Unable to delete a surface

[dslocum]

Using Civil 3D 2014...I have two surfaces in my drawing that I can't delete. I have cleared all known features, alignments, etc. but still there is no delete option in the menu. How do you go about finding the dependencies that are preventing the surfaces from being deleted?

[ToddRogers-WPM · Accepted solution]

Right click on the surface in the Toolspace and select Select.  Then hit the delete key.

[doni49 · Accepted solution]

I see the OP was able to resolve the issue.  But I thought I'd offer a comment for future reference in case someone else is ever searching for answers.

In the past, I've had a few occasions in which I wasn't able to use Todd's suggestion because when I attempted to do so, delete wasn't an option.  But yet there were no visible features/points/contours/triangles ANYWHERE in the file.

To get around this, I placed a closed polyline and added that as a breakline to the surface in question.  Now it showed me some contours.  I used the Acad delete command and chose the contours.  When it delted the contours, it also deleted the surface from my file.

[rkmcswain]

doni49 wrote:

In the past, I've had a few occasions in which I wasn't able to use Todd's suggestion because when I attempted to do so, delete wasn't an option.

Just to clarify, Todd's suggestion physically selects the surface in the graphics window, then the user presses the delete key to erase it.

When you say "delete wasn't an option", do you mean that when you pressed the delete key, it didn't erase it? -or- do you mean that "delete" was not on the right-click menu of the surface in the prospector?

[doni49]

Delete wasn't listed. I don't remember if I tried using the delete key on KB.

[ToddRogers-WPM]

Actually it's not selecting it in the graphics window because it's not there to select, so if you right-click on it in the Toolspace, and choose Select, then press the Delete key on the KB.

[rkmcswain]

TRogers wrote:

Actually it's not selecting it in the graphics window because it's not there to select,

Eh.... we're just mixing up terms here 🙂

I know what you meant, I was just trying to better spell it out, like this -> "You can select it on the graphics screen by right-clicking on the surface name in the prospector and choosing select."

When @doni49 said "delete wasn't an option", I think he was expecting to see Delete on the right-click menu, which of course is the original problem that started this thread.

[ToddRogers-WPM]

I know what you meant.  BTW, thanks for the help on the linetype, worked perfectly!

[doni49]

---

@rkmcswain wrote:

@ TRogers wrote:

Actually it's not selecting it in the graphics window because it's not there to select,

Eh.... we're just mixing up terms here 🙂

I know what you meant, I was just trying to better spell it out, like this -> "You can select it on the graphics screen by right-clicking on the surface name in the prospector and choosing select."

When @doni49 said "delete wasn't an option", I think he was expecting to see Delete on the right-click menu, which of course is the original problem that started this thread.

---

Yep.  I was expecting to see Delete on the right-click menu.  But wasn't there.  I had just started using C3D at the time so a co-worker came and looked at it for me.  He said that it was referenced somewhere.  But we were unable to find ANY references to it -- there were no dynamic links at all and there was only one other surface in the file and it wasn't referenced there.

We came to the conclusion that it must've been referenced at some point in the past and C3D thoguht it was still referenced (maybe the cleanup process had failed).

That left me "unable to delete the surface".  At the time, I didn't know about the "Select" option that Todd mentioned.  And since I wasn't able to delete from the menu, I was looking for a way to delete it graphically.  By adding a breakline to the surface, I now had graphics tied to the surface and could delete it that way.

[marisol.velilla]

That was great !!! thanks

I was having this problem for long time  🙂

[ABELLAA]

You're the only one who got me to solve my problem and my account gave kudos to a number of posters for some reason that when I click your name it registered to another poster's name (I know, sounds confusing hence this message). Btw, my issue was a completely empty surface yet it won't let me delete - apparently there IS STILL some object dependent on it. Anyway, thank you!

[jmctigue]

I had a similar situation. I realized I could just erase it.

In the toolbar, I right clicked to select the surface as suggested. Since it was an empty surface, the delete key did not work. So at the command prompt, I type: ERASE.

Presto, it was gone.

This has been a bane to me for months. It was a very helpful conversation. 

Just saw the date, much older thread than I realized.

[bdroath]

For me it was a different issue altogether.  The surface object layer was locked.  I did have a Delete option when I R-click the surface in the Prospector, but clicking on it did nothing.  Once you unlock the layer, you can delete it from the Prospector with a R-click.

[lars.ove.nygaard]

Uncheck the "object locked" in surface properties solved my problem. 

[Alas_1234]

şukunu  verdm qardeşm

[rdbailey]

Don,

Your suggestion worked.  Thank you very much!

I had three copies of my existing surface.  I am not sure how this happened, but your suggestion did the trick in removing the extra copies. 

Regards,

RDB

[abi]

Thanks! I had the exact problem, delete key didn't work but writing ERASE in the command line worked like a charm. Kudos!

[TCorker]

right click the surface in tool space and select "repair broken reference."  Civil 3D will detect that the surface is missing and provide the option to delete the reference.

[mmarenco]

Remember, if you have created profiles already using these existing surfaces then they are still tied to it. Make sure to remove/delete the surfaces from your alignments in toolspace and then delete becomes an option in your surfaces.

[lazar_laszlo]

You are GREAT!
The problem was the same in 2023 with 3 hours searching the solution 😞
You solved. Thanks