REVIT PURE PRESENTS

BASICS
LEARN THE ESSENCE OF REVIT

SAMPLE CHAPTER #13: RAILINGS

VERSION 3.0 - August 2020 - Revit 2021
By Nicolas Catellier
© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions
 THANKS FOR TRYING BASICS

Thanks a lot for trying the BASICS package! The Revit Pure philosophy is
to make everything simple and let you have fun while learning. We hope
you enjoy this sample chapter about Railings.

revitpure.com/basics
LEGAL STUFF
This eBook is independent of Autodesk inc. and is not sponsored,
endorsed or affiliated with Autodesk inc. Autodesk Revit is a product that
is wholly owned by Autodesk. Any reference to Revit on this eBook is
made acknowledging this ownership. Refer to Autodesk’s own website and
prodcut pages for specific trademark and copyright informations. Please
visit www.autodesk.com to buy Revit or to get more information.

© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions

 LET’S HAVE FUN
LEARNING REVIT SHOULD BE EXCITING
The first time you open Revit, you might feel a wave of confusion at all
these commands, icons, buttons and stuff jumping on you. Our goal is
simple: take the confused feeling and turn it into fun and curiosity.

GET THE BASICS FIRST

You need to learn 20% of Revit to do 80% of the work. Our goal is to trim
the fat and get to this core. If an information is used 1% of the time, you
don’t need to learn it yet.

GREY ZONE = ADVANCED TIPS

If you feel adventurous, expand your knowledge by checking advanced tips
and strategies. You will find them in gray text box like this one. You can skip
these tips and come back later if you wish.

HOW TO USE RP BASICS ?

The best setup for RP Basics is to use two screen, one will be used for the
PDF and video tutorials, the other will be used for Revit. If you don’t have
2 screens, don’t worry, everything will still work fine. We recommend that
you set the PDF at a 75% zoom on screen for the best visual quality.
 TABLE OF CONTENT
PART 1: MODEL

1. USER INTERFACE
1.1. The Home Screen 13
1.2. The Ribbon 14
1.3 Status, View And Options Bars 17
1.4 Project Browser And Properties 18
1.5 12 Tips To Understand Revit User Interface 19
1.6 Family, Type And Instance 25

2. SELECT
2.1. Selecting Elements 28

3. MODIFY
3.1. Adjusting Elements 35
3.2. Using Snaps 42

4. WALLS
4.1. Create a Basic Wall 44
4.2. Adjust Walls 47
4.3. Create Sweeps and Reveals 48
4.4. Basic Walls FAQ 49
4.5 Compound Walls 50
4.6 Modify Wall Structure 51
4.7 6 Advanced Wall Tips 54

5. LEVELS AND GRIDS

5.1. Create Levels 59
5.2 Creating Grids 60
5.3 5 Basic Tips for Levels and Grids 61
5.4 Advanced Tip: Using Scope Box 63
 6. FLOORS
6.1. Create a Floor 64
6.2. 4 Floor Tips 66

7. CEILINGS
7.1. Create A Ceiling 68
7.2. Modify Ceiling Tiles Grids 70

8. ROOF
8.1. Create A Roof 71
8.2. 10 Roof Tips 73
8.3. 5 Advanced Roof Tips 78

9. DOORS
9.1. Create A Door 81

10. WINDOWS
10.1. Create A Window 82

11. CURTAIN WALLS

11.1. What Are Curtain Walls? 84
11.2. Create A Curtain Wall 85
11.3. Fill An Empty Curtain Wall 86
11.4. Set An Automatic Curtain Wall 87
11.5. Create Rectangular Mullion Type 89
11.6. 11 Curtain Walls Tips 90
11.7. Case Study: Casino Casework 96
11.8. 2 Advanced Curtain Walls Tips 97
 12. STAIRS
12.1. Before Modeling Your First Stair 98
12.2 Create A Basic Stair 100
12.3 9 Essential Stair Tips 102
12.4 3 Advanced Stair Tips 107

13. RAILINGS
13.1 Create A Railing 112
13.2 5 Railing Creation Tips 115
13.3 The Anatomy Of A Railing 118
13.4 Create A Top Rail / Handrail 122
13.5 Create A Baluster Pattern 126
13.6 5 Tips To Create the Perfect Railing Type 129
13.7 4 Advanced Railing Tips 132

