Understanding designs (blue prints)

unless they work for the government. then 3' is close enough to 3'5" to pass inspection

lP...

It's a fact of life.....approximately 10% of builders can read a plan...and on a good day about 50% of Architects can read a plan.

I know.....I've been pretending to be able to read them for 30 years....

 

As for a half inch error.....typical building practise has degrees of tolerance...and in the case of plumbing rough-in....half an inch would be acceptable...

rent-a-drunks

Thats what you get for living in the south.

Right, all over to IP's house. I'll bring a wrench. Someone bring a hammer. Kona, you bring that brand new axe that we could not find any use for yesterday. We can raid IP's stash of ice cold Buds whilst we are over there

I'm majoring in engineering, and tolerances depend on what you are building. A house has more tolerance then a car, which in turn has more tolerance then a computer chip. At least thats what my instructors say.

Jafo, yes but not when it is already off and they call out a number to the person cutting the pipe who cuts it short

true very true, but at least you get the Bolt Pattern lined up correctly !!!

This is no joke, I had to cut out and cut off a flange today that had the toilet tank on one end sitting at 3 inches away from the *square* wall and 1 1/2 inches away at the other end of the tank...

I'm sorry but 1 1/2 inches it little more than two feet is not something I would have accepted from anyone I had working for me, and I definitly would not have done it....

Travis, yes, your instructors are correct without a doubt, Building a home it not the same as designing a mold used in inject molding, or designing an ari cylinder ( both of which I used to do for a short time )...

Also, for instance, the intieror of a car has looser tolerences than say the crank, berrings, journels, rods, wristpins, pistons, rings, deck and heads...

Ever heard an engine start up after someone shaved off too much from the deck without taking all those tings into consideration

BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG! BOOM
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I watched a building crew build my architect uncle's house, and one day I asked them why the were not putting the rebar in the basement wals as specified.
They said, "Architects over engineer everything, and we feel that the walls don't need it."
So I asked, "And how long did you study stress loads in engineering school?"
By this time the concrete trucks showed up on site, and I told the crew that they can do as they will, but, when you have to tear these walls down to the foundation on your own dime, then we will see how smart you are."

They canceled the concrete order, bought the rebar, tore down the forms and did it right, cost them several days and who knows how much money.
My guess was, when they "Read" the plans, they decided to forego the rebar, to bid the job low enough to land the job.

I watched a building crew build my architect uncle's house, and one day I asked them why the were not putting the rebar in the basement wals as specified.
They said, "Architects over engineer everything, and we feel that the walls don't need it."
So I asked, "And how long did you study stress loads in engineering school?"
By this time the concrete trucks showed up on site, and I told the crew that they can do as they will, but, when you have to tear these walls down to the foundation on your own dime, then we will see how smart you are."

They canceled the concrete order, bought the rebar, tore down the forms and did it right, cost them several days and who knows how much money.
My guess was, when they "Read" the plans, they decided to forego the rebar, to bid the job low enough to land the job.

My guess was, when they "Read" the plans, they decided to forego the rebar, to bid the job low enough to land the job.

exactly so, and on a smaller scale this can be applied to many things...

the difference between a craftsman and a carpenter are simple.

A Craftsman will look at something finished see the flaws and debate over mentioning the check, a Carpentaer will see the check and present the contract and discuss the flaws in the truck on the way to the store for Beer 30...

Close enough for Government work is something I was fast on learning is not acceptable.. Big brothers are a bitch to word for, remember being sent to the truck for the rest of the day more than once. Of course I could always fight him about it if I wanted to and if I won I could ignore him telling me to go sit in the truck. But.... 140 lbs against 235 - 260 just didn't seem like good odds, that and the fact he ddin't feel pain like a normal person...

IPlural, in the words of my Mechanical Drafting teacher....
...There is nothing a 16lb sledge hammer cant fix.

Or the more technical term - BFH!

Someone once asked...'what's the difference between a carpenter and a joiner?'

I told him....'a joiner still has all his fingers'..

gah... i hate making prints, but reading them!!! now that sux, especially when u have to turn those prints into a 3d model . Anyone who can read a good set of plans on any given day has my respect

How about architects that design a commercial building that is beautifully landscaped, to the point that the loading/unloading docks are almost completely unusable due to the fact the access road twists and turns all over the place, and the area in front of the dock doors lacks about 3 feet of room to maneuver a truck in.

Or designers that make cup holders that fit no known bottle or cup, and dump it on the floor the first bump you hit.

Or engineers that decided that a 4 inch filler hole was necessary in a diesel tank for the 1 1/2 nozzle to fit...requiring bungee cords and whatnot to keep the nozzle from falling out during fueling. Probably the same ones that decided thin sheet metal brackets are a good place to bolt air line fixtures to...so that it just bends around when you try to wrench the fitting off.


I don't have much use for 'em.

....'a joiner still has all his fingers'

true very true

Kona, you bring that brand new axe that we could not find any use for yesterday.

Oh man i just shined that axe up, sharpened it and the wife told me to put it away.

I have a few tanks....

gah... i hate making prints, but reading them!!! now that sux,

I love making designs on my AutoCAD but reading them does and always will suck.

I'm remodeling the exterior of my home. The hardware store where I purchsed the windows asked for the rough opening dimensions to use when ordering the window sizes. I asked him if he wanted exact dimensions or rounded to the next inch. He said exact. The windows I received were 1/4" too big in both dimensions. Phhhht

autocad. I hate that program. Had to use mech. desktop ( an extra addon to autocad) and after 4 months I couldn't stand it no more. I guess I'll have to get used to it though...

werewolf....the 'normal' requirement is to provide the stud-opening size or O/D window frame size.

Generally errors occur when the interpretation of what dimension was provided is wrong.

Stud opening is safest as it puts the onus on the window manufacturer to provide a window with fitting clearances for packing, etc....and if not the correct size [smaller than the stud opening] they will be obliged to replace/adjust at their expense....

Tolerances are designed into a standard building construction...and acceptable tolerances vary with different parts of a structure.

I gotta know all this....it's my [real] job.....