How to select specific elements

[Darwin33]

I would like to know the best way to select specific items, ie all the slabs of a level. In autocad as you use layers is easy, but in revit seems complicated. If you select all and then deselect with the filter pop up, and select again walls for instance, it select all walls in the building. How can I select only the walls in the first floor for instance? My best guess is to select all, named it and then apply  filter per selection, but seems quite complicated, is there anything easier?

[syman2000]

Have you try temporary view? I find this is very powerful for selecting certain objects and you can turn off pretty much anything. It is more customizable and view specific.

[lucdoucet_msdl]

@Darwin33 

In addition to @syman2000's suggestion, there are multiple ways of selecting multiple elements in OOTB revit:

1. Set a temporary view setting as @syman2000  suggests and use visibility graphics to show only the combination of categories, view filters, and other overrides you want;
2. Select a model element of type of category in the view and click the isolate element icon (eyeglasses), choosing to isolate that one element or all elements of the same category (similar to the temporary view settings but quicker);
3. From the project browser, select a type instance from the families group and right click to select all  similar in the view or in the project. Then you can isolate them in the view with methode 2;
4. Manually select model elements and save a selection set from the Modify tab;
5. Using Dynamo, you can create a script which can automatically select all instances of a family that are hosted on a specific level. This script can be automated in the Dynamo player for ease of access to user unfamiliar with Dynamo.
6. Create a schedule for the element category and list the family+type and associated level. Filter by level equal to the target level. When the schedule displays, control select the first and last elements in the Family+type column. From the modify Schedule context menu, select highlight in the model.

Methods 1 thru 4 are error prone because it won't be obvious which elements are hosted on which level. The dynamo script and schedules methods 5 and 6 will ensure that the hosted level is correct even though the element may have a large offset value from the level.

In your specific example, I would do the following:

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How can I select only the walls in the first floor for instance?

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Using method 6:

1. Create a wall schedule, with parameters Family+Type and Level;
2. Filter or sort by level;
3. Control click the first and last cells in the Family+Type column which are on the desired floor;
4. The selected items display in a view of the model but are not yet selected;
5. In the Modify Schedule Context tab, select highlight in the model and click finish;
6. The model elements are now selected.

Hope this helps,

-luc

[RDAOU]

@Darwin33 

Easy, 

1. Open the floor Plan of the level you are looking at (side by side with the 3D or on a 2nd or 3rd monitor)
2. Select an element >> Right click >> Select All instances >> In view 

To make it even easier...assign a shortcut to it

[barthbradley]

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@Darwin33 wrote:

I would like to know the best way to select specific items, ie all the slabs of a level. 

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Out of curiosity, what's your next move after you selecting all the slabs on a particular level?   I mean, simply selecting them is just a means to an end. What's the end? 

[Darwin33]

Sometimes in complex projects you need to isolate some items to underestand the geometry i/or colisions. That happens with dense models.

[ToanDN · Accepted solution]

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@Darwin33 wrote:

Sometimes in complex projects you need to isolate some items to underestand the geometry i/or colisions. That happens with dense models.

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Have you tried Temporary Isolation?  Select one element and use the sunglasses icon.

[yaran.kaelaniTM7UK]

Works really well! Thank you for sharing!