks it down by room but I just need each floor. Please tell me what I'm doing wrong. 

 

Using Chief Architect 16

 

Square Foot Table
1st Floor	1523
2nd Floor	983
Garage	739
Porch	256
Total	3501

[rgardner]

26 minutes ago, krrbnsn said:

I feel really dumb asking this but I'm getting frustrated. I need to include a square foot schedule in my drawings. Something that essentially looks like the following. I know how to make a custom schedule that is similar but breaks it down by room but I just need each floor. Please tell me what I'm doing wrong. 

 

Using Chief Architect 16

 

Square Foot Table
1st Floor	1523
2nd Floor	983
Garage	739
Porch	256
Total	3501

Polylines and polyline custom schedule unless you have a custom macro system built.  There are some users who sell these type of systems such as @Renerabbitt@Alaskan_Son & @Joe_Carrick

[krrbnsn]

6 minutes ago, rgardner said:

Polylines and polyline custom schedule unless you have a custom macro system built.  There are some users who sell these type of systems such as @Renerabbitt@Alaskan_Son & @Joe_Carrick

I work for a company so buying macros would be decided by someone else. I've tried doing the poly lines and custom schedules but I'm not sure how to put those polylines into a schedule with the name "first floor" and the Sq ft. 

[robdyck]

Just now, krrbnsn said:

I'm not sure how to put those polylines into a schedule with the name "first floor" and the Sq ft. 

You'd use a custom category and you'd add the term '1st floor' in the label box, or in another OIP field.

[krrbnsn]

5 minutes ago, robdyck said:

You'd use a custom category and you'd add the term '1st floor' in the label box, or in another OIP field.

I'll try that! Thanks!

[Renerabbitt]

6 minutes ago, krrbnsn said:

I'll try that! Thanks!

Most of us who sell them switched to a room schedule in X16 because chief gave us an Object Information Panel for rooms, which means we can utilize Custom Fields

[krrbnsn]

4 hours ago, robdyck said:

You'd use a custom category and you'd add the term '1st floor' in the label box, or in another OIP field.

Ok I'm still not getting this right.... is there a step by step guide or video that might help me? I'm relatively new to CA and I'm the only one in my company that even knows how to open the software so I'm left to the internet for advice. 

[robdyck]

[SHCanada2]

to add to Rob's, the program can create the "room" polyline for you. search the help or see below. Once you have the schedule like above, you can add the polyline area to the schedule and remove the other columns. There is also the "plan footprint" function

 

 

[ValleyGuy]

On 12/9/2024 at 11:59 AM, krrbnsn said:

I feel really dumb asking this but I'm getting frustrated. I need to include a square foot schedule in my drawings. Something that essentially looks like the following. I know how to make a custom schedule that is similar but breaks it down by room but I just need each floor. Please tell me what I'm doing wrong. 

 

Using Chief Architect 16

 

Square Foot Table
1st Floor	1523
2nd Floor	983
Garage	739
Porch	256
Total	3501

As @Renerabbitt has stated above, you can have a dynamic schedule that actually works off of the items in your plan now in X16 - not off of 'work around' CAD poly lines in Custom Fields anymore.  Living area rooms, non-living area rooms and even 3D solids such as patios, driveways, walkways. It is pretty cool to be able to leave out the stairwell without doing anything "special". I'm not advanced enough to total things yet but this might get you started on a path to solve that hurdle...

 

Hope this helps, and if anyone has additional tips to share, thanks in advance.

 

 

 

[SHCanada2]

but still nothing OOTB  like the requestor has...1st floor, 2nd floor,garage, total, **sigh**.

 

I think the most creative approach I have seen is Alaskan son's creative placement of the schedules in order to look like the original request.

 

I personally have a "living area" macro. No polylines, no schedules. I posted its inaugural version awhile back as a concept. works quite well, only issue is when deleting floors, then it needs to be poked to recalculate. 

 

[ValleyGuy]

4 hours ago, SHCanada2 said:

but still nothing OOTB  like the requestor has...1st floor, 2nd floor,garage, total, **sigh**.

 

 

 

Yes I agree, something that is required on every set of plans should have some effort made to be OOTB, and without so much frustration to operate.

I should have manipulated the schedule's look a little in the video to better mimic his example. It's not perfect and does require a little bit of maintenance to Total, but this is the closest that I could get to looking like the OP. Of course, one can include / exclude whatever info was needed in the schedule (maybe exclude the hard surfaces like I have in the video example if so desired, or make a separate schedule).
This is what I did to change the schedule's look.

 

[ValleyGuy]

I guess one could manipulate the schedule even further to more resemble the OP example.  Put a bunch of spaces behind the Title Square Foot Table to push it to the left. Eliminate the border lines. Add a space between the items and the total: Open up the schedule > Columns/Rows > Minimum Rows (9 items + 1 space = 10).

It does look nice and clean.

