Locking the z axis while working on a 2D plan

SketchUp
1

I apologise if this has been discussed elsewhere.
I have been using Sketchup for years and I love it.
I prepare drawings for new houses etc. Most of my construction drawings are in 2D.
I have one issue that slightly bugs me when I am working on 2D drawings. Sometimes it seems that parts of my drawings do not align properly to the x and y axis and I end up with either a double face or what appears to be a face at a slight angle.
Is there a way pf locking the Z axis permanently while I work on a 2D plan?
There used to be an extension that I used on earlier versions of sketchup but since 2019 I havent been able to find anything compatible with the version of Sketchup that I am using.
Many thanks for any advice

2

??
https://sketchucation.com/pluginstore?pln=2Dtools
??

3

Whilst there may not be a way to lock an axis (in what is essentially a 3D package, not 2D), there are things you can do to avoid errors. One is to start with a ground plane on which you draw everything. Make it much larger than you need for your plan. It is easier to stay on plane that way. The second is to make full use of the cursor keys to lock direction when drafting. You will mostly be using the left and right cursor keys as buildings tend to follow X and Y axes with walls perpendicular to each other.

1 Like
4

Good advice. And work in ‘Top’ view (even save a scene for that) for then SketchUp can’t deviate from z=0 (unless it finds nearby endpoints at different z- values.)

5

Hi Simon

The idea of a ground plane is good. I was actually thinking along those lines last night. In the end I have made a 600mm grid component that I can start a drawing with and lock it in my drawing. From that I can then inference from the x and y lines anywhere on the drawing. That seemed to work quite well.

TIG kindly sent a link to plugin which will lock the z axis so I may no longer need a work around.

Cheers

Malcolm

6

A third thing you can do is to make copious use of construction lines, especially if you are able to infer them from a main axis. Snapping to them and any intersections between them, will also help to keep things on plane.