Using a custom palette of blocks cuts drafting time for irrigation design. Load the palette when designing for large sites and choose from a collection of appropriately sized symbols for control valves, controllers, water supply, pipework, sprinklers, etc. The figure below shows a design for a 2,200-square-meter site that uses this symbol set.
The palette is designed for larger jobs and is geared to enable quantity take offs.
This movie shows how to use the palette to extract quantities of irrigation piping and other materials from irrigation designs created using gCADPlus. In this design, the ADDUPLENGTH command is used to isolate and total the length of PVC piping. The specialist gCADPlus tool for extracting block data is then used to pass symbol data to spreadsheets such as Excel for further manipulation.
This palette is part of a series that can extend the functionality of gCADPlus. Each palette is a single drawing file containing many individual symbols. Click on the link above to download a single gCADPlus file containing symbols for commercial irrigation designs (large sites).
This small movie shows how to download a palette of extra symbols to gCADPlus and use them in a developing design.
Once downloaded, use the BLOCKS command (or File > Insert) to browse to the file location and insert the drawing (or symbols within the drawing) into your current design. Alternatively, select the File drop-down menu, Insert and then Insert Block.
Tip: Choose the explode option if you want each symbol immediately available.
Using irrigation symbols
Irrigation lines are colour-coded for size and on carefully coded layer names. We have also included joiners and junction symbols matched to pipe diameter.
Tip: Most users insert these symbols in model space (or in addition in a legend in the drawing sheet title block).
Tip: If a symbol is not quite to your liking, you can edit it ‘on the fly’ by selecting it, right-clicking, and selecting the edit block.