Read the heatmap and lay out repairs

Once the readings are in, TerraTopo can show more than colors. Turn on contour lines to see how fast the floor drops, and turn on repair services to see a suggested layout of piers and supports.

Heatmap settings (Step 8)

• Heatmap opacity and Fade plan details change how strong the colors and the plan lines are.
• Show contour lines draws lines of equal elevation. Close lines mean a fast drop. Set the spacing in Contour interval (in).
• Highlight steep transition areas (purple) marks where the floor changes fastest, using the Tolerance preset and Transition threshold (in/ft). It needs the scale set.
• Show point markers, Show value labels and Smooth elevation transitions (recommended) turn those on or off.

Lay out repairs (Step 9)

1. Set the foundation profile (Step 2) and the scale (Step 5).
2. Under 9. Structural diagnostics, tick the repair services you want. The list depends on the foundation type, for example Sleeve lock exterior pier and Steel slab pier for a slab, or crawl space piers and Beams / stringers (existing + new) for a crawl space.
3. Each service places its markers on the plan the way that repair is installed. The counts show under 10. Statistics.
4. Change a service's settings under its name to make it place more or fewer markers.
5. To trim or add markers by hand, use Adjust markers by hand, or the + Exterior pier and + Interior pier buttons next to Place markers:. Reset to automatic puts the layout back.

Other diagnostics

• Shade low-confidence (sparse data) areas dims spots far from any reading. Treat them as unknown, not flat.
• Mark steepest stress points flags areas where the change over a span is more than the threshold.

Related questions

Why don't I see any repair services?

Pick a foundation type in Step 2. Without one, only the general services are offered.