Design / Layout Software for Land, Buildings, within Buildings, etc.

[CountryGent]

So, I've got some minor projects around here to organize. And when the operation to relocate to the southwest is in full swing, there will be a great many more. In the past, I've just gone low tech: ye olde large graph paper pad, colored pencils, ruler, compass, et al.

Tonight, however, I am researching software systems that aid in laying out buildings, land, crops, and various systems (e.g., power, irrigation, fuel storage, etc.). It would be helpful to move around, drag'n'drop, delete, etc., and otherwise kick around ideas, then dump the final results to a plotter. On that score, does anyone have a recommendation?

I'll keep up with my search, but figured I'd just toss it out there. Thank you.

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[Diamondback]

I've used Punch Home Design Suite for individual buildings--never constructed, but just to stay in practice for architectural thinking. Been looking for a budget friendly AutoCAD substitute now that Dassault has decided to murder Draftsight Free...

For basic layout and visualization you might find Sketchup worth a checkout.

 

[Tarawa86]

So, I've got some minor projects around here to organize. And when the operation to relocate to the southwest is in full swing, there will be a great many more. In the past, I've just gone low tech: ye olde large graph paper pad, colored pencils, ruler, compass, et al.

Tonight, however, I am researching software systems that aid in laying out buildings, land, crops, and various systems (e.g., power, irrigation, fuel storage, etc.). It would be helpful to move around, drag'n'drop, delete, etc., and otherwise kick around ideas, then dump the final results to a plotter. On that score, does anyone have a recommendation?

I'll keep up with my search, but figured I'd just toss it out there. Thank you.

Great question, I've looked off and on for something similar myself over the years. I don't know why, but I've always struggled a bit with "mechanical" side of engineering. Calculus, Chemistry, Physics? no problem. Engineering drawing: almost failed the dang course lol.

 

[CamoDeafie]

The Sims 3 or 4?
In all seriousness, heard good things about AutoDesk and similar programs... wife tried a free program that used actual measurements and stuff but did not have as large a furniture element library, although for your needs maybe not necessary?

 

[Diamondback]

AutoCAD by Autodesk is great, IF you can afford the expensive annual license. And oh by the way all the useful little toolboxes rather than having to manually type every command are all extra-cost addons each with their own annual license.

When I was using it I was in high school so the school district was picking up the check...

 

[P7M13]

Solidedge by Siemens. The 2D is free. I use the 2D to regularly edit Autocad drawings natively.
Mrs Gent can probably get the 3D for free or next to it.
[eta] I used to own Autocad mechanical but the danged license kept going up and up. Abandoned the endless upgrade cycle many years ago.

 

[Diamondback]

The Smurf might be able to get a free Educator Edition of AutoCAD and other Autodesk stuff, but then it can only go on a single computer of hers.

Student and Education Software | 1-Year License | Autodesk Education Community

Unlock your creative potential with access to 3D design software from Autodesk. Software downloads are available to students, educators, educational institutions.

www.autodesk.com

Too bad they had to kill the hobbyist/consumer edition...

 

[CamoDeafie]

I've used the school version of AutoCAD 2000 way back in fall term of 2002-2003 at Nat'l Tech Inst for the Deaf, then the Solidworks 3d program at the same school in 2006-2007 school year.. and by the way.... Windows Notepad manually entering the G and M codes allowed MasterCAM-X to build a 3d model of a CNC part before sending to the CNC machine.. again all school licensed at that school. But these are not germane to landscape/architect/engineering designs/layout

 

[Stomper]

Silly nerds.... in the time it took to read all this nerd-speak I could've drawn out the detailed layout of the Ponderosa ranch with a scale ruler and pencil.

 

[ferret427]

I have been in drafting/graphic design since the early '90s. CAD is awesome, but when I am just messing around, I find that manual drafting is the most satisfying. I love actually drawing plans! Technical drawing is art to me. Not efficient, but I love drafting.
All of the artwork in my reloading room are framed hand drawings of SAAMI specs for the cartridges I reload (for easy reference lol) and I have a few architectural or mechanical drawings around the place as art as well.

 

[Diamondback]

Check out TurboCAD, also. One of my frat brothers had AutoCAD student edition on his PC in college and I had TC on my laptop, and he thought it was pretty close for most purposes.

For your purposes: Home & Landscape Design Software - TurboCAD via IMSI Design

 

[308]

I have been in drafting/graphic design since the early '90s. CAD is awesome, but when I am just messing around, I find that manual drafting is the most satisfying. I love actually drawing plans! Technical drawing is art to me. Not efficient, but I love drafting.
All of the artwork in my reloading room are framed hand drawings of SAAMI specs for the cartridges I reload (for easy reference lol) and I have a few architectural or mechanical drawings around the place as art as well.

I used to board draft before ACAD. Always loved it when I'd get done designing a large industrial air handling unit to scale with all the inked lines showing the correct pen weight....then the customer says, oops, I made a mistake, can you make a quick edit and move all the doors and electrical to the opposite side and change the duct opening locations. Me, yeah...a quick edit.

