DavidJPotter

Jp_Ann, I had trouble locating them in plan view after creating them (they would not center on the porch wall, no matter what I tried to do, How did you over come that please? DJP

Twin Motion requires imports to be in ".3ds or.dae" file format. I sometimes use Twin Motion to do animations and renderings but I also use Chief Architect Premier that has the ability to export these file formats. Currently no Home Designer title has this ability. I am sorry. DJP

I tried emulating the fretting using the black splash tool in my Pro 2021 trial version with no success. Could you please do a video on how to successfully emulate that Architectural detail using only the back splash tool please using HD Pro? DJP

Your images do NOT show any foundation being created by having drawn the fence walls. Make sure by checking these fence walls specification dialog's - Foundation Tab that they are not marked "Foundation walls" and as fences they should be marked on their "General Tab" -No Room Define, either of these settings might cause those fences to show "foundation" attributes. Otherwise, share a copy of your plan file so others can look, see and report back or post some images that actually show your complaint. DJP

My advice is to carefully measure the spaces on your porch, between posts and then using Sketch Up, carefully create the "Fretwork" symbols there to import into DH Pro 2020 as a symbol to then be located on your porch between your posts. Sketch Up is free, all it costs you is the time to learn its simple tools. DJP

IN HD Pro I would apply a resized soffit or custom slab with its material set to "Mirror" and then place-located them manually. DJP

Wall snaps are pre-programmed but you can select an off angle wall (a wall not at 90 degree angles) and incrementally move it using your "Arrow Keys" on the keyboard and sometimes then find a better connection by slightly moving the wall back and forth while in plan view (the increment of movement is set in "General Plan Defaults - Snap Grid increment settings input box"), this sets how far a selected object moves per click of your arrow keys per instance. You cannot reprogram that but you can use alternate methods to deal with its rigidness. DJP

Most new users and designers don't understand the direct correlation between the geometry of the floor plan of a structure directly influences the 3D Geometry of the roof system over a floor plan. If the floor plan is asymmetric then the resulting roof system will also look screwy of asymmetric as well. Generally speaking most Architecture is to some degree symmetric (walls align and are lined up from left to right. In short, if you wish to have a traditional, pleasant looking home, draw the floor plan symmetrically. DJP

DJP

In order to have living space you MUST first create a blank Second Floor in order to create an "attic room", it is impossible to do that on the automatic <A> or Attic Level, it MUST always be on a floor two. That is the way this software is programmed to function. DJP

You will not be able to duplicate that roof using Architectural at all. You will have to be happy with three hip roof planes with only an auto-generated roof (this is true in Suite and Architectural but NOT in Home Designer Pro). In Architectural you can manually draw the three walls of the Architectural feature or use the box bay window tool but neither Suite or Architectural is capable of curved roof planes.You might be able to find such a roof symbol at 3D Warehouse that you can import and apply to your plan that looks like the roof planes in the photo, on that you will just have to look and see. DJP

You now need to read up on how the "Join Roofs" tool works and how it is not designed to work to finish up your roofs. A good place to start is your provided "Reference Manual" found under the "Help" Menu. Read the section on "Manual Roofs and Manual Roof Tools", then find and watch some tutorials about manual roof editing on the Home Designer Website - Knowledge Base and via searches at YouTube for such videos done by me and other Chief/HD users posted there. Only then will you be able to figure out and finish your roof design. DJP

This software works as it was designed to work and not otherwise. In order to have an attic room, one must first create a blank second floor, leaving the first floor roofs in place. That action then creates a situation where an "Attic" room can then be created. Walls already on the new "Second floor - aka attic" are auto-generated walls and cannot be used to create closed rooms in the new attic space. this action also automatically creates a new "<A> or Attic" level in the model or plan file. That new attic area <A> also cannot now be used to create "Living Spaces". That is the way the software is programmed to work. This is not arcane knowledge but is rather well explained in your "Reference Manual"., found under the "Help" menu. There are also several good articles on this subject, found at the Home Designer Website - Knowledge Base under the search term "Attic Room", take a look and see for yourself. DJP

