X17 Heel Height Label

[JonathanK]

Just wondering if the macro guru's out there have a way of making a label for roof planes like this:

Where everything is pulled from the roof plane itself, and not manually typed...

[SHCanada2]

It is not available AFAIK. it is also a global setting for build roofs. 

Plus I'm not sure if CA stores it with the roof plane, or if it calculates it on the fly when you open up the dialog box, in order to show it to you. I usually just dimension it on the section(s) and have it dynamically change in details based on me typing it in in a text macro (which I suppose could be your other option, although not sure it buys you much)

 

Edited Monday at 11:43 PM by SHCanada2

[tundra_dweller]

10 hours ago, JonathanK said:

Just wondering if the macro guru's out there have a way of making a label for roof planes like this:

 

Great question and this would be pretty cool.

I also typically dimension it on sections using either a cad line or a point markers so it's not dynamic and subject to errors if I forget to update.

[Joe_Carrick]

It could be done, but it would require an NVP for "heel_height".  The only way I know to do that currently would be with a custom field in the OIP.  It's probably not worth the effort since you would have to assign that value to all roof planes.

Edited Tuesday at 03:18 AM by Joe_Carrick

[JonathanK]

Thanks all for chiming in.

 

I actually emailed Chief, and got the same response.  They will be logging a feature request.

This would save us a tremendous amount of time and effort on our roof plans!...and eliminate errors for our truss manufacturers.

[robdyck]

It's important to note that the heel height does not always report correctly in the roof dialog. It seems to be an internal calculation of the baseline height minus the top plate height, but there are times when chief reports the top plate height incorrectly in the roof dialog and then the heel height also reports incorrectly.

This is even when all rooms are exact and according to defaults, and even when all baselines are in the exact correct position.

 

The baseline elevation is an exact and absolute elevation whereas the heel height is relative and not always exact. Chief would absolutely have to do some work to ensure more accurate reporting of the heel height and the top plate height before allowing use of these values.

 

I always include the heel height value in a roof schedule by just using a Custom Field, and you have to be careful not to just regurgitate what Chief's roof dialog is showing. Obviously the likelihood of these values reporting incorrectly increases with the complexity of the roof.

[JonathanK]

@robdyck, 100%!  I have found even sometimes simple roofs won't show the heel height correctly...if even at all!  I'm all-in for rocking the boat a little to make them think of a different and more accurate way to report heel heights.  I would even...dare I say...consider getting rid of "Baseline Height" and only having heel height.

 

For our company, and our industry, this would be an absolute game-changer.  Being able to just show our truss suppliers what the heel height needs to be quickly and easily would eliminate many many potential issues.

 

For the guys out there wanting to make stairs better...meh...they probably could care less about heel heights 

[robdyck]

27 minutes ago, JonathanK said:

For our company, and our industry, this would be an absolute game-changer.  Being able to just show our truss suppliers what the heel height needs to be quickly and easily would eliminate many many potential issues.

So...we just need Chief to consult with people who know how homes are built!

Obviously the problem with manually providing the heel height info the way I have been is more prone to typo's or forgetting updates. I've made errors at least twice since I started including the heel height (which I did as soon as you could use schedules for roofs). Luckily, the truss guys know to call and ask if there's an issue...and they still thank me for giving them this info because no one else does!

[SHCanada2]

5 hours ago, JonathanK said:

and eliminate errors for our truss manufacturers.

if I know it is going to a truss manufacturer, I will sometimes show a representative truss in the layout with the heel height dimensioned.

 

garages here typically have different heel heights, so for that i just dimension in the section like rob says., and if the heel is uniform every where else I will dimension on the section of the house, or create a specific section where the heel is different and dimension that

 

The problem with showing a specific truss in layout is if the roof gets rebuilt, CA does not maintain the order, so your layout might be left showing a dimension on white space, or worse a dimension on a completely different truss. So it can be better just to bite the bullet and create specific sections where the heels are different

 

I suppose you could, just put all of the trusses on layout and send them as part of your package and let the truss company measure to scale.

 

And I have been asked by the truss company if the truss is to the end of the top plate or the the exterior of the sheathing. so nothing is every straighforward from their perspective

 

 

Edited Tuesday at 05:37 PM by SHCanada2

[JonathanK]

2 hours ago, robdyck said:

So...we just need Chief to consult with people who know how homes are built!

My email and phone line are waiting for Chief to reach out 

I don't love the manual way either, but it's clear that our team needs to do something different.  Funny how it's never really been a problem until I stop and think about it.  Like...how would truss manufacturers know what heel height is?!