Then ACAD comes along, no prob; CTRL-A, Mirror All, Enter, Save.

 

[Forrest Castile]

SketchUp is just right for this and easy to learn.

Also, it's free.

 

[NW Backpacker]

Just have your engineering team whip it out in AutoCAD using the Infrastructure Design package. Exactly what you are looking for - scroll down and click on the land development video:

Infrastructure Design Software Included in AEC Collection | Autodesk

The Architecture, Engineering and Construction Collection provides civil engineers the tools they need for projects including transportation, site design, and water.

www.autodesk.com

Don't have an engineering team standing by waiting for work, or don't want to spend a lot of $$? Maybe try AutoCAD LT. If you have never used it, I would recommend a community college course or some kind of training to get you going. Perhaps Autodesk.com can point you in the direction of training in your area?

AutoCAD LT: $50/month or $400/year

AutoCAD LT | Get Prices & Buy Official AutoCAD LT 2022

AutoCAD LT 2D drafting software helps you create and edit your 2D drawings. Buy an AutoCAD LT subscription from the official Autodesk store or a reseller.

www.autodesk.com

Want it faster? Pencil and paper.

ETA: Or visit your local community college and ask if a drafting student would be able to do some drawings for you for $XX per hour.
Also, Autodesk does have some free trials. Best read the fine print first:
https://www.autodesk.com/free-trials

 

[Diamondback]

Excuse me, the one I used to use was not TurboCAD but IntelliCAD.

Alternative CAD Platform | IntelliCAD Technology Consortium

IntelliCAD is the best .dwg compatible alternative CAD platform for application developers. Cooperative CAD Development Platform.

www.intellicad.org

 

[CoastRange57]

I got into Pro Landscape design when we owned our landscape and general contracting business. It took a while to populate the data base with everything we wanted it to do, but it made estimating and design work easy. After we went to sports fields and golf course construction, we used Dig and some licensed product from Rainbird for large irrigation systems.

Sports fields were pretty consistent in nature and we built our own estimating program in Excel for virtually every job we did. We could estimate at $ 100,000 job in less than 5 minutes and be accurate every time. We ran the entire business for scheduling and all off our own Excel sheets without somebodies headaches in soft ware.

There are an infinite number of choices for software now, but I am working on my last project, our house and shop and have went back to a graph sketch pad, ruler and pencil. I laid out an irrigation system in a new hemp field for a guy in Sisters last year on that sketch pad, and had every thing in my head. Took it to the supply house and they filled the order in an hour.

I have grown to like doing it, I find it relaxing, and it makes my brain work. I am laying out my new electrical service from the pole to shop and house on that pad in the morning. I fired my general contractor this week and within 2 days, I had new sub contractors, handed them several sketch pad designs, which they were appreciative of, and we made more progress in 2 days than the lazy crook general did in 2 months.

Did my two decks design that way this morning, with a parts list take off as well. Got a road lay out, with grade elevations to do next week, a cut and fill on an area behind our house, sprinkler system and who knows what else. Old man goes old school.

 

[quneur]

I have an intellicad license (a one time fee.) Intellicad is an autocad clone written by visio when it was still a stand alone company. The commands are the same and it works exactly the same. But just like autocad, it has a steep learning curve.

If you want to go that route, I bought the license from CMS intellicad. It was the cheapest at the time.

The history is interesting. Visio created intellicad for sale but Visio was bought by Microsoft which dropped the product. It then was offered for free to the public for a short time before a consortium was formed and took the source code and developed/upgraded intellicad. Now, only members of the consortium may resell the product.

But I also have the original copy of it when it still offered for free somewhere. Its equivalent to autocad 2000 version.

 

[CountryGent]

Thank you all for the resources. Exploring several. Good idea on the @TeacherSmurf angle for free software. Farting around SketchUp now; looks interesting.

 

[Diamondback]

For a Sketchup example, here's a piece of a case I've been designing to store, display and transport my Italian client's miniature ships. If you'd like, I can post more showing how I built it... the blue block is the base the ship sits on, the yellow block is the deck of maneuver cards that are used to move the ship around in its game and the white "fin" is a rough representation of the clearance requirements for the biggest ship they can ever imagine making. (The eventual vision is a rack of these cells behind Plexi in something built like a very shallow curio cabinet, which then folds like a giant book and latches shut for transport.)


CG, consider yourself under Non-Disclosure Agreement if you do this, but if you wanna check this out drop me an email and I'll send you the Sketchup file--and see if I can find a couple houses I doodled out too, and a couple other things.

 

[awshoot]

Nobody has mentioned FreeCAD yet so I'll do it. It has an architectural workbench, though I've never used that part of it. It's handy, the price is right (see name), and there's none of this cloud garbage: FreeCAD: Your own 3D parametric modeler