Sun Position Plug In

jetescamilla

Hello all,

this is my first post here and will probably not be my last. Since this is my first post let me give some background...I have turned to sketchup to help my wife and I plan out our house we are wanting to build on a 5 acre lot. We are going though different online house plans and constructing the basic walls and placing major furniture to see how it would look. I have been using it for only 1 day so we have not gotten though a complete model just yet, I am quickly getting better and faster. My background is structural engineering, so I am well familiar with 3d and CAD programs. Making modifications to pre-existing house plans should be an easy task for me.

Now to my question...we are new to the Washington (state not D.C.) area and have found how important windows and natural lighting are otherwise without leaving your lights on, the living areas and bedroom can feel like caves. We moved from Phoenix...windows bad. My goal would be to model my houses and be able to accurately place the sun to see how it comes into house though the day at various time of year. Also, we are wanting to have a small (10'x10') greenhouse attached between the kitchen exit and the patio, we want to ensure that it gets the light needed.

I did some searching and have came across this http://www.cerebralmeltdown.com/projects/sunplugin/ sun plug in. Before I install it, I am wanting to know if any of you have used it? Or is there a better way to do what I am wanting? Also, any tips and tricks would be helpful. I have been reading though a lot on this website and am excited to get my models going.

Jesse

Gaieus

Hi Jesse,

First of all, you should georeference your model and save it as a template. Let's see...

go to Window > Model info > Location and set your custom location there. Should be easy if you know where exactly you live (Lat/Long)
Go to File > Save as template...
finally Window menu > Preferences > Templates and here choose the custom template you've just created.
From now on, any time you open a new SU file, it will be located exactly where you live. You can also open the Shadow dialog from your Window menu and play around the shadows at different times of the day or year. Even make animations showing them from sunrise to sunset (or from December to June).

I haven't used that particular plugin yet (although read about it) but seen another one here:
http://sketchuptips.blogspot.com/2008/02/sun-tool-preview.html

Jim

Jesse,

SketchUp has the ability to not only geo-locate a model, but also the ability to cast shadows. If all you need is visual feedback, no plugins are needed.

The Shadow dialog is available from the Window > Shadows menu. And to geo-locate, see the Location tab on the Window > Model Info dialog.

jetescamilla

Thanks for the quick responses guys. I am glad it so easy to use. I ordered a Sketchup for Dummies(thats me) book to hopefully help me with all easy references. The engineer in me likes to have a physical book I can tab, write myself notes, & learn tips and tricks while lounging in bed. Hopefully it gets here soon.

Jesse

Gaieus

I have that book too. Worthy read, indeed!