Electrical
Sockets, switches, lights, alarms and the consumer unit, placed on the plan with their symbols and wired with cables. 42 fittings, circuits added way by way on the board, switches tied to the lights they work, and checks on cable sizes and safe zones.
Every property, and what it does
Select a fitting or a cable and these are its rows. A band shows when it applies, so a consumer unit has its ways and a light lists the switches that work it.
The catalogue
The fittings, by the system they are on.
| Field | What it does | Values |
|---|---|---|
| Power | The power fittings, each with its plan symbol and its usual mounting height. | Double socket outlet, Outdoor socket, Cooker connection unit, EV charge point, Smoke alarm, Heat alarm, Consumer unit, Dishwasher, Fridge freezer, Washing machine, Tumble dryer, Floor socket, Isolator, Emergency stop, Contactor, Junction box, CO alarm, Sounder, Electric cooker, Microwave, Freezer, Distribution board, Energy meter, UPS, AC isolator |
| Lighting | The lighting fittings, each with its plan symbol and its usual mounting height. | Switch, 1 gang, Dimmer, Ceiling light point, External light, Switch, 2 way, Pull cord switch, Scene keypad, Downlight, Movement sensor |
| Data | The data fittings, each with its plan symbol and its usual mounting height. | Data outlet, Data junction box |
| Television | The television fittings, each with its plan symbol and its usual mounting height. | TV outlet |
| Communication | The communication fittings, each with its plan symbol and its usual mounting height. | Telephone outlet |
| Earthing and bonding | The earthing and bonding fittings, each with its plan symbol and its usual mounting height. | Earthing switch, Main earthing terminal, Earth electrode, Bonding clamp |
Element
What the selected run or fitting is, and which trade it belongs to.
| Field | What it does | Values |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | The catalogue name of the fitting, or the kind of run. | Read from the element |
| Kind | The catalogue entry it was drawn from. Change it to swap the fitting, keeping where it sits. | The 42 fittings of the trade |
| System | What it carries. It decides which trade owns it, its colour and its schedule. | Power, Lighting, Data, Television, Communication, Earthing and bonding |
| Trade | The trade that owns it, read from the system. To move it, change the system. | Read from the system |
| Supply | Whether a fitting that needs a supply is connected to one by a run. | Connected, Not connected, Not required |
Design
Wall plates, downlights and alarms are drawn from their own design: the face, the modules, a switch, USB ports.
| Field | What it does | Values |
|---|---|---|
| Preset | A named design for the fitting. Change anything in it and it reads as modified. | The fitting's named designs |
| Design controls | The parts of the fitting itself, drawn from its own generator, so its symbol and its 3D body follow. | By fitting |
| What that makes it | What the design comes to, read only, so the schedule cannot disagree with the fitting. | Modules, Rated, Assumed load, Plate, Projection, Box needed, Protection, USB output |
Ways
Select a consumer unit or a distribution board to list its ways, the circuits it feeds.
| Field | What it does | Values |
|---|---|---|
| Way | What the board schedule prints for this circuit. | Any name |
| Kind | What the circuit serves. | Power, Lighting, Appliance, Heating |
| Device | The rating of the protective device, in amps. | Amps |
| Protection | Residual current and arc fault protection on this way. | RCD, AFDD |
| Cable | Draws a cable on this way: everything it reaches lands on the schedule with nothing typed. | Wire the way |
| Add a way, Remove | A new circuit of a kind, numbered after the last, or takes one off the board. | One click |
Controls and Switched by
A switch lists the lights it works; a light lists the switches that work it.
| Field | What it does | Values |
|---|---|---|
| Controls | On a switch, tick each light it works. A light worked by two switches is a two way. | The lights on the plan |
| Switched by | On a light, the switch or switches that work it. | Switch, Two way |
| Wired to | The circuit a fitting is on, read from the cables it sits on. | Read from the cables |
Size
The size of a run, and how the plan draws it.
| Field | What it does | Values |
|---|---|---|
| Nominal | The diameter of a round run, or the larger side of a duct. | Cable sizes in mm, from the trade's usual size |
| Shape | Round, or rectangular with a width and a height. | Round, Rectangular |
| Drawn as | Runs 75 mm and over are drawn to their width with two lines; smaller ones as a single line. | Single line, Double line to width |
Where it runs, where it sits
A run has two ends and a level at each; a fitting has a height and a facing.
| Field | What it does | Values |
|---|---|---|
| Start, End | The fitting each end is bound to. A bound end goes wherever the fitting goes. | Read from the plan |
| Level at start, Level at end | How high each end is above the storey's floor. | Millimetres |
| Invert at start, Invert at end | The level of the inside bottom of the pipe at each end, for runs that fall. | Derived from the run it leaves and its gradient |
| Length in plan | The run's length on the plan. | Read from the plan |
| Drop | How far the run falls from start to end. | Derived from the two levels |
| Height | How high a fitting stands above the storey's floor. Negative is below ground. | Millimetres; each fitting starts at its usual height |
| Facing | Which way a fitting faces, anticlockwise from east. 90 faces up the page. | Degrees |
| Flip to the other side | Moves a wall fitting onto the other face of its wall, pointing into the other room. | One click |
Belongs to
What the schedule files it under, and whether a person has checked it.
| Field | What it does | Values |
|---|---|---|
| Circuit | The circuit or zone the schedule files it under. Where a fitting is wired, the wiring decides. | Any name |
| Proposed | Marks what a generator wrote and nobody has checked yet. Confirm clears it. | Confirm |
| Cable check | A cable's capacity against its circuit, and the voltage it drops along its length (BS 7671 Table 4D5 and 525). | Read from the cable |
How the Electrical tools work
Open Electrical
In the editor, open CAD tools and choose Electrical. The group has three tools: Catalogue (ELECTRICAL), Cable (CABLE) and Place (PLACEELEC).
Place the fittings
Pick a fitting from the catalogue by its system and click where it goes. It stands at its usual height, which its panel can change.
Draw the cables
With Cable (CABLE), click each point and press Enter. A run that starts or ends on a fitting snaps to its connection point and is joined to it.
Build the board
Select the consumer unit and add its ways. Use Controls (CONTROLS) to tie each switch to its lights; the Schedules tab prints the board.
Electrical questions, answered.
What can I place?
Sockets, switches and dimmers, ceiling points and downlights, smoke, heat and CO alarms, data, TV and phone outlets, appliances, consumer units and distribution boards, meters and earthing.
Where do the breakers go?
Inside the board, as on every electrical drawing: select the consumer unit to add its ways, each with its rating and its RCD or AFDD protection.
Does it check the layout?
Yes, as advice: cable sizes and voltage drop, cables outside the safe zones of a wall, missing bonding, socket circuits without RCD protection. An electrician designs and certifies the installation.
Are the services in 3D too?
Yes. Runs are built as real cables, pipes and ducts at their levels, fittings stand at their heights, and a run that crosses a wall or a floor cuts its own hole through it.
Read on
- Solar PV: Panels, inverters and batteries, and their DC cabling.
- Lights: Light fittings that light the 3D render.
- Electrical docs: Circuits, the board and the checks, in full.