Page 797 - Chief Architect Reference Manual

Editing Roof and Ceiling Planes

• Using its Rotate edit handle in floor plan on that of the roof plane below it rather
view. This will change its angle relative to than the wall. The Baseline height equals
the roof plane’s eave or ridge and will the top height of the existing roof at the
modify the direction of the pitch. This point where you began drawing the new
method is best when the pitch direction roof plane Baseline, and has no overhang.
matters more than the angle of the eave. This option would be appropriate to cre-
• Both of these methods can be used to ate a dormer vent or cricket. See “Manu-
modify the same roof plane, although the ally Drawn Crickets” on page 824.
second approach makes it difficult to con-
trol both the pitch direction and eave Editing Roof Plane Structure
angle, and is not recommended. To create roof planes of a particular depth,

The length of a roof plane Baseline can be begin by setting up the desired roof framing
lengthened or shortened using its edit defaults, then build the roof. See “Framing
handles without changing any of the roof Defaults” on page 836.
plane’s attributes. If you later need to change the structure of
the roof planes, make the needed change to
Set Baseline Height Dialog the Framing Defaults, and then rebuild the

If you manually draw a roof plane so that it roof. You can also edit roof structure on an
bears on a wall at its Baseline, and is placed individual roof plane basis. See “Roof Plane
in the same location as an existing roof Specification Dialog” on page 798.
plane, the Set Baseline Height dialog will
display. See “The Baseline” on page 789. Birdsmouth Cut
The birdsmouth is the notch cut into a rafter
where it rests on the wall top plate. You can
control its vertical depth and the width of the
birdsmouth seat in the Build Roof dialog.
See “Roof Panel” on page 781.
There are two ways to create a roof plane
with no birdsmouth:
•Check Trusses (No Birdsmouth) in the
• Select Over Wall Top to create a roof Build Roof dialog before drawing the
plane that bears on the wall it is drawn roof plane.
over and has an overhang as specified in
the Build Roof dialog. This option would • Specify a Raise Off Plate value of at least
be appropriate to produce a full height 1/16” in the Build Roof dialog.
dormer. See “Manually Drawn Dormers” To change the birdsmouth depth after the
on page 824. roof is built, you can move the roof planes up
• Select Over the Existing Roof Plane to or down, or change the pitch. For example, if
produce a roof plane with a height based you lock the pitch and raise the roof plane by

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