Design a House with AutoCAD Architecture 2018

Design a House with AutoCAD Architecture 2018

By Pantelis Skourtis

Published by Pantelis Skourtis

Copyright 2019

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ISBN: 978-618-00-1670-3

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Introduction

2. Create the Plans

2.0.1 - Drawing Setup

2.1. Create the Basement plan

2.1.1 - Create the Basement outline

2.1.2 - Create the exterior walls

2.1.3 - Create the interior walls

2.1.4 - Place doors and windows

2.1.5 - Create the slabs

2.1.6 - Create the interior stair

2.2. The Ground floor plan

2.2.1 - Create the Ground floor outline

2.2.2 - Create the exterior walls

2.2.3 - Create the interior walls

2.2.4 -Place doors and windows

2.2.5 - Create the slab on the roof

2.2.6 - Create the interior stair

2.2.7 - Exterior stair - Railing

2.3. The First floor plan

2.3.1.- Create the First Floor Outline

2.3.2 - Create the exterior walls

2.3.3 - Create the interior walls

2.3.4 - Place the doors and windows

2.3.5 - Create the roof slab

2.3.6 - Create the interior stair leading up to attic

2.3.7 - Open a hole on the roof slab for Stair

2.4. Create the Roof and the Attic

2.4.1 - Create the Roof and Attic Outline

2.4.2 – Create the Roof and Attic walls

2.4.3 – Create the Roof

2.4.4 - Expand the wall up to the roof

2.5 - Create the Dormer on the Roof

2.5.1 – Convert the Roof to Roof Slab

2.5.2 – Design the Walls of the Dormer

2.5.3 – Design the Roof of the Dormer

2.5.4 – Add the Dormer

3. Design the Site Plan

3.1. Create the 2D Site Plan

3.2. Create the 3D Terrain

3.2.1 - Modify the 3d Terrain Model

4. Drawing Management

4.1. Creating the project house21-190

4.1.1 - Define the levels of the project

5. Create the Construct Drawings

5.1.1 - Create the Basement Construct

5.1.2. Create the Ground Floor Construct

5.1.3 - Create the First Floor construct

5.1.4 - Create the Roof construct

5.1.5 - Create the Site plan construct

5.1.6 - Create the Spaces

6. Create the View Drawings

6.1. Create the Plan Views

6.1.1 - Create the Basement Plan View

6.1.2 -Create the Ground Floor Plan View

6.1.3 - Create the First Floor Plan View

6.1.4 - Create the Roof Plan View

6.1.5 - Create the Site Area View

6.2. Create the 3D View drawing

6.3. Add the Room Tags

6.4. Add the Door and Window Tags

7. Create Sections and Elevations

7.1.1 - Create the Section Α-Α

7.1.2 - Create the Elevations

8. Create the Sheets

8.1.1 - Create the Basement Sheet

8.1.2 - Create a new Sheet

9. Adding Schedules

9.1.1. Create the Door - Windows Schedule

9.1.2 – Edit Door – Window Schedule

9.1.3 - Create the Room Finish Schedule

9.1.4 – Edit Room Finish Schedule

9.1.5.– Room Finish Schedule - Edit Style

10. Plotting drawings

11. Drawings

1. Introduction

AutoCAD Architecture, also called ACA, is an extension of AutoCAD, with more tools specifically designed for architects, providing additional productivity and benefits over the AutoCAD drafting methods you used before.

The purpose of this book is to introduce to architects, engineers, interior designers, design-build professionals, and students, the process they will follow step by step to design a residence, using the tools of AutoCAD Architecture.

The writer of this book is an architect with experience on architectural design and construction, having used AutoCAD and AutoCAD Architecture to design a lot of buildings.

For the reader and user of this book, a basic level of AutoCAD experience is required. Prior knowledge of AutoCAD Architecture is of course useful but not required ; someone starting now to learn ACA will be able to design the project we create within this book.

