Improve and expand Non-Core Wall visibility functionality

[richardsachs4475]

The ability to turn off non-core wall layers in Revit 2022 in plan is a great first step but please allow this functionality to apply in all views and apply it to all family categories with compound layers like floors and roofs.

Second allow us to filter which elements this applies to. My firm has both structural and architectural working in the same models and structural’s needs are very different than architectural’s. Structural may need to show exterior finish layers like masonry veneer but not metal panel or wood siding.  Filtering for this would greatly improve flexibility.

Third, please allow us to control cut pattern by view for wall (or other compound assembly) layers. At our firm, structural has different hatch patterns than architectural and this has forced us to model our exterior finishes separate from our cores so structural can show walls one way and architectural can another, which is less than ideal.  Also, architecturally, we may want a hatch to show up in wall sections for one layer that we don’t want to show up in plan for instance.  Even with filters you cannot control this for compound assemblies since it applies to the whole assembly not individual layers.

Better yet allow us to filter by material for all components. We don’t always want an element's materials to display the same in every view. Filters work fine for singular things but not compound elements or families with multiple materials.

[mp_thompson]

I'd like to see the option to switch off/on visibility for layers/various strucrues on walls (primarily but potentially floors, roofs etc) in all views.

I.e. I only want to display the structure off walls in some views rather than the finish.

The current workaround with override of host layers isn't ideal and simply being able to control the visibility of plaster for example or display only blockwork/studwork would be preferable.

[Anonymous]

It would be fantastic to be able to easily control the visibility of selected layers in compound structures like walls, floors and roofs.

If you could turn the visibility off for all layers except those that have structural material assign to it or all layers that are not between layer boundaries it would both improve the collaboration process between architects and structural engineers as well as making the modelling workflow for the architects a whole lot easier. I know this is manageable in a way by using parts but that workflow increases the model file size and can be really difficult to create and manage in bigger models.

[Karol_Piroska]

Allow to hide/show wall layers based on their function (structural/architectural layer), assign different line style etc. 

Change the way an air gap is represented in 3D if it wouldn't be possible to hide it.

[craigh_bim]

This is imperative. If I have a wall with a Structural Concrete Core, I would like the rest of the wall to turn off on my slab plans, but have the core show up. I shouldn't have to re-model the core wall.

Additionally, I probably don't want the metal wall core to show up. So there needs to be a checkbox for the wall material to be structural vs structural +1 (whatever that variable is). And maybe that's a filter.

If I turn my Architectural model view discipline from Architecture to Structural, the non structural assemblies AND wall layers should disappear.

Thank you for raising this issue.

[tony.crawford]

If you use the "Override Host Layers -- Cut Line Styles" option at the bottom of the Visibility Graphics dialog box, it allows you to edit the graphics of wall layers based on their function. Does this give you what you are looking for? 

[craigh_bim]

@Anonymous

Not really. I've used that workaround before, but the graphics are really unpredictable. Each layer function has properties control; weight/color/pattern. But I can't turn them off completely. So even if the line is off white it can be problematic. Then I can't hide the cut patterns. So I need a filter for that. But then I can't control the Walls category only, so I need a filter for that. In the end, it's not worth it.

[tony.crawford]

Hmm, yes. You should be able to do what you are asking for. 

[GA-LT]

It will help to work on one model by architects and structure guys. Without this simple trick this cooperation is very complicated and sometimes not possible. Parts does the work but we need computers from NASA to work on large models so in fact is useless…

Hope “they” implement this soon

[Troy_Gates]

I'd love to see each of the wall layers become a sub-category of the Wall category so that we can control visibility of the different wall layers via Visibility/Graphics and using View Templates or View Filters.

[lionel.kai]

Maybe be able to assign each layer as a "Cut Structure" (or "Continuous" or "Solid"), "Beyond Structure" (or "Framed" or "Discontinuous"), or "Finish" (or "Reference") in the Wall Type? Showing Finish vs Core is usually not a problem for us (Structural Engineers) as we halftone the Architect's link and only model the Core. But we'd like to be able distinguish between a Wall's concrete or plywood sheathing layers (which should be shown in a darker "cut" line - for us: LW 4) and wood or metal stud layers (which should be shown with a "beyond" line, and maybe even "hidden" lines for the flanges - for us: LW 2). We've tried using the Host Layers override mentioned above, but couldn't get what we wanted to see, so we just put in line-based detail components for the stud walls...

