Sketchup practice. - Contractor Talk - Professional Construction and Remodeling Forum

Forry · 08-25-2008, 10:04 AM

Took me longer to draw it than it would've taken to build the thing.... pretty sure I did it the hard way. Anyone have any favorite sketchup pointers?

**Cole** · 08-25-2008, 02:29 PM

Not bad, how long do you think it took you to draw it out?

Sketchup is very powerful if you know some of the tricks on how to use it productively.

http://www.contractortalk.com/f82/design-i-am-working-37015/

Jason W · 08-25-2008, 05:34 PM

Is that hip really going to go under the ridge like that? I'm curious to see it after it's built.

Forry · 08-25-2008, 05:48 PM

-"Not bad, how long do you think it took you to draw it out?"

Maybe 8 hours. Not all productive, and I was drinking beer.

-"Sketchup is very powerful if you know some of the tricks on how to use it productively."

I'd like to learn easier ways to work it.

-"Is that hip really going to go under the ridge like that? I'm curious to see it after it's built."

Is it called a dutch hip? I'd like to know, it's to match my house.

Forry · 08-25-2008, 05:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cole

Not bad, how long do you think it took you to draw it out?

Sketchup is very powerful if you know some of the tricks on how to use it productively.

http://www.contractortalk.com/f82/design-i-am-working-37015/

I like you're sketch.

I'll try and post a model w/ exterior detail.

**Cole** · 09-04-2008, 09:16 PM

Any updates?

Forry · 09-04-2008, 09:20 PM

Not yet, I'm struggling with sheeting. Keeps getting all screwy. I could just model it, but I'm trying to virtually "build" it. I've got some sort of error in my roof planes, and can't figure it out.

For sheeting the walls, I had to leave a gap between sheeting and framing. couldn't attach it without everything becoming one. Not sure how to explain I guess.

orson · 09-04-2008, 09:42 PM

This is probably a really obvious tip but definitely learn all the keyboard shortcuts for sketchup, really speeds things up. i.e. "E" key for eraser...

**Cole** · 09-04-2008, 10:02 PM

Yeah, I virtually build everything I design. I want to know exactly how many materials I need to order. Once I get everything done in Sketchup, I can import it to ArchiCAD and actually get exact material lengths for everything!

Forry · 09-04-2008, 10:37 PM

Strange things happen sometimes that I don't understand.... when stuck together sometimes, things will get lost.. deleted, erased, whatever, but sometimes with what seems to be the same action, everything works fine, and parts stay whole... confuses me.

Solrac · 12-28-2008, 06:06 PM

You need to practice making everything into groups and components to solve your "sticking together" problems. Components are even better because you could just make one copy of any object and make copies. Any changes to the original object will be reflected to all copies of the component.

Static Design · 12-28-2008, 07:30 PM

Not to bad, once you get the fundamentals of sketch up figured out you will start seeing your drawings become more complicated and draw at a much faster rate. Groups and Components not only help with keeping things "stuck together" it also reduces the file sizes which is a major plus when the drawing sizes become much larger and detailed.

mics_54 · 12-29-2008, 07:00 PM

You can pretty much forget groups. They have a purpose but for most applications creating componants is what you need. If you need to make a componant and edit it without all the other instances like it being edited also..make it "unique" Be sure to apply the proper key words to your componants if you will be using the componants for cutlist purposes later. If all this is beyond your current level of understanding, let me know and maybe we can bring you up to speed quickly.

There are several free .rb scripts available for sketchup to perform various functions including a cutlist script that can enumerate lumber and sheet goods that are represnted by componants that you have selected within the drawing.

AboveAndBeyond · 01-31-2009, 12:13 AM

Cole, would you care to divulge more info about how you do this? I have an old student version of ArchiCAD kickin' around that I'd love to use, but Sketchup has me hooked for simplicity's sake.

What steps do you take when starting a Sketchup project to make use of ArchiCAD's features once it's imported?

Cheers!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cole

Yeah, I virtually build everything I design. I want to know exactly how many materials I need to order. Once I get everything done in Sketchup, I can import it to ArchiCAD and actually get exact material lengths for everything!

Willie T · 02-06-2009, 02:47 PM

You do realize, don't you, that there are all sorts of Ruby type add-ons available free online.

Some automatically put in the roof framing for you.
Some do all the walls (framing)
Some do joists or rafters.
Some immediately throw up a full set of just about any kind of stairs you ask for.

All sorts of good stuff on those forums the SU site links you to. They speed up your work ten times.

And don't forget to use the keyboard keys, not just the mouse.... that, alone almost doubles your speed.