Paint - A Quick Takeoff How To

PlanHub’s Takeoff tools make it easy to measure areas for painting or wall coverings directly from your drawings. Here’s how to use the Area and Wall Area tools to calculate surface area, whether you’re working with complex shapes or simple, rectangular walls.

Set the stage by ensuring the scale is correct on your page before you move into measurements.

Step 1: Click Area on the PlanHub toolbar.

Step 2: Choose Multi Point to outline irregular shapes, or Two Point for quick rectangles and squares.

Step 3: With Multi Point selected, name your measurement tool for easy tracking—for example, use the paint code like P6. Click Set to confirm.

Step 4: Click on your starting point to begin measuring. Left click at each corner to change direction as you trace the area. Double left click to finish your shape.

Double click the final point to end the section.

Step 5: If the same paint color covers more than one section, toggle the Continue Measuring switch. Start adding additional territory with a click, tracing each new area as before.

Left click to begin the new section.

Step 6: Pan the page with a right click and drag, and click the next corner.

For angles that don’t match the Snap to Angle increments, hold down the spacebar while measuring.

Double click on the final point.

Step 7: Turn off continue mode with the same switch used to turn on continue.

Step 8: Click Subtract, then Area to start a subtraction. Left click to start and again to outline the object to remove. Double click to complete the subtraction.

Left click to begin outlining the area to be removed.

Left click at each corned=r and double click to stop measuring.

Continue the subtracted area using the continue switch if needed for all areas to exclude. When finished, the total measured area for your selected paint or finish is listed in the measurements panel on the right side of the page.

For Finish Plans, use the Wall Area tool to quickly calculate the surface area for any wall section based on wall height.

Step 1: Click the Wall Area tool.

Step 2: Label your measurement (for example, with the paint code like P4), set the finished wall height (such as 10 feet), then click Set.

Step 3: Begin tracing the length of each wall with a left click. Left click at each corner, following the perimeter until you reach the end. Double click to complete.

The area measured appears on the right side of your PlanHub page.

With these tools, accurately visualize and calculate your painting or wall covering needs—no matter the complexity of your plan.