12 TIPS TO MASTER REVIT DOOR FAMILIES

12 TIPS TO MASTER REVIT DOOR FAMILIES

1- UNDERSTAND WHAT TO MODEL AND WHAT TO NEST

To properly organize your Revit door family, make sure to understand which part should be modeled directly in the main door family, and which part should be loaded as a nested family. For those without programming experience: a nested family means a family inside a family. Take a look at this chart:

This is an optimal workflow for beginners and intermediate users. Model the door panel and frame directly in the main door family. Use nested families for the plan swing and for any hardware components like handles.

This technique has an exception: if you are an advanced user with a large library of panels and frames, it can be a good idea to use nested families for everything. In this advanced strategy, the main door family is only used to contain all the nested families

2- PLAN THE DOOR YOU WANT TO CREATE

Before creating the family, make sure you understand what kind of door family you want to create. Here is the kind of information you need to know:

- Will you be using a steel frame or a wood frame?

- Is it a simple door or a double door?

- Do you want a trim around the door opening?

- Are you going to use the door for 3D views and renderings? If so, you will need to think about hardware families for more realism.

- Are you creating a door with a simple solid panel, or with a multiple panels and glazing?

- What dimensions to you want to be able to customize apart from the width and height of the door?

Draw a sketch of the door you need. Start to plan which parameters and reference planes you will have to create.

When you are ready, create a new door family using the standard Autodesk door family template.

3- USE EXTRUSION TO MODEL DOOR PANELS

Most door panels should be modeled using the Extrusion tool. Use the “Pick Lines” Drawing option. Go to an elevation and lock the boundary lines to the reference planes.

Then, assign the door thickness in plan view. Create a new reference plane and assign a “Thickness” dimension. Align the door panel to the new reference plane and lock.

4- SET UP THE “ROUGH” DIMENSIONS

Sometimes, you might want to know the total wall opening dimension, which might be different from the door panel when you include the frame. That is when the Rough Width and Rough Height dimensions become useful.

Usually, the rough dimensions are found by adding the door Height and Width to the frame thickness. You might also want to subtract a value to account for the overlap between the frame and the wall. In the example below, we created a formula to automatically calculate Rough Width and Rough Height values. We consider there is an wall/frame overlap of 19mm. If you modify the Frame Thickness, the Height or the Width, the rough dimensions will automatically be updated.

The door Opening Cut is usually created in relation to the rough dimensions. In the door elevation, make sure to lock the Opening Cut to reference planes that are associated to the “Rough Width” and “Rough Height”