[Ferro List] Help drawing Home Plans

[mckinleymichael at comcast.net]

 I think the first thing to do is talk to the plan department of your government agency.  Determine what exactly you have to show.  Let them know the nature of your building; ferrocement, round, dome, whatever. 

They will let you know how formal/professional your plan has to be.  There are numerous drawing programs that do boxes (conventional stick-built) homes; but few do curved walls.  Hand drawn plans are a good bet if the agency accepts them.  Most CAD programs will draw  circles or half circles.  There is a learning curve if you're not already familiar. 

Google Sketch is a 3D free program that might be worth looking at. Again, a learning curve. A lot of the choice depends on how professional and repeatable you want sketches and plans to be.

  I have seen plans submitted on yellow tablet paper that were hand-drawn with dots to represent 2x4 spacing, and small rectangles to show windows, large rectangles with a knob for doors.  The door/window schedule on the side specifies data. 

If you are doing a ferro-cement building, most jurisdictions may want a state-certified engineer stamp on the plans.  In which case the engineer will probably draw them and charge you.