Do you want to design a house with staggered floors or a sunken living room? In this tutorial, we will show you how to realize split-level designs with cadvilla. We present three methods, but recommend Option 2 for most cases, as it offers the greatest flexibility. Learn how to easily manage different floor heights and create complex architectural structures.

Please note: The zoom functions demonstrated in the video are only valid up to version 5. In newer versions, you can zoom simply by scrolling the mouse wheel. For further details, please refer to our post on zooming in the 2D and 3D view.

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Option 1: New layer with height offset (Within a building)

[01:43] This method is suitable if you want to create an area with a different floor level within a story, but the room height should remain the same (e.g., a sunken living room).

1. Create new layer: In the project manager, right-click on the floor (e.g., “Ground floor”) > New layer.
2. Define level: Enter a name and the desired level in the dialog (e.g., 0.30 m).
   • Important: This level is relative to the floor of the story. A value of 0.30 m means that everything on this layer is 30 cm higher than the rest of the story. The value can always only be entered in the positive range. A negative level is not permitted.
3. Draw walls: Activate the new layer and draw the walls for the raised area.
4. Close room: Since walls on different layers do not intersect automatically, you often have to close the room manually. To do this, use Building > Walls > Room boundary (virtual wall) to close the gap to the existing walls. When using room boundaries, it is important that the start and end points are on the inside of the walls of the newly defined building.
5. Alternatively, draw a 1cm thin and 1cm high wall to close the room.

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Option 2: New building with its own level (Standard Method)

[03:59] This is the cleanest and most flexible method for real split-level houses. Here, parts of the building with different levels are logically separated. It does not matter whether the total floor height of the two buildings remains the same or not.

1. Create new building: Right-click on the project name (at the very top of the tree in the Projects window) > New building.
2. Adjust level: Right-click on the new floor (e.g., “Ground floor” in the new building) > Properties.
3. Define height: Set the Level to the desired value (e.g., -0.50 m or +0.50 m relative to the main building).
4. Construction: Now draw the walls and ceilings in this new part of the building as usual.
   • Advantage: You have full control over floor heights, ceiling thicknesses, and levels, independent of the main building.

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Option 3: Change floor construction (Only optically)

[05:59] This method is a “quick-and-dirty” solution for pure visualizations, where only the floor covering is made thicker.

1. Create room: Draw a closed room with walls.
2. Adjust floor: Select the room > Right-click > Properties > Layer construction.
3. Change thickness: Massively increase the Thickness of the floor construction (e.g., to 0.50 m).
   • Effect: The floor appears higher optically, but the raw ceiling and the floor height remain unchanged. The clear room height decreases accordingly.

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Background knowledge: Layers and levels

A story can contain several layers. Each layer has its own level relative to the story. The levels of the layers must always be positive.

• Example:
  • Story level (absolute): 2.80 m
  • Layer “Floor plan” (relative): 0.00 m ⇾ Absolute height: 2.80 m
  • Layer “Platform” (relative): 0.50 m ⇾ Absolute height: 3.30 m

All elements (walls, furniture) that you draw on the “Platform” layer automatically float at a height of 3.30 m. Attention: Walls on different layers do not intersect automatically. Use Room boundaries (virtual walls) to close rooms so that automatic room recognition works.

Please also note the instructions on using room boundaries.