Create a level shifter on a single storey house [Terrain Module]

By playing with the slab heights of your levels, rooms and roofs, and the elevations of exterior spaces, you can represent level offsets on your projects.


❗The preparation steps between "Layout" and "Exterior" presented in this tutorial can be conducted in any order you choose.

In the given scenario, we will illustrate a 4-foot variation in elevation between two sections of the building. To address this, we will construct a retaining wall on our property to ensure proper leveling.

Layout and Roof Steps: Create Your Building Offset

1 - From the right column, in the "Layout" step, modify the dimension values of the ground floor. Enter the highest expected slab value (here 4' + 7 3/4" by default, i.e. 4'-7 3/4").

2 - Modify the dimension values of the lowest rooms of the project, changing them one after the other to 7 3/4".

⚠️ Make sure to switch to the left tab dedicated to the the level (instruction 1) 222 - Level submenu

And the right tab dedicated to the rooms (instruction 2) when changing dimensions. 222 - Room submenu

222 - Customize the slab

2 - Add a partial floor, by tracing only the exterior walls of the upper part of the project.

222 - Create 1st floor

3 - Go to the "Roof" step. On the first floor (partial floor), draw a classic roof.

4 - Go to the ground floor to draw the roof of the lowest part of the project.

5 - Change the height of the roof in the right column (default 11 3/4"). Give it desired value on the level (here, for example 5').

💡 The roof serves as a "wall cutter". The role of the walls is to fill the underside of the roofs and the role of the roofs is to free up more or less masonry!

222 - Create roofs

Exterior Step: Show your ground elevations

❗You could represent your terrain elevations by adding points ("Layout" step). But in this case, we think it is better to use the tools in the "Exterior" step.

1 - Go to the "Exterior" step and, using the "Spaces" tools and/or the "Paths" tools, represent the different exterior spaces of the upper part of the project.

222 - Draw exterior spaces and paths

2 - By selecting each space, in the right-hand column, modify the elevations. In the example here, to create the effect of "raised terrace", select "Horizontal" in the type of elevation.

3 - Enter the desired elevation value, here 4' (the paths, in elevation "Ground terrain" will adapt automatically).

222 - Elevate exterior spaces

4 - Refine the layout of the raised terrace by adding a retaining wall along your space.

💡 Add points on the edge of your space, to be able to customize your retaining wall (remove a part) and install for example an outdoor staircase.

222 - Customize retaining wall