Freeform Foundations & Floors Overview
Higharc's Freeform Foundation and Freeform Floor tools let you draw foundation and floor entities independently of room boundaries. Unlike the way default foundations and floors auto-generate when rooms are created, Freeform Foundations and Floors give you explicit control over assemblies and behaviors that are common in complex home designs, including walkout basements, townhomes, and homes that combine multiple foundation types on a single level.
The ability to add freeform entities is not mutually exclusive with using auto-generated ones. You can disable or enable auto- or room-generated foundations and floors either globally by level, or individually on a room-by-room or edge-by-edge basis.
Disabling Room-Generated Foundations and Floors
By default, Higharc generates foundation and floor geometry automatically based on your room layout. When you're using freeform entities to control specific areas, you'll want to turn off the auto-generated systems in those locations to avoid overlapping geometry. You can disable auto-generated foundations or floors in two ways: at the entire level, or per individual room.
Disable Foundations or Floors Globally Per Level
Use this when you want to turn off the auto-generated system for all rooms on a given floor:
Select the level you want to disable foundations or floors for in the Explorer.
In the Inspector, uncheck Enable Auto-Generated Foundations or Enable Auto-Generated Floors as desired.
Disable Foundations or Floors Per Individual Room
Use this when you only need to suppress the foundation or floor system for one specific room while leaving others unchanged:
For foundations: select the room you want to disable the foundation for, and in the Inspector, under Layout, uncheck "Enable Foundation." The foundation will then disappear from your model and plans.
For floors: select the room you want to disable the floor for, and in the Inspector, click the + button next to Floor to add a Void Floor object to the room. This removes the room's auto-generated floor without affecting any other rooms. Deleting the Void Floor re-enables the auto-generated floor.
Note: Suppressing auto-generated geometry only where you've placed freeform entities keeps the rest of your model working as expected — you get explicit control just where you need it, and automatic behavior everywhere else.
Creating a Freeform Foundation
Use this workflow when you need to define a foundation that doesn't follow the shape of a room — for example, unique or complex stepped foundations (you can also create stepped foundations using the generative method), or an interior load-bearing wall or thickened slab.
In the Explorer, click the + button next to Foundation Systems to add a new freeform foundation entity.
With the new Foundation System selected, in the Inspector, define the Assembly Type, which sets the default foundation assembly for any foundation contained within this system. The default Foundation Assembly is determined by your active Foundation settings.
Define the Freeform Perimeter: click the + button next to Boundary Shape. Similar to drawing rooms, choose between rectangle, oriented rectangle, or polyline to define the overall footprint of the foundation, then draw the perimeter in the 2D canvas.
Assign Labels to add a level of visibility control for outputs that report to sheets.
Review your work in both plan view and 3D to confirm that edges and transitions behave as expected.
Tip: For fine-grained control of a foundation perimeter, you can select individual edges — similar to working with rooms — to adjust assemblies, datums, or lateral offsets on a per-edge basis. Use per-edge assembly overrides when one section of a foundation transitions to a different construction type, such as from slab-on-grade to a stem wall.
Creating Freeform Floor System
Use this workflow when you need to define a floor area that doesn't follow the shape of a room — for example, a partial slab, or a floor that extends beyond room walls.
In the Explorer, click the + button next to Floor Systems to add a new freeform floor entity.
With the new Floor System selected, in the Inspector, define the Assembly Type, which sets the default Floor Assembly for any floor contained within this system. Choose between "Wood Frame" or "Concrete Slab."
Define the Freeform Perimeter: click the + button next to Boundary Shape. Similar to drawing rooms, choose between rectangle, oriented rectangle, or polyline to define the overall footprint of the floor, then draw the perimeter in the 2D canvas.
Review your work in both plan view and 3D to confirm that edges and transitions behave as expected.
Tip: For fine-grained control of a floor perimeter, you can select individual edges — similar to working with rooms — to adjust framing counts and profiles on a per-edge basis.
Common Use Cases
Walkout Basements
Designed with at least one exterior entrance installed at ground level, allowing homeowners to walk directly out of the basement. Walkout basements are typically installed on sloped lots where the ground dips down to the bottom of the basement on one side of the home, but still mostly covers the foundation on the other three sides. Freeform foundations are used where a variety of different foundation types are needed on different sides of the home.
Mixed Foundation Types
Allows for authoring homes with multiple foundation types. For example, a home with a cast-in-place (CIP) basement wall with a strip footing underneath the main house, along with a monolithic footing underneath the garage.