Thread: Using Sketchup for floor plan / 3D model

A good free tool is SketchUp , you can draw the house up, to exact scale and then pan around inside and out in 3D and have a good look .
The free version is now called Make , I think its the same as the pro , but just for personal use.
Get it here:
SketchUp | 3D for Everyone

Plenty of videos showing how to use it , only takes a few hours to get the basics.
Really advanced software , but easy to use.
Heres part 1 of 4 , for beginners.

Originally Posted by Buckaroo Banzai

A few months ago I made a couple of videos posted on YouTube to instruct some friends on how to convert a floor plant to a 3D model using sketch Up.
I tried to keep it simple .If any one is interested below are links to them.
Please excuse the poor sound.I did it on a free video capture program.

Originally Posted by Koetjeka

I see that you're using either pdf or jpeg files, that works ofcourse but might not be 100% accurate.

If you have autocad, the easy way to import (and 100% accurate) is like this:
-save the .dwg file somewhere
-open sketchup
-make sure units are in mm (else you will get a very very big building )
-file --> import --> select dwg file
-done!

Why use a .dwg file over a photo? Because you can explode the drawing and push-pull all of the walls in just a few seconds.

Originally Posted by Buckaroo Banzai

The process is really very simple,lust make sure to properly scale the JPEG as I explain in the video

Does anyone one know how to insert a picture and then build up around it?

I want to mock up how decking will look outside our place.

^ superb, many thanks for taking the time,

Originally Posted by The Fresh Prince

Does anyone one know how to insert a picture and then build up around it?

I want to mock up how decking will look outside our place.

I tried it a while ago , I used this video , which explains the basic idea very well ,
though its a bit old but some helpfull comments , if watched on youtube itself, bring it up todate .

For people wondering how to control the opacity of your model while in Photomatch, they changed this in Sketchup 8. You now control it in the Styles dialog box.
from the Sketchup Support site:
"In SketchUp 8, you can now toggle a matched photo on or off and to adjust the photo's opacity settings in the Styles dialog box.
Click Window > Styles.
Click the Edit tab.
Click the Modeling button which is represented by a blue cube."

I think also have to make sure your photo is like the one in the video , ie shot sharply from the corner so you have 2 distinct sides to match the red and green axis planes.

another more uptodate -
sketchup match photo
video ,using google earth too

Match Photo Part 1 - YouTube[/url]

Cheers Blue. I wasn't sure how to name what I was trying to do so I couldn't search it.

Thanks for the vids, I'll check them out when I'm home.

I like sketchup =- for the cheap charlies like me, find an old down load of google sketchup and it is free.

My Mrs uses Sketchup all the time for rearranging furniture in our house or planning out offices and stuff. For a free program it is remarkably capable.

The library of furniture that users have created is also good, I know she has used it and has also uploaded some things she made when the item wasn't in the library.

I remember seeing a rendering of Schipol airport that some guy did with Sketchup a few years ago, it's pretty cool. A pity Google dropped it.

I never knew you could actually model everything into a photo :x I model first and then photoshop it into a photo.

Did you know about the google warehouse? Free models of furniture and a lot of other things, it saves a lot of time.

3D Warehouse

Originally Posted by Koetjeka

I never knew you could actually model everything into a photo :x I model first and then photoshop it into a photo.

Did you know about the google warehouse? Free models of furniture and a lot of other things, it saves a lot of time.

3D Warehouse

Yes I use it all the time,
I down load furniture from it to place in my models and see if the rooms are of adequate size, also download people to place in the rooms, vegetation for yards, etc. .
It is important that you scale what ever you down load from warehouse as they are not always to scale. Easy to do,, plenty of You-tube videos showing you how to scale.
I also use Warehouse , to upload my models ,and make them availaqble for whom ever I want to work with.,
you can make them private, so that not everyone has access to them and provide the link to people who you want to view them and download them .
An easy way to collaborate.
Thank you for the input I am not sure everyone knows about " warehouse, a
a great suggestion

I'm just learning how to add shadows , amazing how it can tailor the length of the shadow etc, even making it realistic for a time of the day and month.


Can anyone answer a general question on sketchup please ?

If I'm looking at a model from a certain angle,
then move to work from another angle,
is there an way to save the first viewpoint , so I can return to that view again, without having to pan and zoom about etc ?

Originally Posted by blue

I'm just learning how to add shadows , amazing how it can tailor the length of the shadow etc, even making it realistic for a time of the day and month.


Can anyone answer a general question on sketchup please ?