In the chapters of the book, you will track the development of working drawings from the beginning of a residence.

Tutorials are included to demonstrate step by step, how the software of AutoCAD Architecture is used to create floor plans, site plan, elevations, sections, 3D Views, doors, windows, stairs, roof, attic, sheets and schedules.

All drawings of this project have been created using AutoCAD Architecture 2018 and in the present version of the book have been used the Metric units.

As drawing unit in this metric version, has been used the meter.

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Step by Step Design a House with AutoCAD Architecture

The project that you will start to design, is a residence with the name House 21-190.

This house consists of 86,43 sq. m. basement area, ground floor 103,23 sq. m, first floor 58,625 m², hipped roof 58,625 m² and within the roof an attic 28,00 sq. m.

This house will be placed on a site with a total area measuring 38.90 m x 30.70 m, with a slight slope.

The drawings of this project are shown in figures in the chapter 11. Drawings.

You can download these drawings from the website:

https://www.autocadforum.eu/index.php/downloads/downloads-h21-190

After completing this book, you will have the following drawing sheets ready for printing:

2D Site plan 3D Terrain

Basement plan Ground floor plan

First floor plan Roof - Attic plan

3D Views Sections - Elevations

Door – Window Schedule Finish Room Schedule

Fig.1.0.1 - House 21-190 - 3D View

2. Create the Plans

At this chapter, you will draw the architectural plans of the project house21-190, the floor plan of the basement, the plan of the ground floor, the plan of the first floor and the floor plan of the roof - attic. Then you will draw the 2D site plan and the 3D Terrain drawing.

These plans can then be used, with the usual procedure of AutoCAD Architecture, to create the rest of the architectural drawings such as sections, elevations, 3d Views etc.

The ACA (AutoCAD Architecture) software. provides special tools to organize your projects, so that you can create drawings and project information in the quickest and easiest way.

You will apply this procedure during the designing of this project as described in chapter 4. Drawing Management.

The floor plans and site plans that you will draw in this phase, will be used later in chapter 5. Create the Construct Drawings, which form the core of the work drawings.

2.0.1 - Drawing Setup

Starting AutoCAD 2018

First you will start AutoCAD Architecture, then you will open a new drawing and setup it.

To do this:

• Launch AutoCAD Architecture 2018 from the icon on your desktop or:

• Click Start > type AutoCAD Architecture > click on the AutoCAD Architecture 2018 icon on the taskbar.

• The Starting page of AutoCAD Architecture will appear (Fig.2.0.1.1).

Fig.2.0.1.1 - The AutoCAD Architecture Starting Page

• Click on "Start Drawing" icon (Fig.2.0.1.1), and the default workspace AutoCAD Architecture (ACA) will appear as shown in Fig.2.0.1.2.

Fig.2.0.1.2 – The AutoCAD Architecture Default Workspace

The default workspace of ACA (Fig.2.0.1.2), (with the name 'architecture', as shown on the Quick Access tool bar), consists of a drawing window, ribbons, tool palettes, and other controls that you use to create your design, set up your architectural project, and generate construction documents

The Application Menu (Fig.2.0.1.2), (Fig.2.0.1.5) contains commands that are relevant for the drawing as a whole.

Fig.2.0.1.3 – Create New Drawing

• To access the application menu, click on button at the upper-left corner of the workspace (Fig.2.0.1.2.

• To start a new drawing:

on the Application Menu which will open, select > New > Drawing (Fig.2.0.1.3.)

On the Select Template window that will open, select Aec Model (Metric Stb) and click Open (Fig.2.0.1.4).

Fig.2.0.1.4 – New Drawing – Select Template

Fig.2.0.1.5 - Application Menu - Drawing Setup

• On the Application Menu (Fig.2.0.1.3) click Drawing Utilities >Drawing Setup (Fig.2.0.1.5).