[mseiser]

We are looking for ways to better manage the ever changing stud bearing and shear walls and are exploring using the Arch walls the somehow identify which we want for bearing and shear. We DO NOT want to go into the Arch model or ask the Arch to modify anything for us. This is always a nightmare and dependent on how eager our client is to help us. I did try the "Cut Line Styles" option but it seems to have been developed half way. Not all of the wall layers used in the model show up and this could use a simple visibility switch rather than changing the color to white to make the lines not print. I can't believe no one at Autodesk thought of this. I guess there aren't enough Structural Engineers to create a business case for this??

It would be nice to somehow give us full control over the visibility of wall layers....very soon. The Arch walls changes are killing our budgets!

[tamas.deri]

Fun Fact: Revit already has sub-categories for the different layers (not visible in the UI, but it is accessible in the API, try Revit LookUp), only their visiblity is not controllable by design (it is hardcoded this way...)

[lionel.kai]

@tamas.deri Yes, there are already sub-categories, and ONLY THE CUT LINES are controllable (bottom-right of the v/g dialog), but not for individual types or even categories (can't make stud different than CMU, or even Walls different than Floors), and there's no control over patterns or visibility.

[dominic.bond]

This would be a massively useful feature and would also help manage layer functions.  We often have lots of different wall, floor, ceiling or roof types and managing how they behave when they join can be tricky.  If I could set up a view template which assigned different colours to each layer function, that would be great.  I know I can do this already to a degree using Host Layer Line Styles, but this only colours the layer edges, not the cut patterns and it's therefore not that clear.

[Anonymous]

In some of our designs, we have to show all the layers in a compound wall in a separate view for compliance requirements, but the builder/trades people only want to see the studs and some types of external cladding. 

What we do now as a workaround is 

1. Create parts and filter out the layers I want. But because this shows a line at the joins, I have to go back and merge the parts so the joints look cleaner.

2. Override the cut styles to be white: This has created some issues with dimensions as the wrong layers were snapped onto. I know we can set the snaps to core face or Wall face and etc., but this does not mean that it will snap onto other wall layers.

So what I would like to have is the ability hide in view, using filters, the different wall layers by their functionality.

For Example:

A wall has three layers. Brick(Finish 1[4]), Timber Stud(Structure) and Plasterboard(Finish 2[5])

On one view, I want to show all the three layers. 

But on the second view, I only want to show the Brick and the Timber Stud Layers and hide the Plasterboard Layer by use of filters.

[Anonymous]

A simple tweak - and I'm amazed it's not possible yet. 

Controlling visibility of layers in Compound Walls(or the sandwich walls). And I'm talking both hiding and controlling and overriding visibility of lines and patterns of a compound wall with filters in view template

This is something that would be super useful for better documentation yet it's impossible to achieve. Something resembling this functionality are filters for parts - but that's useless since parts are irreversible. Please upvote, maybe we'll see  it in Revit 2026.

[dplumb_BWBR]

That would be a GREAT solution for Finish Floors.

No more modeling an extra floor in each room?

Not sure how you'd deal with the "empty" space if the carpet or tile isn't shown, but it has potential

[craigh_bim]

@richardsachs4475

I was part of the functionality testing for this feature, and I can assure you additional functionality is on the way. It was not perfect, but it was a good start. There will be evolutionary changes coming.

We had extensive discussions about breaking out each layer function of the wall, however it became quite a problem to achieve. Is it by wall function? The sequence of the layer? Why are we using a 'negative' term like non-core? Why not Finish layers? It just became to complex for the short time period. Any additional work would have needed to push it another year.

Structural and Architectural was the exact reason this functionality was created. Architects model a lot of structure within the walls, but we also do slab plans where showing the structural wall is valuable. It's silly to model them twice.

[kimberly.fuhrman]

Hi, @richardsachs4475 ,

I'm going to go ahead and update this to Accepted. There is an item on the Revit Public Roadmap, and @craigh_bim is correct, this is still in development. Thank you for your additional feedback and input into this Idea! You can also vote on the feature in the roadmap!

Kimberly

[aaronBWC]

Hi, yes, this is an incredibly useful feature. 

Please also add this visibility setting for all view types, including 3D views.

In the design-build, offsite-fabrication world, the ability to distinguish and toggle between structural, and non-structural / finish layers is essential.

Thank you @richardsachs4475 for starting the conversation!