Printing PDF to scale in A4 - how best to annotate and add a border?

SketchUp
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Hi, new here so apologies in advance for dumb questions…

I’ve created a sketchup model of our house and would like to print elevation drawings to scale (to PDF).

I’ve managed to do this following online advice, setting Parallel Projection and using the Views toolbar to choose each elevation. With a ‘print to PDF’ program installed I can then successfully print at say 1:250 scale and create an A4 PDF from my model.

However what I would like to be able to do is add a border on the printed A4 page and some text labels (“east elevation”, “west elevation”, “Scale 1:250”, “postal address”, “name”,“date”, etc.), ideally with some information in a text box in the bottom right of the A4 page.

I’ve tried doing this with the sketchup text labels feature, but it’s difficult to judge where to put the boxes, i.e. where the A4 page will start/end. Plus when I move/zoom in/out of the model the text stays where it is.

Is there an easier way to annotate my A4 PDF print ?

Apologies if this isn’t clear and thanks in advance for any advice

Ben

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The best way to do this is to use LayOut. That’s right up its alley.

1 Like
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…quite lieterally, the reason the LayOut was created!

1 Like
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But a bit expensive for a Make user using SU for their own house, not as a professional.

For the text, you could try the Text tool positioning the Screen text (not attached to any object) at the bottom right (for example) of the screen. It will stay in the same (screen) position whatever the view.

To get different text for different elevations, use Scenes, with a different layer of Screen Text visible in each scene.

And then maybe find a (possibly free or inexpensive) PDF editor. Even an oldish version of Serif Page Plus could do it. Add your border and/or further text there. Serif has recently developed a replacement for Page Plus, and rebranded themselves as Affinity Software. The equivalent program is Affinity Designer.

Or maybe even the free Inkscape?

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The question is, what is the best way. Anything other than using LayOut is makeshift.

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many thanks for the quick responses all. It’s a good point that basically this is exactly what Layout is designed for! However as John said, $700 is expensive to do some one time drawings for a planning application.

Thanks for the other hints on how to work around it… will have a play

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Yes, you’re right. But I could put up with makeshift for a one off project to save the thick end of $695 even if there isn’t a completely free solution. And
what the OP asks for is so simple, you’d think a version of it should be in Make or Free versions.

Instead, it’s a tricky faff even to print to scale at all in Make, and apparently impossible in Free. A pity.

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