14. COLUMNS
14.1 Structural Vs. Architectural Columns 135
14.2 Insert Structural Column Families 136
14.3 Creating A Structural Column 137
14.4 Adjusting Detail Level 139
14.5 Create A Dark Solid Fill For Columns 140

15. SITE
15.1. Create A Topography 141
15.2. Create A Building Pad 142

16. MATERIALS
16.2. Create a Material 143
16.2. Split Face / Paint 145

17. ROOMS
17.1. What Is A Room? 146
17.2. Adjust Room Height 147
PART 2: VIEWS
18. VIEWS
18.1. How To Create New Views 149
18.2 5 Settings To Adjust In Each View 150
18.3 Setting Far Clip 153

19. PLAN VIEWS

19.1. Create Plan Views 154
19.2. How View Range Works 155
193. Advanced Tips for Plan Views 156

20. SECTIONS
20.1. Create A Section 160

21. ELEVATIONS
31.1. Create An Elevation 162

22. CALLOUTS
22.1. Create A Callout 163

23. DETAILS
23.1. Create Detailing - Hybrid Technique 164
23.2. 8 Tips For Efficient Detailing 165

24. 3D VIEWS
24.1. Create 3D Views 169
24.2. Create a Perspective 170

25. LEGENDS
25.1. What Are Legends Used For? 172
 26. VIEW TEMPLATES
26.1 Creating a View Template 173
26.1 Assign Template To All New Views 175

27. VISIBILITY
27.1. Hide Elements 176
27.2 Visibility Graphics 177
27.3 Temporary Hide/Isolate Elements 178

PART 3: ANNOTATE

28. LINES
28.1. Detail Lines vs Model Lines 180
28.2 Create A Line Style 181

29. TAGS
29.1. What Is A Tag? 182
29.2 Room Tag / Material Tag 183
29.3 5 Basic Tags Tips 184

30. TEXT
30.1. Place Text And Adjust Leaders 187

31. REGIONS
31.1. What Is A Region? 188
31.2 Edit A Region Type 189
31.3 Hide Things With Masking Region 191
31.4 Create A Pattern 192

32. DIMENSIONS
32.1. Create A Dimension 193
PART 4: PUBLISH AND COLLABORATE
33. SHEETS
33.1 Create A Sheet 197
33.2 View References Are Automatic 200
33.3 3 Tips To Navigate Sheet 201
33.4 Advanced Tip: Modify A Title Block 203

34. REVISIONS
34.1 Create A New Revision 204
34.2 Create A Revision Cloud 205

35. PRINT
35.1 Print Your View Or Sheet 206

36. CENTRAL FILES

36.1 Central File vs Local File 208
36.2 Synchronize 209
36.3 Collaborate 211

37. LINK CAD

37.1 Preparing CAD Files 212
37.2 Use These Link Cad Settings 213
37.3 4 Linked Cad Tips 214
37.4 Link a PDF 216
37.5 Link Images 219

38. EXPORT CAD

38.1 How To Export To CAD 220
PART 5: ADVANCED TOOLS
39. SCHEDULES
39.1 What Are Schedules Used for? 222
39.2 Create A Basic Schedule 224
39.3 19 Tips To Become A Schedule Master 225
39.4 New In Revit 2021 236

40. PHASES
40.1 Create Phases 238
40.2 How To Demolish 240
40.3 What Is A Phase Filter? 241
40.4 What Are Graphic Overrides? 242
40.5 What Phase Filter Should You Use? 244

41. WORKSETS
41.1 What Are Worksets? 245
41.2 5 Tips To Use Worksets Properly 247

42. GROUPS
42.1 Create A Group 251
42.2 Quick Group Tips 252

43. MODEL IN-PLACE

43.1 What is Model in-Place 253

44. FAMILIES
44.1 Create A Cabinet Family 255
44.2 Create Annotation Family 261

45. DESIGN OPTIONS

45.1 Create Design Options 263
 PART 1
MODEL

After an overview of the interface, learn how to model all 3D

elements for your project. Also create a site, add rooms and
learn how to use materials.
13.1
RAILINGS
© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions - revitpure.com BASICS

CREATE A RAILING

Railings are located on the architecture tab. Select a railing type, then
pick one of two options to create railing: Sketch on Path or Place on Host.

