Q & A
Greg Malette Displaying painted GWB SF from wall types and ceiling heights
Hi
Could you point me towards a best practice for calculating painted GWB takeoff?
Today, I am using a calculator to determine SF of painted GWB from my GWB takeoffs, multiplying by 2 if I am painting both sides of wall, and adding 6" for above ceiling grid. Then I go back into ZZ Takeoff and draw a polygon called 'Painted GWB' that is the same size as my calculation. That way, I have something to display in my paint takeoff folder.
Is there a better way to do this, perhaps that will automatedly adjust painted GWB as wall types are taken off? Thanks!
Greg
@greg
I'm learning here too and had to figure this out. I made a 3min video on how to do this. Hope its helpful. Perhaps someday we will use excel and our calculators less!
Thanks for this video Kyle! It's a good way to handle it for now. We will also be expanding more powerful tools in formulas to help. For example, if users want an output for [Wall Area Both Sides:SF] that can be used in a formula we could provide that as an option.
Thanks! I think I know what Greg is really after. He wants to take a drywall measurement in that folder and, instead of duplicating the takeoff and reassigning it to the paint folder with a different multiplier (e.g., 2 sides), he’s looking for a smarter workflow.
The core ask is:
Can we link or reference the drywall quantity directly in the paint measurement folder—without having to redraw or duplicate it?
In most estimating platforms or even Excel, this would be something like =Drywall SF * 2 in a paint line item.
So maybe the real request here is:
Can ZZTakeoff support referencing or reusing takeoff quantities across folders or line items—ideally with multipliers—so we don’t have to redraw the same thing twice?
Feels like a low priority tho because this is best suited to be handled in the estimating software in my opinion anyway.
I watched Kyles video a few times and duplicating his results, thanks Kyle. Under Linear Properties, Measurement Type has to be Linear with Width. It cannot be Linear with Wall Height. I am not clear on what the difference is between these two types.
I added some text to the Material Item description, so I would not forget that I was working with a 12' GWB assembly, with a ceiling height of 9', and paint to 9'-6". The ratio for this particular combination appears to be 1.583383. I used that as a quick check to confirm the formula was working as I pasted the Material Item into different wall type Takeoffs.
This would be tedious if there were variances in ceiling heights, slab to deck heights, and wall types that are only finished on one side.