SolidWorks to frame a house

[Ralph2]

I am new to SolidWorks and as a learning process would like to make a model of my house...

Can anyone point to a place where I could download a sample of such a project. Not knowing any better it seems to me I need a library full of dimensional lumber, plywood, drywall, etc then assemble parts... overly simplistic???

Years ago I thought there was a place on the SW site where folks shared thier work.. but now I can not find such a sampling.

Thanks for any advise or help on my project..

 

[DrGonzo]

Cool idea.

Some thoughts would be to utilize design tables for your stock materials, patterened components in subassys. I am thinking along the lines of how trusses/walls can be built offsite and brought to the build site. It would be easy to manipulate and position things in subassys.

Good luck.

 

[DrGonzo]

Doh forgot to add this.

When doing the wall coverings/roof coverings. Depending on the level of detail you need, you may find yourself creating custom parts to account for doors/windows/angles/turns etc. It is difficult to create say a 4x8 sheet of rock and then add it to your assy. For some areas of the the walls a full sheet will suffice, for most it won't, think real-life and it will make sense.

For decks/roofs you can use textures to give it a look. I have tried doing decks etc and making boms, but it is difficult due to the cuts that are made, etc.

 

[rockguy]

I do stuff like this from time to time for fun. I just model the walls as a solid 5.5" or 3.5" thick. I don't worry about individual studs, plywood, drywall,etc. I'm not sure SW would handle that much detail well. There used to be site called interiorworks that had a bunch of building objects (windows, doors, stairs) for SolidWorks. Not sure if it's still around.

 

[SBaugh]

I built a portion of my hallway when designing a door for my Furnace. I have also built and entire play house for my girlfriends daughter and I used a single piece to make every thing with exception to the windows. I have many configurations. I really easy to build stuff like this on your own.

Regards,

Scott Baugh, CSWP
3DVision Technologies

http://www.3dvisiontech.com

http://www.scottjbaugh.com

faq731-376
faq559-716 - SW Fora Users

 

[ctopher]

I did similar for my kitchen. One cabinet model with different config in width. The same can be done with lumber and other mtls.

Chris
Sr. Mechanical Designer, CAD
SolidWorks 05 SP1.1 / PDMWorks 05
ctopher's home site

 

[Heckler]

I designed a new kitchen and bathroom using SWx. I was really helpful to visualize the new design. I did cabinets (that my brotherinlaw built), lighting, and flooring.

Best Regards,

Heckler

Do you trust your intuition or go with the flow?

 

[ongybill]

If you decide to do framing details, you might try creating some basic lumber profiles, then build it with the weldments tool bar.

Seem like that'd be a real simple way to do walls. May even work well for trusses.

If you don't need that level of detail, then drawing walls as solid blocks is a good idea.

 

[Ralph2]

Thanks to all that responded... I was kind of hoping for a link to a demo or some such. As a novice I would like to study how an expierenced person developed such a task
Ralph

 

[Ralph2]

As I do not know how to edit my last post.... Feel free to email me any snippets of such a project, my address is in my profile
Ralph

 

[aamoroso]

Ralph2, Welcome to the world of SW, I think the one thing you can take from this thread is that in SW you can do things in many ways. The software is very open, there are not really wrong or right ways of accomplishing the end goal.

I would start a project like this by focusing on the parameters that are most important to you:

Detail (Do you really need all the framing Detail)

Will you be using components of the design in other assemblies as well.

File Size (are you limited, is your computer top notch or will large file size bog you down)

Is this for show and tell (will you be applying photoworks and textures with lighting to the file).

Is this a learning project for you (are you doing this to learn more about solidworks).

Is this a business project (if so you may want to consider a more architecture based program 3d Home Architect is good for this).

The answere to those questions and other questions you can better define will help you decide how to go about the project. You can get as detailed as your computer will allow you, but it stinks like a sewer once you put hours into a project and max out the computer capablities before finishing.

 

[Ralph2]

Thanks aamoroso
The purpose of this project like most things is multifold. I am about to purchase a new (used) home and there are some modifications I would like to make. To build it on the computer (with SW) would be one way while I wait for posession. So, I am "only" going to build portions of the house and essentially only the frame work. The main project is a new stairway from the garage with a branch to the main floor. In 3D I could view it from various angles and see how it fits within the space allowed.

At the same time... the company I work for has just purchased SW 2005 and I would like to have at least a rudimentary understanding of the program.

So... an excuse exists to learn (some)SW and show my wife what I "hope" to build in the next few months. In any of the instruction books I have all the samples tend to be "mechanical". I was hoping for some samples of "building with wood".
Ralph

 

[aamoroso]

Keep in mind that lumber actual size is different from callout size. Example a 2x4 is not 2"x4"

I did some similar projects to yours years ago, I don't have the files anymore but here is reference chart of lubmer acutal sizes: Lumber Actual Size Chart

A good starting point would probably be to create each of the lumbers in a purchased length, like a 2"x4"x8'. Then I would create a configuration with each cut piece to use in the assembly. If you were to use a 2x4 cut down to 36" with a 45 degree cut on one end, I would create this as a configuration in the 2x4x8 model and name the config so you can identify it easily in the assy (ex: Left Side Hand Rail). You may find it a good opportunity to familiarize yourself with Design tables. Good luck with your project, keep us up to date as you cross milestones.

 

[ctopher]

Also check out,

http://www.DigitalCanal.com

http://www.plan3d.com

http://www.artifice.com

You can also find architectural blocks for AutoCAD and bring them into DWGEditor, then export DXF to SolidWorks.


Chris
Sr. Mechanical Designer, CAD
SolidWorks 05 SP1.1 / PDMWorks 05
ctopher's home site

 

[CorBlimeyLimey]

Ralph2 ... If you are not familiar with CAD or solid modeling, I suggest you start small ... If you haven't already done so, work through the online tutorials supplied with SW. Get to understand the basics of part modelling first, then you can move on to mating parts in an assy. If you jump into the deep end before you can properly swim, you could find your self floundering wildly.

The Links section will lead you to many downloadable parts & assemblies which you should be able to study & learn from. Also, there is a lot of good tips in the FAQ section. Speaking of tips, read through those supplied with SW under the Tip of the day.

Good Luck with your quest.





Making the best use of this Forum. faq559-716
How to get answers to your SW questions. faq559-1091
Helpful SW websites every user should be aware of. faq559-520

 

[CorBlimeyLimey]

Also see thread559-114552


Making the best use of this Forum. faq559-716
How to get answers to your SW questions. faq559-1091
Helpful SW websites every user should be aware of. faq559-520

 

[brrian]

I just used the program to design my new front porch. I didn't use weldments, but in essence used the same functionality (turned off 'merge bodies') to create the flooring, posts and framing. It worked well--I put the porch up against a model of my house to get a feel for the proportions, and adjusted as necessary.

Ralph, your idea of using SW to both design your stairway and learn the software is a good one. You might consider designing the stairway as finish sizes instead of framing details--you'll work with simpler shapes, and still get a feel for the program. You can use the end result to visualize your stairway project and make adjustments if necessary, and use the final dimensions to work out your framing details.

Good luck!

 

[EngJW]

Not being an architect, is it standard procedure to use nominal dimensions (2x4)or do you model the part with its actual dimensions?

 

[rockguy]

If you were designing the house in 2D AutoCAD you would draw your walls using using the actual dimensions for walls (ex. 2x4 drawn at 1 1/2" x 3 1/2"). This is done for the framing crew. They are concearned with the actual dimensions from framing to framing. It's the designers or architects job to allow for plywwod, sheetrock, door & window trim, etc.