SKETCH ON PATH
This option allows you to draw a railing outline any way you wish to.
Draw a continuous purple line, then click the green check.

PLACE ON HOST
Choose this option to automatically create the railing based on an
existing stair or ramp. Choose placement on treads or stringer.

12
13.2
RAILINGS
© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions - revitpure.com BASICS

5 RAILINGS CREATION TIPS

1- ADJUST “OFFSET FROM PATH”

When adding a railing to stair Treads, the path offset will be set to 25.
When adding a railing to Stringer, the path offset will be set to half the
value of the stringer width. So -25mm for a 50mm stringer. You can
change these values at all time by selecting the railing and checking
properties.

2- ACTIVATE RAILING PREVIEW

Click the preview icon to show how is your railing going to look like once
it is completed. Using a 3D view with preview is the best way to test and
adjust your railing.

13
13.2
RAILINGS
© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions - revitpure.com BASICS

3- HOST RAILINGS TO SLOPED ELEMENTS OR TO A

TOPOSURFACE

Revit 2017 added the option to host railings to walls and floors. This means
if you create a wall with a slope, the railing will follow the shape.

Create a railing using the Create Railing Path option. Then select your
railing, click Pick New Host and click the wall or floor. Want to reset the
host? Pick New Host and click the empty model space.

14
13.2
RAILINGS
© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions - revitpure.com BASICS
HOST RAILINGS TO TOPOSURFACE: Since Revit 2018, you can host
a railing to a toposurface. This feature can be useful to model fences and
other site elements. Create the railing, then click on “Pick New Host” in
the contextual tab. Select the toposurface. Your railing should be following
the topography like in the image below.

15
13.2
RAILINGS
© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions - revitpure.com BASICS

4- RAILING SHAPE WILL ADAPT TO MULTIPLE HOSTS

A railing can be hosted to a stair but still adapt to the shapes of landings
and other elements. In the image below, a railing path is modified to
include part of the floors. You can see that the railing is sloped above the
stairs but becomes flat when above the landing and floors.

16
13.2
RAILINGS
© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions - revitpure.com BASICS

5- USE THE SPLIT TOOL ON A RAILING

Since the Revit 2019 update, it is possible to use the Split tool on
railings. You will find this tool in the Modify tab. In the options bar, check
the Delete Inner Segment tool to remove the railing section between two
clicks. That produces a similar effect to the “Split With Gap” tool that can
be used with walls or lines.

17
13.3
RAILINGS
© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions - revitpure.com BASICS

THE ANATOMY OF A RAILING

Before creating a railing type, you need to understand every part of it.

THE HIERARCHY OF A RAILING

The Railing Type contains
everything inside a railing. In
each type, you get to select
Top Rail, Handrail, Rails and
Balusters.

Read the definitions next page

to make sure you understand
the Railing basics.

18
13.3
RAILINGS
© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions - revitpure.com BASICS

RAIL ELEMENTS
TOP RAIL
Top rail is the highest horizontal element of a railing.
It is created by selecting a 2D profile and a height.

HANDRAIL
Handrail is an intermediate rail used for hands. They
are linked to a wall or to a railing with Supports.

INTERMEDIATE RAIL
Any horizontal rail other than the Top Rail and the
Handrail. Can be used to constraints balusters.

RAIL 2D PROFILE
Every Rail in Revit is an extrusion from a 2D Profile
Family. Use default profiles for simple shapes, or
create a custom one for fancy shapes.

EXTENSION
Use extension to add length to Top Rail or
Handrail. The extension shape can be customized.

SUPPORT
The elements that connect the Handrail to the wall
or to the railing.

19
13.3
RAILINGS
© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions - revitpure.com BASICS

BALUSTER ELEMENTS
BALUSTERS
Vertical elements that are part of the railing. Set
their shape with Baluster Family. Adjust their
spacing in Baluster Placement.

POSTS
Posts are balusters that are at the Start, the End
or the Corner of a railing. They can be added in
Baluster Placement.

BALUSTER FAMILY
Balusters are made from a full 3D Revit family.
Unless you want something fancy, you can use the
default families.

