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Recent Posts
Using a Non-Standard Pipe Type in HydraCALC
A customer called today asking how to enter a 1″ black plastic underground pipe for the calc. This particular situation sounded unique enough that I did not tell him to add that pipe type to our database, as I would have if he expected to see this pipe type used repeatedly. I told him to…
Using the Hydratec Software Download Area
Hydratec uses ShareFile to distribute our software installs and updates. New customers, or those without access, must request access to be able to get at these downloads. Access is only available to customers with a Hydratec subscription or those on an update plan. You can access the download area and request access by picking the…
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Author: art
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Grips, IMHO, are the best thing AutoCAD ever added to their program. When they first came out, everyone freaked out (myself included) and we turned them off until we got a better, um, grip on them. Many (most?) people use grips to move a single object. But, they can be handy to use many objects…
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From a Customer: "On this job, the main is sloping (using the sloping pipe block), as are the lines. I need the last head to be 5” down from the deck. I Gave them a fixed elevation of [5 Bts] and a fixed elevation at the top of the riser, [34 BTS], but it does…
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From a customer: "When I mirror typical piping for an area, how can I get the riser nipples to rotate properly without having to reinsert them all?" This is from the drawing he sent me: There is a solution. And, the truth is, I didn't know about the following tool myself. 1. Pick the 3D…
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You likely know that Ceiling Heights and Drop/Sprig Lengths are inserted using the same tool, but here is a list of some things you might not know about this tool: 1. If you are manually specifying the drop lengths, then use the User Specified setting under Length Determination. If you want the computer to figure…
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Most people seem to know that holding down the ALT key while tapping the TAB key switches Windows applications, not as many appear to know that holding down the CTRL key while tapping the TAB key cycles through open Documents or Drawings _within_ the current window. In other words, if you are in AutoCAD, and…
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These four commands really make it easy to modify drawings. Move Main and Move Line have different options, but Erase Main and Erase Line work the same as each other. Move Main Move Main can be used to move your main over just a little, or over a lot. It can even be used to…
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Sometime back, I don't know when (between AutoCAD 2010 and AutoCAD 2013), AutoCAD altered the command line so that you can select the option on commands instead of typing it in. To see what I mean, type in ARRAY at the command line to see an example. Select any drawing entity and press enter. The…
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The Lay Out Hangers command came about because one of my coworkers suggested that it would be cool if a hanger command existed that acted like Main Couplings. Why? Well, Main Coupling will allow you to pick a welded line to visualize where the couplings will go before they are inserted, and it will offset…
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RapidRefs has been around for a while, previously as its own command with its own button and everything. It is now integrated into the Reference Point command as an option. What's it for? It excels at labeling ref points at the top and bottom of multiple riser nipples, as in those present along a main…
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If you have an industrial park with a common undergound loop, or many floors in a building with piping out to a pump house, or any need to reuse supply piping, then the Open Append option in HydraCALC is for you. It will add the file you select to the job you currently have open.…
The H-Factor 