 

 

[Renerabbitt]

 

[SHCanada2]

6 hours ago, ValleyGuy said:

I should have manipulated the schedule's look a little in the video to better mimic his example. It's not perfect and does require a little bit of maintenance to Total,

Shayne,

 

A couple of us have requested CA allow the total of a schedule be sent to a macro variable. This then would allow easy totaling.

It may be helpful for you to also make the request if you intend on doing this manner going forward

 

 

[ValleyGuy]

3 minutes ago, SHCanada2 said:

Shayne,

 

A couple of us have requested CA allow the total of a schedule be sent to a macro variable. This then would allow easy totaling.

It may be helpful for you to also make the request if you intend on doing this manner going forward

 

 

Yes, I've seen requests before, I'll send another one along. It really would be very helpful, especially OOTB as there are so many new things to learn when you first start using the program.

 

[krrbnsn]

On 12/9/2024 at 4:29 PM, robdyck said:

 

Thank you!

[SHCanada2]

One way to do it in the room OIP (object information panel) is to create a new field, format as a number. and then write a macro which decides to include the room or not based on the include option that @ValleyGuy shows in his video. the problem is (as Rene indicated in his suggestion awhile ago) there is no default OIP for rooms. This means you have to select all the rooms using the marquee select similar and then set the macro.

 

The new OIP field has to be set as a number when you create it so it shows in the room totals:

 

 

create a macro called stdAreaInclude  set to be evaluated and object owner which has:

stdArea=standard_area

include=include_in_living_area

 

if include == true

stdArea.to_f

else

0

end

 

then create a schedule which includes all floors, and the OIP stdArea

 

as you can see utility is 0 because I excluded it in the room properties and the macro formula sets it to zero

 

Now you have "living Area" totals for all floors. You can then create a schedule for each floor and then place them on top of each other, and only show the totals from this one. but because the rows are dynamic depending on which rooms, you would be constantly moving it around to only show the last row on layout

[Renerabbitt]

41 minutes ago, SHCanada2 said:

Rene

So I'm basically helping guide everyone here to my exact system that I sell, haha  but that's fine.

We don't have default room OIP but we do have default floor based OIP and rooms will follow floor defaults. So you can get automatic area analysis which is what I have in my pro plan plus some tools and conditional check macros.

The only thing I have to do on a single story analysis is shape my lot polyline and my analysis is done 

[SHCanada2]

33 minutes ago, Renerabbitt said:

So you can get automatic area analysis which is what I have in my pro plan plus some tools and conditional check macros.

I think though that you are also dynamically showing the totals with global variables? to for instance only show floor 1 if there is no second floor, but to show both if there is

 

The problem I see with what I showed is one needs to start moving schedules around to make it show nicely between bungalows, single storey and 2 storey

 

where the macro and global variables can take care of that (or at least that is what I do in my living area macro. I never have to move anything around for different number of floors)

[Renerabbitt]

7 minutes ago, SHCanada2 said:

I think though that you are also dynamically showing the totals with global variables?

Its only using a global variable for my polyline based Lot Perimeter

[robdyck]

5 minutes ago, Renerabbitt said:

Its only using a global variable for my polyline based Lot Perimeter

Curious...can you get a clean area table when there are some rooms that Chief doesn't calculate correctly? For example, if I have a porch type of room beside an attached garage, Chief will split the calculated area centering on the adjoining wall. This doesn't work for me.

Also, there can be some hassle in reporting when a garage is split into separate rooms. I have the garage split for modelling purposes but for floor area purposes, its really just one room.

The polyline system is easy enough, plus it keeps me in control.

[Renerabbitt]

2 hours ago, robdyck said:

Curious...can you get a clean area table when there are some rooms that Chief doesn't calculate correctly? For example, if I have a porch type of room beside an attached garage, Chief will split the calculated area centering on the adjoining wall. This doesn't work for me.

Also, there can be some hassle in reporting when a garage is split into separate rooms. I have the garage split for modelling purposes but for floor area purposes, its really just one room.

The polyline system is easy enough, plus it keeps me in control.

Split the calculate area of what? what area are you referring to in terms of their reported values? What area are you trying to produce?
I show conditioned and unconditioned floor area which per the IRC is to the outside of my walls main layer.
I show coverage based on the same thing

Also, we do get into splitting hairs..my system saves me $1000's on the year for the number of projects I do, and I have never had anyone call at a discrepancy of less than 2 sq ft on a 2000 sq ft home that's below tolerances for sure. Unless I am up against a land use issue this wouldn't bother me one bit.. I doubt many people truly build plans that are built to 100% accuracy...pretty sure mine never have been. Especially considering we are showing a break down of room sq ft, separate from the accurate conditioned vs unconditioned space I am reporting which is what really matters. If someone tallies my room totals they will reach my area totals, so noone would even know that the garage was technically 2 sq ft larger than the porch. Kind've a "pick your hill to die" on scenario
You could also always script in a modified amount that is plugged in by you as number of sq ft adjustment for that rooms Oip