RAILING EXAMPLES
SIMPLE WALL MOUNT RAILING
This railing only uses a Handrail. It contains no
Balusters and no Top Rail. Located on walls.

COMPLICATED RAILING
This railing use a Top Rail with extension on both
sides, a Handrail, two intermediate Rails, and 3
different Baluster types. Ouch.

20
13.4
RAILINGS
© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions - revitpure.com BASICS

CREATE A RAILING TYPE

To create a railing type, select and duplicate an existing Railing type. Then
follow the steps below, which are described in the next pages.

21
13.4
RAILINGS
© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions - revitpure.com BASICS

CREATE TOP RAIL AND HANDRAILS

1. CREATE TOP RAIL / HANDRAIL TYPE

In Railing Type properties, you can select Top Rail and Handrail types.
But before doing so, we must create new types to fit our needs. Use the
Project Browser, go to Families. Under Railings, you will find Top Rail
Type and Handrail Type. Double-click and duplicate a type to begin.

2. SELECT PROFILE

Select a 2D profile family. It will be extruded to create your Rail. Use one
of Revit default profiles: Round, Elliptical, Square or Rectangular. If you
want a more complex shape, you will need a custom profile.

22
13.4
RAILINGS
© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions - revitpure.com BASICS

3. SET EXTENSIONS

Use extension if you want your rail to go beyond the railing limit. Choose
between Floor, Post and Wall extension. You can set an extension at the
Beginning and End of the railing.

23
13.4
RAILINGS
© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions - revitpure.com BASICS

4. SET HANDRAIL SUPPORTS

Supports are used to connect Handrails to

railings or to walls. Adjust Family type, Layout,
Spacing and Justification in Handrail type.

The default Revit family is Circular. In the Support Type properties, you
can adjust Radius and Height. If you want a different shape, you will need
to create another Support family.

5. SET RAILS HEIGHT

The height of Top Rail is set in Railing Type. To change Handrail height,
go to Handrail type. Also adjust Hand Clearance, which is the distance
between baluster end and the center of the handrail.

24
13.5
RAILINGS
© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions - revitpure.com BASICS

CREATE INTERMEDIATE RAILS

We already covered how to create Top Rails and Handrails. Each Railing
can also contains Intermediate Rails (also known as non-continuous rails).
Creating them is pretty simple.

1. GO TO RAIL STRUCTURE

In the Railing Type, click .

2. INSERT NEW RAIL

Click the button to add a new rail. Give a name to your rail.

3. SET 2D PROFILE FAMILY, HEIGHT AND OFFSET

Profile for intermediate rails work the same way as profiles for Handrail
and Top Rail. Select one of Revit default profile family, or create a custom
one for more complexity.

Then, set the rail height and the offset distance to the center of the railing.
The rail height can never be higher than the Top Rail. Add a material if you
wish to. You are done! Use duplicate to create many intermediate rails.

25
13.6
RAILINGS
© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions - revitpure.com BASICS

CREATE A BALUSTER PATTERN

1. GO TO BALUSTER PLACEMENT

In the Railing Type properties, you will find Baluster Placement. In this
tab, you select how to configure the balusters. You might be intimidated by
the dialog box that appears. No worry, we will make it simple.

2. SELECT A BALUSTER FAMILY

In the Baluster Family column, pick a Baluster to use. By default, Revit

contains Round, Square, Rectangular shapes. If you want a fancier shape,
you will have to make a custom family.

3. SET OFFSET TO RAILING CENTER

Use offset to set a distance between balusters
and the purple center line of the railing.

26
13.6
RAILINGS
© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions - revitpure.com BASICS

4. SET BASE AND TOP OF THE BALUSTERS

Select the base and the top of your balusters. Can be either the Host or
Rails elements. Then adjust the required offset from these elements.

In the image below, the red dashed line indicate the position of the
balusters. You can see that the baluster Base is 100mm from the Host and
baluster Top is set to the Top Rail.

5. SET DISTANCE FROM PREVIOUS

Distance from Previous is the default distance between each baluster.

27
13.6
RAILINGS
© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions - revitpure.com BASICS

6. SET BALUSTERS JUSTIFICATION

Set Justify option to decide how balusters spacing will adjust to railing
length. Beginning, End and Center will keep Distance from Previous, while
Spread Pattern to Fit will change the value to have an equal spacing.