• At the Drawing Setup window that will open, select the tab Units and verify that the Units is set to meters, and Precision is set to 0.000 (Fig.2.0.1.6).

• Choose the Scale tab, change the scale to 1:50, verify that the Annotation plot size = 3.5, and check the Automatically Create Dimscale Override (Fig.2.0.1.7).

Fig.2.0.1.6 - Drawing Setup - Units - Meters

• Choose the Layering tab, and verify that the ‘Layer Standards/Key File to Auto-Import’ is AecLayerStb.dwg and that the ‘Layer Key Style’ is AEC Title Case NCS 256 Color *current drawing.

• Select the Display tab and from the Display Configuration flyout choose Hight Detail.

Click OK to close the Drawing Setup dialog box.

Fig.2.0.1.7 – Drawing Setup – Units - Scale

• Before doing anything else, go to Drawing status bar, click on the 'Display drawing grid' icon, and turn it OFF (it has to be grey color, when the color is blue it is ON), click on the ‘Snap Mode’ icon and turn it OFF, then click on the Annotation scale icon and change the scale to 1:50 (Fig.2.0.1.8)

Fig.2.0.1.8 – Status Bar – Grids – Annotation Scale

Before you save your drawing setup:

• Create in the drive C of your computer a folder called ACA, and within this create two subfolders, one named 'myProjects', where you will store the files of the project house21-190, that you will design with ACA (AutoCAD Architecture), the path of this folder will be: C:\ACA\myProjects.

• Create and another subfolder named customDwg, where you will store the files of all drawings that you are going to create in this step. The path of this folder will be: C:\ACA\customDwg

• Inside the folder myProjects, create the subfolder house21-190, which will be the project folder for the drawings that you will design next.

The path of this folder will be: C:\ACA\myProjects\house21-190 (Fig.2.0.1.9).

For the Construct Drawings and View Drawings, that you will design for your project in subsequent chapters, ACA will create automatically the corresponding folders.

Fig.2.0.1.9 - The Folder Tree - myProjects

Inside the folder customDwg, create the subfolder house21-190_custom, where you will store the files of all drawings that you are creating in this step.

The path of this folder will be:

C:\ACA\customDwg\house21-190_custom (Fig.2.0.1.10).

Fig.2.0.1.10 - The Folder Tree - customDwg

Save this drawing in the folder house21-190_custom with the name h21190_starting.

The full path of this folder will be:

C:\ACA\customDwg\house21-190_custom\h21-190_starting.

At the next chapter 2.1 Create the Basement plan, you are going to start designing the basement plan, of your project House 21-190.

Back to the top of chapter Back to Table of Contents

2.1 Create the Basement plan

In this step you will create, for the project House 21-190, the floor plan of the basement under the name h21190_basement.

The steps to follow are:

• Design the Basement outline

• Design the exterior walls

• Design the interior walls

• Place the doors and windows

• Create the floor and roof slabs

• Create the interior staircase

• Open a hole in the Roof Slab

Before you start designing:

• Open the folder called customDwg\house21-190_custom, that you created previously, and create a subfolder named basement, where you will store the drawings of basement, that you are going to design in this chapter.

The path of this folder will be: C:\ACA\customDwg\house21-190_custom\basement

2.1.1 - Create the Basement Outline

Fig.2.1.1.1 – Basement Outline

Open the drawing file you created in the earlier chapter 2.0.1 - Drawing Setup, under the name h21190_starting.dwg, and you have saved it in path: C:/ACA/customDwg/house21-190_custom/h21190_starting.dwg.

For the outline of the basement floor plan, you will draw a polyline in the shape and dimensions that are shown in Fig.2.1.1.1.

You can download this file of the basement outline drawing, if you wish, by clicking here: downloads.

On the website where you will be directed, on category Custom Drawings/ Basement locate the file h21190_basem_outline.dwg, and click on the file name to download it.

Then save it under the name h21190_basem_outline.

