Placement of Sink in Cabinet

[ahr8tch]

Don't know how or why I keep discoverin' my ignorance so often    but I can't figure out how to insert a sink in any position but the center of a cabinet.  I read Help.  I poked around looking for options but didn't find any.

Is there a reason that sinks must be centered?  I've installed small bar sinks offset to one side of a double door base cabinet before so that I would have more space to install a small refrigerator.  TFP doesn't seem to allow this.

What am I missing?

rh

[Allan Chesney]

I must confess I have not tried this but if it won't do it (previous versions didn't) you could just use two single cupboards with the door swung the opposite way to look like a double one. (right click - mirror)  Bear in mind that you can move cabinets into each other too if necessary by turning off Collision Detection (Status Bar toggle) so they can look like one.

Allan

[Mike1158]

Or, just make the sink unit/cabinet in sketchup?  I know, I am always on about sketchup but it does help.  I can see why people buy the full version in order to export in different formats but it really is not required when so many programs read skp files these days.

Can you export the sink in 3ds?  If so free sketchup can import the sink you want and cut through cabinet tops wherever you want it to.

[Allan Chesney]

I have tried it and the sink will only centre in the cabinet.  In the image I have just used 2 single cabinets and mirrored one so it looks like a double one.  It must be wide enough to take the sink though. Only takes a few seconds to do it this way.

You can export the sink as a 3DS.  It wont insert without a cabinet but you can turn off the visibility of the cabinet and the Terrain so you are only left with the sink to export as a 3DS.

Allan

[ahr8tch]

I took a 21" base and mirrored it then added the bar sink to the right hand half and placed it in a closet under the stairway.

Thanks, Allan.  I'm learning a great deal - albeit slowly - from you!

rh

[Doug.S]

Or, just make the sink unit/cabinet in sketchup?  I know, I am always on about sketchup but it does help.  I can see why people buy the full version in order to export in different formats but it really is not required when so many programs read skp files these days.

Can you export the sink in 3ds?  If so free sketchup can import the sink you want and cut through cabinet tops wherever you want it to.

Could you please expand your explanation a bit?  I have/use SU (free version) but have not tried importing a sink and expecting SU to cut a hole for the sink into a counter-top....and not sure of the step by step process.

So are the steps like this....?
export a sink (one file .3ds)  and a cabinet with counter-top (another .3ds file), both from TFP
import each into SU, position the sink in the cabinet, save as .skp
import .skp into TFP, apply materials, render

.

[ahr8tch]

Doug,

I tried Mike's suggestion.  He's right.  It is very easy to make the cabinet with the offset sink.  In fact, you even have more control over details than with the method of mirroring in TFP.

Here's what I did:
1) Open SketchUp with new drawing.
2) Open Window/Components and select Architecture then click on Cabinets.
3) I chose the 36" base cabinet without an upper cabinet and inserted it in the drawing space.
4) Triple clicking selected the component and allowed me to change the dimensions to 42" and add ends.
5) I then went back to Windows/Components and selected Architecture and clicked on Plumbing.
6) I chose the bar sink with the goose-neck spigot and placed it in the drawing space at the right-hand  side of the cabinet positioned on the 'face'.
7) I had to triple click into the component again and outline the sink drop below the cabinet surface to get the perspective effect but that is probably because I didn't insert it into the component correctly.
I named and saved the SU file.
9) I used the TFP Import Object Wizard to import the completed cabinet with offset sink into TFP per usual.

rh

[Doug.S]

Thanks for the fast reply....makes sense.

I can see how this would work OK...but hard to "match" a set of cabinets already in TFP natively...that's why I thought of exporting TFP objects....and not expecting a .3ds object imported into SU would actively cutout the hole for a sink...guess I'll need to experiment and at least there is some hope of success.

[ahr8tch]

Doug,

You are correct in that fit and finish are a problem with this technique. 

I think it's a question of 'horses for courses'.  Whichever tool you're most comfortable with is the one likely to be chosen.

rh

[Mike1158]

You could always reproduce the TFP cabinet in sketchup as a new model.  Use this exactly as mentioned by rh.
You can match just about anything you want with a little time.