Learn about the process of connecting sprinklers to branch lines using arm overs with Revit, a software for BIM. This article provides a detailed, step-by-step guide on how to effectively work on both plan and section views simultaneously, ensuring correct pipe diameter selection and utilizing the reducing elbow feature to avoid unnecessary transition pieces.
Key Insights
- The article provides a comprehensive guide on using Revit software to connect sprinklers to branch lines using arm overs, demonstrating how to work with both plan and section views simultaneously.
- It elaborates on the importance of correctly selecting pipe diameters and highlights a common issue where Revit defaults to a half inch pipe due to a half inch orifice on the sprinkler, which needs to be manually adjusted to one inch.
- It also emphasizes the practical use of a reducing elbow in avoiding unnecessary transition pieces when dealing with different pipe sizes, by outlining a step-by-step process to select and apply this feature within the software.
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Let's continue connecting our sprinklers to the branch lines with arm overs. We have our section view here. We connected this, and remember we have our one-inch arm over connected with the T. So let's move our section, and let's shorten it up a bit so we can go to here and drag this to about right here; that's okay. And we're going to move up to the next sprinkler. Now, a really useful thing to do in Revit is using Window Tile.
So first, let's right-click on our section, go to View, we'll go back to Level 1, and now let's type WT. Now we have on this window our plan view of our piping plan, and on this side we have our section view. We can work on both at the same time.
So let's go to our section view, click on the sprinkler, right-click, Draw Pipe. Now, remember, because we have a half-inch orifice on this sprinkler, Revit likes to default to half-inch pipe. We're going to have to remember to change our diameter to one inch, and we'll go all the way up.
Right here, we're at the same elevation as our branch line, and let's go over just a little bit. Let's stop right here. Now let's go back to our piping plan view, and we can see over here is that piece of pipe we drew, but let's drag this branch line back a little bit so it's flush with the sprinkler.
We should see a vertical line like that. Okay, now I'll go back to my section view, and I will drag this. You might have to zoom in, and right on the center of the pipe there.
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Now, look what we have going on here. We have this transition piece. We don't really want that.
So what we're going to do in this case is let's go back to our plan view, click on this elbow. We can see it's a threaded standard elbow, but because this piece of pipe is one-and-a-quarter-inch, and the arm over is one inch, in this case let's use a reducing elbow. So all we need to do is click on this elbow, go to our Properties, we'll scroll down, and we'll look for our Elbow Reducing Threaded, click Standard.
Now we can see we don't have the reducer anymore, and we have a piece of one-inch arm over. All right, so we can zoom out on both. Now let's work on these two branch lines connecting our sprinklers.
We have a section here. Now this time let's rotate it. We'll click on it.
We'll go to the Rotate tool. We'll start here, and we'll rotate it 90 degrees. Zoom in to be able to grab it, and let's start about right here, and let's drag it all the way across like this.
Now, if we zoom out on our section view, we can see this sprinkler, this sprinkler. We're not seeing this sprinkler, so let's pull back just a little bit, and drag this forward. Now we can see one, two, three.
Now it's just a matter of connecting these with one-inch arm overs. So let's start at this sprinkler. Right-click, Draw Pipe, one inch.
Now sometimes it'll snap to the same elevation as the branch line, and sometimes it won't, but we know it's at 12 feet. We can stop about right here, and my elevation right now is at 12 foot 1. We don't want that, so I'm just going to change it to 12 feet. Okay, now if I go back to my plan view, here is that piece of pipe.
So there are a few ways we can do this. I can click on the branch line. Let's go to Trim/Extend Single Element.
Let's click on our branch line, and click on the arm over. Perfect, and in this case, we want our outlet, which is a threaded outlet in this case, connected to this one-inch pipe. All right, let's keep going back into my section view.
I'll zoom out just a little bit. This time, this sprinkler. Right-click, Draw Pipe, one inch, and in this case, I'm at 12 feet.
Back to my plan view, Trim/Extend. Make sure you click in the plan view first, and then you can select these options. Branch line, arm over, and it's connected.
Okay, and in the next video, we'll continue to connect our sprinklers to the arm overs.