Once you have designed the polyline for the basement outline or you have downloaded and opened it on your screen, you will start designing the exterior walls of the basement, according to the layout and dimensions shown in Fig 2.1.1.1. using as guide the polyline 'Basement outline'.

Now that the basic file is set up, you will start to design the layout of the basement floorplan for your project house21-190, as shown in Fig.2.1.1.1.

You could draw the outline (abgha) line by line, but that is not very efficient. The best approach is to draw a polyline of given dimensions, as shown in Fig.2.1.1.1.

This polyline is the outline of the basement floor plan, that you design.

On the Application Status bar: ,

turn On the ORTHOMODE , turn Off display Drawing Grid (its color has to be grey), turn Off Snap mode (its color has to be grey), and turn On the Dynamic Input , right-click on it and customize its settings as shown in Fig.2.1.1.2.

Fig.2.1.1.2 - Drafting settings - Dynamic Input

Create Layers

Now you have to create three new layers.

Create a new layer, with Name: A-Basement-Outline, Color: red, and make it current,

a second layer with Name: A-Notes, Color: green, and another layer with Name: A-Dim, Color: 86.

To do this:

• On Ribbon click Home tab ►Layers panel ►click Layer Properties icon .

• Right-click on the 'Layer Properties Manager' window that will open ►and from the drop-down menu that will appears select New Layer (Fig.2.1.1.3) ►for the Name type A-Basem-Outline, for Color select red, make it Current.

• Right-click on the 'Layer Properties Manager' ►select New Layer ►for the Name type A-Dim, for Color select 86.

• Right-click on the 'Layer Properties Manager' ►select New Layer ►for the Name type A-Notes, for Color select red, after that the Layer Properties Manager will be as shown in Fig.2.1.1.4.

• Close the Layer Properties Manager dialog box.

Fig.2.1.1.3 - Create new Layer

Fig.2.1.1.4 - Layer - Properties manager

Draw Polyline

To draw the polyline (abgha), as shown in Fig. 2.1.1.1:

• On Ribbon click Home tab > Draw panel > click Line and from the drop-down menu select Polyline.

• To Specify on the screen the Start point (a) of the polyline type 20,20 and press Enter (You will define point (a) as reference point for all your drawing.

From now on, keep in mind that you will use the same coordinates (20,20) for the same point (a) in all drawings of this project.

• Move your cursor downward, type 6.70 (it is the length (ab) to define second point (b), move your cursor right, type 12.90 (it is the length (b g), and press Enter to define the third point (g), move the cursor upward and type 6.7 to define fourth point (h), right-click and select, from the drop-down menu that will open, 'close' to close polyline (abgha).

To display the maximum extents of all objects, as shown in Fig. 2.1.1.1:

• On Ribbon, click Home tab > View > Navigate panel > click the arrow in icon and from the drop-down menu select for Zoom Extents.

With mouse wheel, adjust the size of your drawing on the screen.

Type Text

• On Ribbon, set text style Standard as current, set layer "A-Notes" as Current, select on Ribbon the Single Text tool (Fig.2.1.1.5), and type the letters a, b, g, h, at the four corners of polyline, as shown in Fig.2.1.1.1.

To do this:

• Set layer A-Notes as the current Layer:

• Click Home tab > Layers panel > click on the Layer tab and a drop-down menu will open.

This menu provides a choice of layer settings defined in the drawing to make current.

• Select the layer A-Notes, to make it current.

Fig.2.1.1.5 - Set the Current Text Style

• On Ribbon, set text style Standard as current, to do this:

Click Annotate tab > on Text panel > click the arrow on Text style tab where is shown the current text style and from the drop-down menu, select text style Standard to make it current (Fig.2.1.1.5). You will notice that, on the tab the name for the current text style will change to 'Standard".

• Click Annotate tab > on Text panel > click the arrow on Multiline Text icon and select Single Line.

To Specify on the screen the Start point of text select a point close to corner