Topography

NB. if you have contour map already:

• Insert, Image - will place the image behind so you can trace the lines.
• Anything 2D can be scaled - so pick something on the image you know the dimension of and use the Scale Tool (modify, 2 squares icon).

Massing & Site - menu options.
Topography - NB. can only work with this when in the 'site' view (project browser).

• Toposurface tool, Points - the elevation of each will be shown in the options bar where you can change this, that is, change the elevation and trace over contour lines
• Topography = 'existing' phase (see below about phasing). That is, the topography exists at the start, you will be 'rennovating' it.
• So, you'll need to change your site to 'existing' phase in the Properties, Phase area.

Contour lines - click on existing ones (or just the outside line if that's all you have so far), and a menu option 'Edit Surface' will appear, click on this, then add the correct elevation for the new contour line and 'Add point' along the contour lines.

To make contour lines visible, can change this by clicking on the Model Site menu option and adjusting the 'At Intervals of' distance. eg. change to 500mm or 250mm or 5000mm etc. whatever your contour lines are at.

NB. when placing building, make the topography offset down by around 300mm (offset -300) to create appropriate step up to building pad/floors (make ground lower than building, not in line with)
Building pad
This is like an excavation tool - with shear sides...

• Building pad tool. Draw your pad, tick.
• This takes means of elevations and creates a pad at the best height.

However, only use building pad when:

• massing or
• quickly flatten something or
• when you have a basement.

Grading tool
This is the more common way to create a building site.

• Tool = Graded Region, when you choose this, Revit will ask a question, select the second option (create a new toposurface based on the perimeter points only)
• Then click on the topography to activate the place point tool, change the elevation points to what you want (options bar)
• NB. select wireframe view to see where you are going
• Now change phase filter to 'show complete'

Topography Schedule - to calculate cuts & fills

• If you create a section now, it will show 2 phases, the existing (dotted line) and the new graded line (solid)
• So you don't want to see the extra hatching which is the old typography but still want to show where the existing topography went:
• Detail lines - (NB anything in this section is view-specific only)
• Annotate, Detail Line (or DL for short), select line style = hidden line (dashed), and trace over the existing phase line
• Then filder the phase to 'Show Complete'

NB. Far clip offset = the section line, you can move this..It will be the depth that displays. Usually you would select 'no clip'. But 'zero' sections are sometimes used for the far clip (eg. offset of 1 - won't let you choose zero).

Subregions = for different materials on the typography such as driveways, lake, pool, parking etc.

Labelling contour dimensions

• Massing & Site
• Label contours
• Click on one side (like you're going to make a section line) and then the other and the labels will be added automatically along that line (this line is only shown temporarily while you're in this mode)...

Site Components
eg. parking components, etc
NB. Site, place when in site view (eg. not ground level) and these will follow the contours

Retaining wall/embankments
Place a wall, Create a section
Move contour points onto the line of the wall, edit the contours, click on 'add point'

• NB. The Fourth Dimension (time)
• phasing - new, existing (property) and can filter these eg. for rennovations
• so for typography you use the 'existing' phase then change it so final will be seen only when filtering to 'show complete'. Therefore, change site to 'existing' when starting off (Properties, Phase area)
• Demolish tool
• This is in the Manage tool options...NB. will only work on walls change to 'existing' phase.
• nb. to clean up, drag ends of lines don't use the trim tool, with Demolish.