If you’ve ever stared long and hard at a section or elevation view in Revit, willing an invisible level line to present itself, then this is the blog post for you. 

I’ll be the first to admit it, I’ve done this.  I’ve created a duplicate level line…I’m so sorry!  I didn’t realize by creating two level lines, at the exact same height, I was:

• Creating a host of visibility issues, because now the View Range for “Level Above” is unexpectedly 0, making a mess of many views
• Making it impossible to delete my rogue level because since I created it, several others in the project have created new views based on this level, and it’s not possible to modify the “Associated Level” assignment for a view
• Producing the very real possibility that many views will be unwittingly deleted

Read on to avoid the wrath of the model manager and learn how to force the level line to appear in your section or elevation view.

In the image at the top of this post, the North Elevation view, is missing a level line as indicated by the dashed red line. While there are several reasons for its invisibility, the most befuddling reason is that the level line is a 3D plane, and that plane does not currently intersect the extents of the North Elevation.  The trick is to find a perpendicular view (East or West elevation) where the level line can be seen.

In the image of the Plan View above, you can see the extents of the 3D Level line (shaded in orange) does not intersect the area representing the North Elevation.  By grip-editing the 3D extents of the level line, you should be able to fix the issue, as shown below.

Ideate XRay is a tool within the IdeateApps collection that helps find and resolve visibility issues, including this level line conundrum. You can download the trial version of IdeateApps here. Imagine not needing to remember the 50+ reasons why a Revit element might be invisible.

To learn more about this issue, including Revit tips on how to modify a level line extents, refer to our Ideate XRay online help topic.

About the Author

Glynnis Patterson, NCARB — Director of Software Development
Glynnis is a Registered Architect and has worked within the BIM industry since 1998. A graduate of Carnegie Mellon University, she has worked as an architect, educator and construction site manager. Glynnis is currently the Director of Software Development at Ideate Software, and she continues to work with AEC clients worldwide, developing, and consulting on solutions to Building Information Modeling challenges. In her spare time Glynnis does volunteer work for ECLC of NJ and Grow it Green Morristown. Follow Glynnis on Twitter.

Ideate QuickSelect allows you quickly find, select, and manipulate Revit elements. Unlike the Revit project browser, which is a library of objects that can be in your Revit project, Ideate QuickSelect is a model browser that shows you the objects that are there, even those not easily visible within the model, whether in an Active view or anywhere else within your Revit project.

IdeateApps QuickSelect offers an easy and efficient solution to eliminate duplicate types within a project. Without Ideate QuickSelect, this can be quite a challenge, because Revit software doesn’t offer an easier way to find the duplicates, and can lead to error-prone results.

Follow the instructions in this Find Revit Elements with Ideate QuickSelect video to see how you can quickly find the duplicate types and swap them out with the right family type. The video features a rectangular duct as an example, but the process is the same for all elements.

About the Author

Vasudha Dixit – MEP Application Specialist
Vasudha is an MEP Application Specialist at Ideate, Inc. based on San Francisco office. She has a Master’s degree in Energy Engineering from the University of Illinois at Chicago where she specialized in HVAC design, green buildings and energy analysis. Prior to Ideate, she interned at a few multinational companies where she performed finite element analysis for design validation of components. Vasudha provides Revit MEP training and support for various AEC firms

Ideate ReNumber is a powerful application that is part of the IdeateApps suite of solutions for Revit models. Ideate ReNumber not only allows you to sequentially renumber Revit elements by various methods, but you can easily push data from one Revit parameter to another. 

The Revit project team is likely to be spending time on a variety of tedious numbering tasks throughout the project such as; Doors, Rooms, Fixtures, Equipment, and don’t forget the sheet detail numbers. Liberate yourselves from tedium and improve project coordination with Ideate ReNumber.

Ideate ReNumber allows you to choose elements by selecting a path, selecting individual objects, or Auto-Numbering by a view.   

Rules are easy to manage and are completely customizable, yet can be saved within the project or saved externally for use on other projects.

Proper numbering and naming are essential for project coordination. Trust Ideate ReNumber to get the job done without a lot of overhead.

Ideate ReNumber is a powerful application that is part of the IdeateApps suite of solutions for Revit. Ideate ReNumber not only allows you to sequentially renumber Revit elements by various methods, but you can easily push data from one Revit parameter to another. Quickly setup and customize the numbering rules to create sophisticated solutions for hundreds of tedious renumbering tasks.

Learn more about Ideate ReNumber in this video to learn more about Ideate ReNumber.

