Design Software for building projects, what do you use?

[Raised on a Deere]

It is looking like I will be launching out on a project to build a 500 square foot live in cottage/shop (tiny house if you will) that I will live in while subcontracting a home build over the next two or three years on a 15 acre piece of property in central KY. The cottage might turn into a guest house, storage building, shop, play house for the grandkids, who knows as life continues. I am a DIY with an engineering background with some experience with AutoCAD over 20 years ago. I find it hard to work through design problems with out some kind of tool like AutoCAD because am to lazy to work out problems the old fashion way with Trig and all the math when I know what AutoCAD can do. I have long since forgotten all the formulas and conversion factors and even have to think hard about calculate the length of an arc etc.

AutoCAD to me has a stiff learning curve and unless you use it often, the awkwardness (to me) menu structure just stumps me after I have been away from it for a few years. I am sure it has been made more user friendly in the past 20 years, I used the beginning windows versions which were still tied to the old menu hierarchy. I am saying all that to say this. I am wondering if there is not some basic novice level cad program that will let me work out things like how for to set a post out from a wall to allow a certain roof pitch, or how far I can go at a certain pitch, with a given length rafter, or draw up a truss type structure with all the angles for the cuts generated by the program, or calculate the square footage with in a delineated area etc.

And not cost so much as AutoCAD lite around $400 I think. I have been saying just go ahead and get the tools you need and enjoy but just wondering if there is some sort of engineering Cad program out there that is slated to home design, project layout such as the grid pattern for a floor tiling, floor plan quick design tools that you guys have fallen in love with.

 

[ArlyA]

Gee, hate to admit I use a card software that's like 15yo. I've looked at other "drawing" softwares and gave up after seeing how difficult they were to learn. Sorry, but no help from me.

 

[houstonscott]

I use a tape measure, paper, pencil, some stakes, line and a level. Works better. HS

 

[/pine]

Why reinvent the wheel? Have you looked for existing plans that are similar to what you want?...IMO a legal pad for notes and a some graph paper for scaled sketches etc. work great for basic structures...

Good luck with the project and future home...

 

[newbury]

For a 500 sq ft shop I'd just surf the web for a design that appeals to me.
Try Tall Gambrel Barn Style Sheds.

 

[rtimgray]

I use AutoCAD every day, but I almost never use the menus. All I ever use is hotkeys. If you learn to draw a line and a circle and use "offset" with "trim" and "extend", you can then draw practically anything you need to.

I do several houseplans/barnplans for people each year and I briefly tried using some free CAD. I found it useful in that you could create appealing looking floor plans, but the details were difficult to hash out. I ended up just going back to AutoCAD and can't find a reason to change (I still use a copy of AutoCAD 2000 LT at home that I bought way back then).

Hunt around and see what feels normal and intuitive. If none of them do, then go back to a scale, paper and pencil.

Good luck and take care.

 

[1stDeuce]

There are some pretty good programs out there for doing building projects. Most CAD programs (like autocad) are not really set up for building houses... If you just want to do 2-d sketches, you could try Google's "Sketchup". It's free, has a smaller learning curve, and I've seen some pretty amazing stuff sketched out. I believe it does both 2-d and 3-d.

 

[xzcVAbc5]

Sketchup Maker Edition is free. You can design in 3D. Look for Jay Bates channel for some tutorials on using the software.

 

[Raised on a Deere]

It is looking like I will be launching out on a project to build a 500 square foot live in cottage/shop (tiny house if you will) that I will live in while subcontracting a home build over the next two or three years on a 15 acre piece of property in central KY. The cottage might turn into a guest house, storage building, shop, play house for the grandkids, who knows as life continues. I am a DIY with an engineering background with some experience with AutoCAD over 20 years ago. I find it hard to work through design problems with out some kind of tool like AutoCAD because am to lazy to work out problems the old fashion way with Trig and all the math when I know what AutoCAD can do. I have long since forgotten all the formulas and conversion factors and even have to think hard about calculate the length of an arc etc.

AutoCAD to me has a stiff learning curve and unless you use it often, the awkwardness (to me) menu structure just stumps me after I have been away from it for a few years. I am sure it has been made more user friendly in the past 20 years, I used the beginning windows versions which were still tied to the old menu hierarchy. I am saying all that to say this. I am wondering if there is not some basic novice level cad program that will let me work out things like how for to set a post out from a wall to allow a certain roof pitch, or how far I can go at a certain pitch, with a given length rafter, or draw up a truss type structure with all the angles for the cuts generated by the program, or calculate the square footage with in a delineated area etc.

And not cost so much as AutoCAD lite around $400 ( oops on edit it's over $800 and so if not already $300+ subscription per year) I think. I have been saying just go ahead and get the tools you need and enjoy but just wondering if there is some sort of engineering Cad program out there that is slated to home design, project layout such as the grid pattern for a floor tiling, floor plan quick design tools that you guys have fallen in love with.

Cost is more than double what I thought. I am really behind the times

 

[prichard]

I use one of the chief architect home designer products. One of the homeowner versions not the pro version. Pretty handy and helps work out spaces and perspectives.