7. SELECT POSTS

Posts are special balusters that only appear at the Start and End of a
railing. Corner posts are optional. They are used for railing intersection.

28
13.6
RAILINGS
© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions - revitpure.com BASICS

5 TIPS TO CREATE THE PERFECT RAILING TYPE

1- SHOW PREVIEW IN RAILING TYPE

Not sure how your railing is going to turn out? Use preview in Railing Type
properties to get a glimpse of what it will look like. You can select 3D views,
plan view or elevations.

29
13.6
RAILINGS
© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions - revitpure.com BASICS

2- USE PROJECT BROWSER TO FIND RAILING PARTS

Go to Families in your project

browser, then hop to Railings.

All Railing Type will be in the Railing

sub-menu (in red). The Handrail and
Top Rail also have their own sub-
menu (in blue).

All the others families are directly under the Railings category, including
Balusters and Supports. Don’t forget that all rails use a 2D Profile that can
be found under the Profiles menu in Families. To save time, use CTRL-F in
the project browser and type the name of the component you are looking
for.

3-ADJUST TOP RAIL TRANSITIONS

Select a transition style for Handrail and Top Rail. This is how the rail will
behave when a sloped railing change direction.

30
13.6
RAILINGS
© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions - revitpure.com BASICS

4- USE TAB TO SELECT SPECIFIC RAILING PARTS

If you click on a railing, the whole thing will be selected. But by using tab,
you can cycle through different parts of the railing to individually select
and modify them. These are the elements that can be selected:

See the pin icon ? Clicking it will break the link between the Railing
Type and the specific railing element. That means you can change the Top
Rail for a specific instance without affecting other railings using this type.

5- ADJUST SUPPORTS POSITION

Handrail Supports position is automatically set in Handrail
Type. Often, this position is not what we want. Tab-select and
unpin the support, then move it to the correct position.

31
13.7
RAILINGS
© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions - revitpure.com BASICS

4 ADVANCED RAILINGS TIPS

1- CREATE GLAZED RAILING WITH GLAZED BALUSTERS

Most of the time, this solution is not very good. The problem is that Revit
won’t automatically adjust glazing size to fit the length of the railing. If you
have super precise railing length and glazing dimension, this can work fine.
Use Glazed Baluster instead of Standard Baluster in Baluster Placement.

2- CREATE GLAZED RAILING WITH CURTAIN WALLS

This is the way to go! Curtain walls
are easier to use than the labyrinthic
railings. The downside is that they
won’t automatically adjust for stair
slope. You have to edit profile and
manually draw it. Need fancy glass
connectors? Create a custom mullion
family. Need a Handrail? Use a railing
on top of the curtain wall and group
them together.

32
13.7
RAILINGS
© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions - revitpure.com BASICS

3- CREATE FANCY EXTENSION SHAPES

Remember the extensions we created earlier? They were limited to 3

shapes. Turns out you can customize the shape to whatever you want.

Tab-select the Top Rail, then click the Edit Rail button. Then
click Edit Path.

Changed your mind and want to go back to the original shape?

Click the Reset Rail button when the Top Rail is selected.

Editing railing path is limited to the extensions, you cannot modify the
main part of the rail. Use this feature for Top Rail or for Handrail.

33
13.7
RAILINGS
© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions - revitpure.com BASICS

4- CREATE RAILINGS FOR MULTISTORY STAIRS

With a single click, you can add railings to all stairs in a multistory group. It
is possible to draw a railing segment that doesn’t cover the complete stair
like in the image below. The railing will automatically adjust to match the
stairs, landing and floors. Modifying one of the railing will affect all railings
hosted on stairs of the same height inside the multistory group.

34
UNLOCK THE REST OF THE PACKAGE

Did you enjoy this sample chapter? If so, you will love the full Revit Pure
BASICS package. Join thousand of happy reviteers and buy the full
package now.

BUY NOW

« The most simple and easy to understand Revit

resource I ever encountered »
Jeremy Yeung - Architectural Designer

« Revit Pure BASICS has been an invaluable

option for our Revit training »
Nick Kovach - BIM Manager

revitpure.com/basics
© Copyright 2020 - BIM Pure Productions