The H-Factor

Calculating a System That Crosses Other Systems

If you have a large drawing, we have long recommended that you use System Boundaries to break up the drawing for processing. But what if the system to be calculated stretches across other systems? You can still use boundaries, just use more of them, and make them isolate the main (more or less). See below:

In this building, I drew three boundaries, one around the system at left, and two around the main and underground. They can overlap, and they can contain extra pipes that do not feed the deisred system. When you calculate, or list or go to 3D, just select all three and it will work just fine. Do not worry if there are some extra pipes inside those windows, they wil get filtered out by the software.

PS - One little known thing about boundaries is that the name given to them means nothing to the program. When it comes time to select boundaries, the programs refer to them not by name, but by the fact that they were selected.

Rotate and Copy at the Same Time

A tip from Joe O. at Troy Sprinkler:

I just came across something really cool that I did now know and thought it might be a good one to pass along.

I wanted to copy objects and then rotate the objects.  Essentially having the same group of objects but rotated at a different angle.  It’s already built into the AutoCAD Rotate command!

1. Start the Rotate command

2. Select the object(s)

3. Specify the base point

4. Notice the command line options - at the next prompt choose C for copy

5. Specify the rotation angle

I don't know what version of AutoCAD added this option, but it is pretty cool...

Changing the Color of Piping for the Navisworks Model

A customer asked if there was a way to change the color of HydraPipes to red for the Navis coordination drawing. There are two ways to do this:

Option 1: After you go to 3D, select everything in your model (yes, everything) and right-click and pick Properties. Then, pick the top drop down list and select HYDRAPIPE (below). Now pick the edit box in the TrueColor line and set it to Red

Option 2: Open the piping model in Navis (assuming you have Navis) and then pick the Selection Tree. Next, right click on the file name and for to Override Item. Override Color and pick Red.

Stacked/Double Riser Nipples

Double riser nipples were a long asked for improvement that was included in HydraCAD Version 50 when it was first released.The dialog associated with this command does not generate too many questions, probably since the graphic helps make sense of the options available:

Once thing that does generate questions is how to go up one riser while going down to the other. I got this question twice in the last week:

Customer #1:

"How do we show this in plan view so that we have riser nipple text indicating pipe going down from the feed pipe and riser nipple text indicating pipe going up from the feed pipe. When I use the stacked command it only give me either 2 up texts or 2 down.  I can’t get one of each."

Customer #2:

"I need this drawing in 3d and I don’t know how do a pipe up and down at the same time. See attach dwg as a reference. Could you help me, please."

Here is how this is done (click to enlarge). It relies on the riser nipple editor featured in this post.

This sample drawing will be included in a future update and will be accessible by picking HydraTools->Tools->Training Drawings

Using the Check/Walk Model Button to Find System Disconnects When AutoCalcing

This is a republishing of an earlier post because this is a really helpful tool when you just can't calc a system.

Sometimes when you AutoCalc only some of your pipes actually make it to HydraCALC, or you get an error that prevents you from loading the job into HydraCALC. Both of these can be traced back to a problem with how your pipes are connected.

 The drawing below will not calculate:

The following error can appear when the AutoCalc process handed the job off to HydraCALC, but a different error may appear, or som pipes might be missing if the job actually goes through

To fix, start the AutoCalc Process (SAC), or you pick the Walk Model command (WMD) from the 3D Modeling/SMaRT toolbar

2. ...and pick the Check Model button. This analyzes the piping system starting at the supply and proceeding as far as it can. When complete, this highlights all the flowing pipe using dark blue polylines, starting at the supply. The problem usually becomes visually apparent:

In this case, the dark blue pline doesn't make it very far - the piping at the riser was not connected, but overlapped instead. After correction, start the process again and pick Check Model again.

Lining up Sprinkler Heads the Easy Way, by Making Perp the Perpetrator

One often overlooked feature of the PERPendicular object snap is the ability to line up an object (such as a head) with other objects (other heads). To wit - the two heads below in the Dispatch Office are not lined up with the head plan north of it already piped. How to line up these two heads? Use PERP

Pick the two heads and activate the MOVE command. Then choose the insert or center of the heads as the base point. Then click the PERP osnap and select the pipe already drawn, and the heads will be move to line up with them:

 

Changing Riser Nipple Text Properties (Height, Width, etc)

Using a drawing scale other than 1/8"=1' or 1-100, you may notice your riser circle or text is too large or too small. This is how you correct that:

1.Type in 3MO or pick the 3D Modeling Options button from the 3D Modeling toolbar.

2. Pick the Restore HydraCAD Defaults button. This usually does it. If you want a different size than that, then specify that in the Global Riser Diameter Settings fields to the left.

-But-

Sometimes you just don't like the height or width of our riser nipples. Well, this can be resolved fairly easily:

1. Pick one riser nipple and right-click

2. Pick Select Similar from the menu that appears

3. Open up the properties box (Ctrl+1) if not already open

4. Scroll down to the text section and adjust the height and width as needed.

-Or-

If you want a more permanent fix, try this:

A few customers point out that the riser nipple text takes up too much room. They would like move the text closer to the clamshell and minimize the empty gap. This is easy to do:

1. Open up the VP and VPRJ drawings in the \HES\HydraCAD\Ver50\Programs\Version57 folder. Cancel any dialogs that may come up.

2. Using grips, move the white text as close to the circle as you like. Do not move the circle closer to the text!

3. Save the edited drawings.