CAD Software

[crokett]

Next spring I will be moving the guest bath across the hall, then knocking down 2 walls and creating a new master bath. In the interests of making this go as smoothly as possible, I am thinking of attempting the design in CAD SW. I want to be able to play with layouts for where all the fixtures should go, including shelves, etc. Less important is applying different finishes/colors to the walls and floor so my wife can see what they look like. My requirements are that it has to be free. My Dad has a license for AutoCAD but I am not sure I want the learning curve for that. Will Sketchup do what I want? Are there any other packages that will?

[LarryG]

Yes, SketchUp will do all that you need (including the finishes and colors). You can't beat the price, and there are lots of pre-drawn components available that you can download and insert into your drawings.

You're probably right about the learning curve for AutoCAD. I run CAD software (not ACAD) most of the day. It's a class of software that's not well suited to casual users. I say that not to be elitist, but as a simple statement of fact. SketchUp is much more accessible, and more fun to run because it makes it so easy to play "what if" with your designs. But even with it, count on putting in some time with its tutorials.

[tribalwind]

i've used autocad for 14years or so so never got to use the freebie programs.
yea you'd be better off with a simple cad program over autocad,theres Lots out there,

i'm BRAND new to sketchup, i kinda like it, i think you could make a working drawing for your own use with it sure, understand it's not autocad, but i think it's perfect for what you wanna do here

[cabinetman]

There's a free version here, for Cad Std.
.

[TheChief]

I highly recommend Google SketchUp for basic mock ups. I've used it to plan out just about everything I've built so far because it so easy to print multiple views and details without having to explode the component.

It's the closest thing I have to a plan for anything, and it really helps to know exactly what it is that I'm deviating from.

[Alex Franke]

You might also check out Alibre Design -- they have a free version called Alibre Xpress, and they also market specifically to the woodworking community (bundling in cutlist software, e.g.). The free version is part limited.

[milanuk]

Another vote for Sketchup here... I've been putzing away at it for a year or so now, but finally got serious about using it for some projects lately. The Sketchup forums @ Google.com are very helpful, and the podcasts from The Sketchup Show also help.

Biggest break thru for me was learning to make everything a component i.e. if I have a cabinet side with rabbets for holding the top and bottom, and dadoes for holding the middle partitions or the back, make that whole board a component - then duplicate it to make the other side. Makes using the inferences to match up edges and such a *whole* lot easier.

What SU helps me with the most is being able to see how everything *should* go together. For the most part I can picture what I want to build in my head, but I'm lousy at figuring the dimensions needed in 3D.

Monte