How to Make a 3D Floor Plan for Free
Many people find it difficult to convey to an architect, designer or contractor exactly what they'd like to see in their new room or house. Pencil sketches on a school notebook will only take you so far. To demonstrate exactly what you have in mind, use a free 3D drawing program like Google SketchUp to create a three-dimensional rendering of your floor plan, including fixtures and furnishings.
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Instructions
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Use pencil and paper to list all the things you would like in your room. Also draw a few sketches to serve as references later when you're in Google SketchUp.
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Download Google SketchUp to your computer (see Resource link), install it and then start the program. You will see a perspective view with a ground plane and 2D human figure. The figure's there to help you with relative sizing and can be moved or deleted. At the top is the standard menu you expect, with clickable icons below it. To the left is the main toolbar.
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Select the "Line" tool and use the mouse to draw the 2D shape of your room (or one of your rooms) directly onto the ground plane. Use the color guides as you work to make sure that your lines are on an axis. Also use the readout at the lower right to ensure that you're making the lines the right length.
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Select the "Push/Pull" tool, click on the shape you drew, and use the mouse to raise it to the correct height for the room. Click again to turn off the tool.
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Select the top surface (polygon) and hit "Delete" on your keyboard.
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Use the "Line" tool combined with the "Push/Pull" tool to make any interior walls you might need in the room, such as closets or bathrooms. When you raise these walls, the "Push/Pull"tool will snap to the top of the outer wall, allowing you to get the height exactly right.
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Click on the "Paint Bucket" tool and browse through the colors and textures available in the dialog box.
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Select the color you want apply to the floor and click on the floor top apply it. Do the same to apply a texture to the walls.
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Click on the "3D Warehouse" at the top and browse through the dialog that opens. This feature contains thousands of items---furniture, fixtures and so on---that you can add to your room.
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Click on an item in 3D Warehouse to add it, then use the "Move" tool to place it where you want it.
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Save your work and show it to your architect or designer.
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