Roof top unit ductwork

[maritza482LW]

I am trying to to pull duct from the Trane RTU unit model that I am using for a project, every time I pull from the Supply/Return and I put the dimensions I want the ductwork to be, I am getting error messages that I can't have rectangular ductwork coming straight from the model. 

[hmunsell]

looks like the connectors were placed incorrectly in the family.  was this downloaded from the vender or was it custom made?

Can you upload the family for us to look at?

[maritza482LW]

BIM and Selection Tools (trane.com)

I downloaded it straight from the Trane website. 

[hmunsell · Accepted solution]

We seldom use downloaded content due to all the issues we have had with them. But in this case, the connectors seem to be correct. I didn't have any issues hooking up duct to it.

How are you connecting to the unit? If you select the connector in an elevation, right click and pick Draw Duct, will it place the duct? 

[maritza482LW]

I was clicking on the Supply(out)/Return(In) on the model and it was giving me that error message. I'm note sure if it was because of the size of the ducts or what it was but it worked! Thank you!

[RobDraw]

---

@hmunsell wrote:

We seldom use downloaded content due to all the issues we have had with them.

---

That sucks. Most of the content from manufacturers that I see is usually usable and if there is a problem, it's usually something easy to fix. I also stay away from sites like Revit City that have user generated families of vastly different qualities.

[hmunsell]

@RobDraw...  We have run into all sorts of issues in the past, from name brand places and small places, with imbedded information, custom/shared parameters that wont schedule, generally poorly made content, etc... A big issue we have had is excessive detail built into the families. A lot of them were made in another program and then imported into the family.  We do mostly LOD300 which specifies, if I remember correct, "representative" not detailed. I have seen lock washers modeled for every bolt in a piece of equipment, equipment inside a closed cabinet that will never be seen, Valves and Accessories with there internal content molded.  I actually had a Data cabinet we downloaded that had a Key MODELED IN THE LOCK (accurately).  Furniture in particular is often over molded and kills our processing and Lighting Calcs.  A lot of venders are more concerned about making there content look pretty instead of efficient. 

Sorry... got on a bit of a soap box there..... 😁

[RobDraw]

I'm sorry but not fitting individual needs does not categorize families as unusable to the point that you recommend not using them. Just as a matter of perspective, those families are useful but not for everyone. I do 400 and 500 LOD and am usually pretty happy when I can use manufacturers families. Even when I was LOD 300 doing HVAC, manufacturers were our first stop for families. 

So, just because they don't work for you, you need to realize that they are good families. Maybe you can't deal with them but many can and do. Why bother making them if they are useless?

[hmunsell]

I will concede that they are usually functional and will often be useable, as was this case. I didn't say Don't use it, just that we don't in my office, when ever we can help it. We're fortunate enough at my office to have staff that can create clean efficient content on demand. 

[ToanDN]

I have found content from name brands are usually well created and useful.  What give me chuckles the most are those from 'boutique' vendors.

[hmunsell]

The topic of custom vs venter content could be its own string. Lots of opinions on the matter 😊. I think its safe to say none are Right or Wrong, its what ever works best for Your/Your Organizations workflow.