Hey guys, kinda new to Sketchup, and I think I might have done something wrong with the layers…
Im building a simple house, and have made (or so I thought) the items on layer 0 then moved them to other layers (ex. foundation on layer 1, walls on layer 2, etc)
The problem Im having is if I hide say layer 3, all the components on layer 4 and 5 also dissapear. Im guessing I have some kind of linked geometry or features? How would I go about fixing that?
How about sharing your SKP file so we can see what you’ve done.
Are you making groups or components of the parts of your model and assigning them to Layer 0? Layers do not provide separation between entities like edges and faces so you can have problems if you are moving those edges and faces to other layers.
Also, are there nested groups and components involved?
Will do! As soon as Im back at my home computer tonight that is.
I made them all components so I didnt end up moving something like a face. Then I changed the associated layers of them so I could toggle what was visible.
When I turn off an earlier layer it hides all the components, however sometimes there will be phantom lines left of various edges (different each time I hide them too weirdly enough).
…ummm I dont think theres nested groups, but then again Im still learning so I could be wrong
As soon as Im home though, Ill upload it.
Make sure that all your ‘raw geometry’ (edges, faces, circles, arcs etc) is ALWAYS on Layer0 - always leave Layer0 as the current layer.
Make groups or components of every item as you finish drawing it.
If you have nested components, leave them on Layer0 too.
ONLY (as a general rule when starting out - exceptions later) assign top level components or groups to any other layer than Layer0.
If geometries werent set up that way, could that be causing the layers to be hiding the components on subsequent layers like this? Or could there be other things other than layers?
Nested components/groups are parents that contain child components and/or groups. It is possible to put those child components/groups on different layers and the parent on another layer. This gives you finer control over what you show or don’t show in the various scenes.
For example you might have a detailed roof structure for a house set up like this:
Roof
–Roofing material
–Sheathing
–Trusses
You could create layers to match. Then, if you want to show the trusses only, you could turn off the Roofing Material and Sheathing layers. If you want to show the house without a roof, just turn off the Roof layer.
24x24 Garage foundation~.skp (1.2 MB)
Here we go, So heres the model, let me know what you guys think.
Im guessing the easiest way to fix it all is to move everything back to layer 0 and redo the moving the layers?
It is a problem with primitives (edges and faces) on incorrect layers. See the screen shots for example.
The sheathing component appears to be on the right layer.
The outer face of the sheathing (at least) is on a layer other than Layer 0.
And when all of the edges and faces in the component are selected, the Layers setting in Entity Info is blank which inidcates the primitives are on more than one layer.
I would probably be easiest to move everything back to Layer 0 and redo the layer associations for the components and groups in the model. TIG made a handy tool for returning edges and faces to the Default layer. You can get Layer Watcher from the SketchUcation Extension Store.
If you run Layer Watcher’s tool for returning edges and faces to Layer 0, you may be just fine without moving groups/components to Layer 0, too. There’s still a few weird things that need attention but it should be manageable.
Ok, good to know. not sure how I did that but sounds like I should just use TIGs fixer.
Ill download it and take a crack at it tonight or tomorrow.
Other weird things?
You have a group for the first floor framing associated with the corresponding layer, but the studs nested in that group are associated with the foundation layer. That causes some confusing behavior as layer visibilities are changed.
The floor slab is just loose geometry. There’s a single anchor bolt on the First Floor Framing layer, there are some groups within nests that are on the wrong layers. For example the studs in this wall are on the Foundation layer although the parent group is on the Second floor framing layer.
oops yeah the slab was one I did after the fact so I probably forgot to component that.
Hmm yeah I see that, moving everything back to layer 0 should clean all of that up though (aside from the slab not being a component) correct?
Followup question: If I wanted to edit/ make a cutout in just one piece of say wall sheet for a door opening etc (once they are cleaned up on the correct layers) what is the best way to do that? Make layer 0 the active layer and modify the component from there?
Is there a way to change the layer of a group, and all nested components in that group, all at the same time, or do I have to actually open each group and change all the components in it?
Yes, but the results will depend on how you go about it. TIG’s extension will affect only Faces and Edges, it will not alter Groups or Components. You’ll have to fix them all manually including opening up each and fixing layers for their nested Groups or Components.
There’s another plugin called PutOnLayer that will recursively put components or groups and their geometry on a selected layer - choose all of the model, or all the sub components/groups of a component /group that’s open for editing and it will work it’s way down the hierarchy
Thanks guys!! That PutOnLayer plugin in addition to the layerwatcher plugin from TIG fixed it!
This looks like it may be the root of your problems.
Don’t change the active layer. Keep layer 0 as the active layer 99.98% of the time.
This topic was automatically closed 183 days after the last reply. New replies are no longer allowed.