If I'm looking at a model from a certain angle,
then move to work from another angle,
is there an way to save the first viewpoint , so I can return to that view again, without having to pan and zoom about etc ?

Yep, bless god (or google) there is a way to do that
1: Go to the view you want to save.
2: View --> animation --> add scene
3: You will now see a new button (top left) called scene 1. By clicking on it you will return to this view.
4: You can update/change your view by right clicking on it and select update.

^
thanks !
perfect

Hey, just posted this evening about "maybe" building... started learning sketch up today. Told me I had 8 hours to practice then buy the full version. Guess I need to be a quick study. LOL So far I've sketched a nice barn and silo.

Reading here is seems that you can import an autocad dwg file. Great! Builder is supposed to give me file. Maybe that can help the startup process. :-)

your're a quick learner,
I've been battleing with the shadows and sandbox today.
Got the hang of the sandbox , but not sure how to change the shadow direction except by changing the time of day / year ...


I have a torrents version, the pro , whatever that is .
But I thought sketchup was free for personel use ?

Just select
''I plan to use SketchUp for: personel projects ''
The easy, fun, and free way to draw in 3D

Model anything in 3D.
Share and download models from SketchUp’s 3D Warehouse.
SketchUp Make is not licensed for commercial work.

Download SketchUp | SketchUp

perhaps you can unistall whatever trial you have and redownload it ?

Originally Posted by blue

your're a quick learner,
I've been battleing with the shadows and sandbox today.
Got the hang of the sandbox , but not sure how to change the shadow direction except by changing the time of day / year ...


I have a torrents version, the pro , whatever that is .
But I thought sketchup was free for personel use ?

Just select
''I plan to use SketchUp for: personel projects ''
The easy, fun, and free way to draw in 3D

Model anything in 3D.
Share and download models from SketchUp’s 3D Warehouse.
SketchUp Make is not licensed for commercial work.

perhaps you can unistall whatever trial you have and redownload it ?

FYI -

I did select for free personnel projects. However it told me that I get the pro features for 8 hours; but then it didn't indicate what would be shut off. Must be a bait you in attempt to buy buy buy... kind of like on Soi 6.

Seriously, perhaps my options were different since I am using the "for MAC version."

No offense to Bill Gates, but I had my full of blue screens of death a few years back and made the jump to OSX. And not to start a conversation about which is better now days, MAC or WINDOWS... let's just say I am not in the mood for another learning curve. Will stick where I am (oh gosh, I hope so) cause I am just to darn old to be taught to many new tricks...

....unless they are in the bedroom.

Here is the free SketchUp for Mac.

Google SketchUp Mac (free) - Download the latest version in english on Kioskea

Originally Posted by BKKBILL

Here is the free SketchUp for Mac.

Google SketchUp Mac (free) - Download the latest version in english on Kioskea

Nice but I'm not sure if we are allowed to post links to illegal stuff?

Originally Posted by Koetjeka

Originally Posted by BKKBILL

Here is the free SketchUp for Mac.

Google SketchUp Mac (free) - Download the latest version in english on Kioskea

Nice but I'm not sure if we are allowed to post links to illegal stuff?

Have no idea why you think this is illegal. If you go to
Download SketchUp | SketchUp say for personal projects, state your computer type, e-mail address.
This site is from Trimble the owners of sketchup.

Hello blue .

I hope you're keeping an eye on this Thread of yours because I'd like a bit of help . Please .

I just cannot get a hang on how to put text into my floorplans .

I can do the 3D text easily but I don't want that .
I just want ordinary text like the texts I get in Photoshop .

There is a text button but that text stays the same size so when I zoom out the plan gets smaller but the text looks huge .

Any guidance here ?

Secondly . I put a roof on a model but I guessed the slope of the roof just using my eye . Do you know what a standard angle of slope might be ?


Thank you.


Wasp

Originally Posted by Wasp

Hello blue .

I hope you're keeping an eye on this Thread of yours because I'd like a bit of help . Please .

I just cannot get a hang on how to put text into my floorplans .

I can do the 3D text easily but I don't want that .
I just want ordinary text like the texts I get in Photoshop .

There is a text button but that text stays the same size so when I zoom out the plan gets smaller but the text looks huge .

Any guidance here ?

Secondly . I put a roof on a model but I guessed the slope of the roof just using my eye . Do you know what a standard angle of slope might be ?


Thank you.


Wasp

Sorry you will have to wait for one of the Td sketchup experts.
My problem is I'm a program kleptomaniac; i have so many that I can never get around to fully conquering any one of them .