Help with Porch Extension

[kimberlywilson]

VERSION: Chief Architect Premier X16

 

Hey all! Total rookie here who's gotten thrown into the deep end with this project. I've added footings to my porch beams, but I can't get my concrete pad to end at the same spot as the piers.

I've selected a "Floor" under the room, and have "Slab" selected in the porch dialogue box. Not sure if any of that information is useful. 

I've attached screenshots for reference. Thank so much!

[mtldesigns]

1 hour ago, kimberlywilson said:

I've added footings to my porch beams

Do you need a separate footer the Porch columns?  Your porch looks to be concrete, that should be suffice for support and not have the need for those "footers". 

 

How did you get this anyways?  Did you add the post/w footer, then added the porch?  The easiest way to do a porch like this, is to using a straight railing.  Draw it at the porch size you need, then in its DBX of the railing wall, at Rail Style, check OPEN for specifying railing.  Uncheck top rail, bottom rail and this will get you just the columns.  

[winterdd]

10 minutes ago, mtldesigns said:

The easiest way to do a porch like this, is to using a straight railing.  Draw it at the porch size you need, then in its DBX of the railing wall, at Rail Style, check OPEN for specifying railing.  Uncheck top rail, bottom rail and this will get you just the columns.  

Wisdom right there. The ONLY way I do it.

[ValleyGuy]

Those 'southern' boys have a good way .... if you don't need to deal with frost protection lol. No wise cracks about Canada, I actually on the same latitude as Old Faithful in Yellowstone.  @kimberlywilson you will find many different ways to do things in Chief, all come with pros and cons. Porches are no different.

I draw my "concrete slab porch" rooms using invisible room divider walls (floor elevation -2"in this case to show below the door, no floor or structure), then add posts and beams as required. Jump down to the foundation level to add in the foundation (sono tubes in this case), back to the main level to finally add in the concrete slab (at -2" from absolute to match the room). 

Here are a few different things offered with this method:

1) I split this exampled bi-directional porch into two porch rooms. This allows the wood soffit to change direction with no worry about the associated railing or patterned concrete mismatching.
2) The concrete slab is a separate item that can be whatever shape needed without disturbing the porch room, placed at what ever elevation height you want. If there were stone bases on the wood posts, you can easily make the concrete to fit the pillars properly. If you had patterned concrete and it was sized beyond the room, the pattern isn't interrupted. Maybe you want a different coloured and patterned border around your concrete slab, just make two (or multiple if you want) - concrete isn't always just gray.

A second option is the slab does not have to be a 3D solid but could be a landscape item. This allows for terrain sloping, as slabs do in the real world. Nothing like a 3D solid slab sticking up too high above the terrain, or worse - having grass growing through one corner then having to mess with the terrain elevations.
3) Separate beams and posts can be placed on different layer lines in layer sets. More control for each view (line weights, colours, draw order, display, labels)
4) Posts can be adjusted without opening anything in elevations or 3D views - select it and adjust the top and bottom height edit handles. 
4) If you want a 6x6PT post and a PVC post wrap to show on a materials list in different listings (framing vs trim), you can with separate items.

5) Foundation items will show on the foundation level.

 

 

[robdyck]

On 1/4/2025 at 3:53 PM, kimberlywilson said:

but I can't get my concrete pad to end at the same spot as the piers.

If your posts are part of a railing wall: To do this, you will need to use a thicker wall to define your porch. The wall thickness should be the same thickness as the piers. This way, the posts will remain centered on this new thicker wall but the slab will extend to the outer edge of this wall.

 

If the posts & piers were place manually or are separate objects: move the wall that defines the porch to align with the outer edge of the pier.

[kimberlywilson]

Fantastic, thank you guys for your help!!