About the Author

Richard W. Taylor - Associate AIA - Technical Evangelist Ideate Software
Richard Taylor has over 25 years of experience working for companies that develop architecture and engineering software solutions such as Intergraph, Bentley, and Autodesk. He has over 15 years of Revit experience and was part of the original development of Revit while at Revit Technology Corporation. He worked 12 years at Autodesk where he presented, taught, and worked to improve features in Revit. Richard holds both a Bachelor of Science in Architectural Studies and Masters of Architecture from the University of Nebraska, Lincoln. Richard is currently a Technical Evangelist for Ideate Software Solutions and continues to work with AEC clients worldwide, developing, and consulting on BIM solutions. In his spare time, he is active in his local community and is an elected member of the local Planning Board where he evaluates new developments, regional planning, and design criteria. @Rwtaylor_Revit

Ideate Software is pleased to announce the launch of its latest Revit add-in tool, IdeateApps. IdeateApps is a collection of the following four tools that simplify the tasks that daily Revit users perform most often:

1.    Ideate ReNumber speeds the once time-consuming process of renumbering elements by selection, path, or auto-update. Enabling users to create and save customized renumbering rules.
2.    Ideate XRay reduces frustration by quickly discovering why some elements aren’t visible in certain views.
3.    Ideate SmartDelete decreases accidental deletions by discovering all of the elements that will be deleted along with a selected element.
4.    Ideate QuickSelect enables users to easily select elements and zoom to elements within the Revit project, template, or family file.

Download a free IdeateApps trial and start saving time on everyday Revit tasks. 

“The development of IdeateApps expands our focus from managing the massive amounts of BIM data within a Revit model to addressing the needs of the everyday user,” said Glynnis Patterson, director of Software Development, Ideate Software. “By noting the questions that came into our support lines most often and by engaging in open discussions with our customers, we identified the areas in which Revit users spend a lot of time, and we created easily accessible tools to reduce that time.”  

“The development of these new tools demonstrates our commitment to providing the building design, engineering, construction, and facilities management community with unprecedented access to and control over their Revit data,” said Bob Palioca, president, Ideate Software.

IdeateApps is available with a non-commercial free trial. Download the free IdeateApps trial today. For more information about IdeateApps, call 888.662.7238, or contact Ideate Software.

Ideate QuickSelect is a powerful application that is part of the IdeateApps suite of solutions for Revit. Ideate QuickSelect allows you to understand all of the elements in your Revit model, even those that might be hidden or difficult to select.  It allows you to organize, search, and select elements with speed and agility. You can quickly understand Revit elements as well as relationships between elements using Ideate QuickSelect.

Ideate QuickSelect is a Model Browser as opposed to the “out of the box” Project Browser included within Revit. Ideate QuickSelect shows a “results view” of ALL instances of either model or annotation elements. Inserted or linked CAD files, Section boxes, Scope Boxes, Elevation or Section Markers, Schedule Graphics, and View References are just some of the difficult items to find that Ideate QuickSelect can show you in seconds.

Not only can you select and modify elements with Ideate QuickSelect, but you can choose to find and display objects that may be hidden in a particular view.

Ideate QuickSelect can also be used to quickly navigate to views or schedules. Unlike the Project Browser within Revit that lists all schedules alphabetically, Ideate QuickSelect organizes schedules by their type and usage. Ideate QuickSelect even shows schedules that have been created with Ideate Software’s Ideate Sticky App

Use these powerful tools independently or together to realize increased productivity and efficiency, ease of design, and enhanced quality for all your Revit projects. 

Watch this Ideate QuickSelect video to learn more about Ideate QuickSelect.

About the Author

Richard W. Taylor - Associate AIA - Technical Evangelist Ideate Software
Richard Taylor has over 25 years of experience working for companies that develop architectural and engineering software solutions such as Intergraph, Bentley, and Autodesk. He has over 15 years of Revit experience, and was part of the original development of Revit while at Revit Technology Corporation. He worked 12 years at Autodesk where he presented, taught, and worked to improve features in Revit. Richard holds both a Bachelor of Science in Architectural Studies and Masters of Architecture from the University of Nebraska, Lincoln. Richard is currently a Technical Evangelist for Ideate Software Solutions and continues to work with AEC clients worldwide, developing, and consulting on BIM solutions. In his spare time, he is active in his local community and is an elected member of the local Planning Board where he evaluates new developments, regional planning, and design criteria. @Rwtaylor_Revit