In any Home Designer software title, you can change the color and line style of any layer or group of objects using the "Display Options" dialog where you then change the color to whatever you wish BUT that actions changes ALL objects of the layer. If you want to have different colors for electric objects you must make your own as DIG5050 as suggested above. DJP

The only other possibility (if you are sure all walls are properly connected) is that one or more walls are auto-generated by the software automatically. Such walls are always marked on their "Wall Specification Dialog" as being check-marked as "No Room Define" (if so marked,they will not allow a room to be formed while they are so programmed, "Attic Wall" and also "No Locate", take a look for any wall that is so marked and un-check those wall attributes. Also if you are trying to create rooms on the Attic Level ( <A> ), the software is pre-programmed to disallow such creativity. You first need to create a "Second Floor" on which you can then manually draw walls and finish your project. I cannot tell from what you have said or posted what, in fact that you did. DJP

DJP

I would guess that one of the last things you did on this plan was to build the foundation or perhaps you built this foundation BEFORE you changed the differing floor heights on the first and second floors. In any case the main thing you did that caused the plan file to corrupt and turn into "Bizarro World" was to not make the foundation match the floors above in terms of closed spaces in the foundation that match the floor level changes on floor one and two (they all must match from floor to floor perfectly or things go South as they did do). Straighten out your floors on all three floors carefully so they match the foundation and first floor levels and that should bring things back to workable. This will be, when you finish it, a terrific home, you have done well but in no ways perfect (which this type of geometry demands) to have it come off as you wish. clean it up and fix the foundation as above and I think you can then salvage this project. YOU MUST UNDERSTAND THAT THIS IS SOMETHING YOU DID AND NOT THE SOFTWARE. Upgrading did not cause this unwanted situation, you did. But you can fix it. DJP

I would guess that your floor height and ceiling heights, relative one to another are off (just a guess without your plan file no one can but guess). Do what Eric suggested or upload it to Dropbox, One Drive or Google Drive etc. and then share a link to that cloud folder so you can obtain real help. DJP

THE FIRST RULE OF SITE PLANS IS YOU NEVER, NEVER, NEVER ALTER THE LOCATION OF THE STRUCTURE, YOU LOCATE THE TERRAIN PLANE AND NORTH POINTER TO THE STRUCTURE!!! https://chieftalk.chiefarchitect.com/topic/25962-free-webinars-thursdays-noon/?__utma=67784003.1018186460.1539480826.1578932278.1589402007.39&__utmb=67784003.8.10.1589402007&__utmc=67784003&__utmx=-&__utmz=67784003.1577724178.37.13.utmcsr=chieftalk.chiefarchitect.com|utmccn=(referral)|utmcmd=referral|utmcct=/topic/24726-x12-new-features-are-listed-here/&__utmv=-&__utmk=162478587&_fromLogin=CA3 Free Terrain webinar tomorrow by Chief Architect DJP

https://www.chiefarchitect.com/videos/watch/75/terrain-site-plan-basics.html?playlist=138 Help article at the Chief Architect website https://www.chiefarchitect.com/search/?default_tab=all&q=terrain+webinare More Help article at the Chief Architect website. DJP

Share the file so others can look and find please. DJP

Check in that camera's "Display Options" if any layers that should be on but are not checked ON and turn those found to be off, ON. If you will please post a copy of this trouble plan, I will take a look and see for myself DJP

I agree with Eric in that the box bay etc tool is convenient-quick to use but quite limited in terms of editing. DJP

The window shown appears to be a wooden window (you said aluminum), it is easy to change materials via the "Materials Tab" of the "Window Specification Dialog". The window in the photo appears to be a sliding window but I suppose it could be a casement. The interior shutters can be manually placed as symbols from the "Library Browser"(Core Materials - Architectural - Millwork - Exterior Shutters). The "Sash" dimensions can be edited by way of the "Sash" tab of "Window Specification Dialog". and the "Window Type" can also be edited by way of the Drop-Down menu by the name "Window Type" on the "General Tab of the "Window Specification Dialog"., take a look please. DJP

I did not study the first floor but mainly focused on the attic room over the garage. I think he did a good job generally. DJP Koen_5-10-20.plan