Creating a Mulled Window and Door Unit

QUESTION

I need to create a mulled unit of either multiple windows or a combination of doors and windows. Can this be done in Chief Architect Premier? 

Alternatively, I am trying to mull windows and/or doors together using the Make Mulled Unit tool, but an Information message keeps telling me:

• "#272004403 - The selected openings cannot be mulled. They must be within 24 inches (600 mm) of one another, cannot overlap, and must be aligned vertically or horizontally."

How can I mull these items together?

ANSWER

Doors and windows can be mulled together to form a wide variety of custom units using the Make Mulled Unit edit tool. In order to use this tool, however, a couple of conditions must be met:

• The openings in question cannot be more than 24 inches or 600 mm apart.
  
  
• The openings cannot be overlapping.
  
  
• The openings in question must be aligned vertically or aligned horizontally
  

Bearing these rules in mind, doors and windows can be mulled into a single unit quickly and easily, even when the unit has multiple rows of windows.

In this article, we will create a stacked mulled unit in a simple rectangular design with a ceiling height of 15'.

To create rows of stacked windows

1. Place a door and as many windows as you will require for your first row of units, then edit the door and windows to your liking.
   
   In this example, a 36" wide Glass Panel door is positioned between two 24" wide Fixed Glass windows. The Fixed Glass windows are 80" in height, are spaced 4" from the door, and have no exterior sill.
   
   
   
   
   
   
2. Select 3D> Create Orthographic View> Cross Section/Elevation  from the menu, then click and drag a camera arrow towards the door and windows.
   
   
   
   
   
3. Using the Select Objects tool, click on one of the windows to select it, hold down the Shift key on your keyboard, then click on the other window to add it to the selection.
   
   

   When multiple objects are selected, the total number is stated at the bottom of the program window, on the left side of the Status Bar.

   
   
   
   
   
   
4. With the windows selected, click the Transform/Replicate Object  edit button and in the dialog dialog that displays:
   
   
   
   
   • Check the Copy box and set the Number of Copies to 1.
     
     
   • Check the Move box and set the Z Delta value to a positive value such as 24".
     
     
   • Click OK to close the dialog to see that the selected windows have been copied and moved to be 24" higher.
     
   
   
   
5. With the newly created windows still selected, click the Open Object edit button, specify a new Height value for the windows, then click OK.
   
   In this example, a Height of 18" is used.
   
   
   
   
   
   
6. Place an additional Fixed Glass window centered above the door.
   
   In this example, the Width is set to 36" to match the width door, the Height is set to 18" to match the height of the windows on either side, and the exterior casing is removed.
   
   
   
   
   
   
7. Repeat these steps as needed to produce any additional windows.
   
   
   

Once the door and its side and transom windows are in position, they can be mulled.

To create a mulled unit

1. Before creating a mulled unit, you may want to configure your Mulled Unit Defaults*, which can be accessed by going to Edit> Default Settings , selecting Mulled Unit, then clicking Edit. 
   
   *Mulled Unit Defaults are not available in X17 and prior. If you're using X17 or a prior version, skip to Step 3. 
   
   
   
2. In the Mulled Unit Defaults dialog: 
   
   
   • On the Options panel, you can adjust the Mulled Units settings and the Mullion Depth.
     
     
   • On the Rough Opening and Framing panels, you can adjust how mulled units will frame.
     
     
   • Access the Layer, Label, Object Information, and Schedule panels to adjust the properties of newly created mulled units. 
     
     

     Note: For more information about the settings on these panels, click the Help button near the bottom of the dialog to open your programs documentation.

     
     
   • Click OK and Done once you've made your changes. 
   
   
   
3. Using the Select Objects tool, click on the door to select, hold down the Shift key on the keyboard, then click on the two windows on each side of the door to add them to the selection.
   
   
   
4. With these three objects selected, click the Make Mulled Unit edit tool.
   
   
   
   
5. Next, use the Shift key to group-select the three windows at the top and click the Make Mulled Unit edit tool once again.
   
   
   
6. With the newly created mulled unit selected, hold down the Shift key, select the bottom mulled unit, then click the Make Mulled Unit  edit tool a third time to form a single mulled unit.
   
   
   
   
   
7. By default, mulled units that include a door are treated as doors for the purposes of producing schedules and materials lists.
   
   If you would prefer that this unit be treated as a window, select the unit, click the Open Object edit tool, and on the Options panel of the Mulled Unit Specification dialog that displays, uncheck Treat as Door, then click OK.
   
   
   
   
   
   
8. This mulled unit can now be added to the library for use in other plans by selecting the Add to Library  edit tool.