Staircases are a very versatile feature of Punch!. They may be straight with landings or curved without, and have multiple properties to change their appearance and utility. Railings are an integral part of staircases, but may also be used by themselves. Floors are used wherever a flat surface is required, and the Cutouts define holes in both floors and autofloors.
In general, stairs extend until either the height or the length (as displayed on the centerline on the plan) is met, whichever comes first. The stair properties dialog is displayed below on the left.
Skirts? sets whether skirts on a staircase are to be drawn. Skirts are walls extending downward from the edges of the steps to the floor; they gave the steps a more formal, built-in look. The skirts are not true walls since it isn't possible to attach anything to then (such as doors).
Open steps? sets whether the steps are open or boxed in underneath.
Straight? allows stairs to be set straight or curved. Straight steps can zig-zag, but a landing is created at the corners, while curved steps each take a piece of the angle to be turned a twist around radii.
Step finish sets the finish used on the steps and the stringers.
Railing finish assigns the finish used on the railings and posts.
Skirt finish sets the finish used on the skirt, if it is turned on.
Large base stringers? causes the stringers to form a solid base at the lower end of the stairs. This is property new in version 10.
Closed stringers? controls the closes the steps on the sides; simulates stringers along the sides of the steps rather than underneath. Another new property in version 10.
Height sets the overall height of the staircase from the bottom of the last step to the top of the top step.
Elevation sets the height of the bottom of the staircase from the zero reference plane.
Width sets the width of the staircase's steps from side to side.
Tread sets the distance each separate step is horizontally from the one before it at the centerline.
Rise sets the distance each step rises above the one below it.
Rail height sets the height of the rails (on the average) from the bottom of their balusters.
Left/Right rail? turns on or off the left/right railing.
A railing is essentially a flat, long "rail" held up by vertical balusters along its length and periodically meeting a post. In Punch! railings are flat horizontally. While they may be set to "float on the topography", they do not do so gracefully; the balusters rise but the rail itself doesn't. The inclined rails used on staircases are exclusive to that use.
Railing finish controls the finish to be applied to the selected railings.
Posts? sets whether or not a post is to be placed at the start of every segment (and the end of the last). This is normally a handle-by-handle decision, but if used here it applies to all points on all selected railings.
Elevation/Float on Terrain sets a combination of controls that manages the point-to-point elevation of the railing. As mentioned above this does not function too well for railings, but for fences and other objects it works well. If the Float on Terrain checkbox is checked, the elevation of the railing is set to the terrain elevation at that point. If it is unclicked, an elevation number may be entered which will set all the points to that elevation. The float option is set one time, when the objects are returned to Punch!; if the terrain changes thereafter, the railing will not adjust unless explicitly again set to float.
Baluster spacing sets the center-to-center horizontal spacing between the railings balusters.
Height sets the height of the railing.
Floors are the general purpose piece to use to create any flat surface; they are sometimes used in terrain to cover holes behind retaining walls, for example. The dialog for setting floors' properties is shown below on the left.
Top finish sets the finish used on the floor top surface.
Bottom finish sets the finish of the floor bottom surface. When a floor piece is used for a real floor, that becomes the ceiling of the level below.
Edge finish sets the finish of the floor edge.
Autodimensions? controls whether autodimensions are displayed for the floor (all edges). This is a new property in version 10.
Thickness sets the uniform floor thickness, the vertical distance between the floor's top and bottom.
Elevation sets the distance between the floor's bottom and the zero elevation plane.
Floor cutouts are used to create a hole in a manual floor or autofloor. When they are created they must match the floor they are piercing in thickness and elevation. There is no check made to assure that the hole lies within the floor it is to cut through. The dialog to set cutout properties is shown above on the right.
Edge finish sets the finish on the edges of the cutout.
Autodimension? sets whether or not autodimensions will be displayed for the edges of the cutout. This is a version 10 feature.
Thickness sets the cutout's thickness, which should match that of the floor it is embedded in.
Elevation sets the elevation of the cutout bottom from the zero reference plane. It should match the elevation of the floor it is to pierce.
Ductwork is displayed on the Punch! plan (in the HVAC tab), but is not displayed in LiveView. The duct parameters are reported in the duct's callout on the plan, and have no other effect. The dialog to set cutout properties is shown below.
Height is the measurement of a duct's vertical height dimension. It is only used to the callout label the plan element.
Width is a horizontal measurement of the duct's width. It is used in the label and also in dimensioning the plan element.
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