Scales — set it first, verify in ten seconds

Every quantity is pixels × scale², so a wrong scale is every number wrong at once. TakeoffQuote reads the scale printed in the sheet's title block and offers it as Plan says … — use it; when there's no usable note, calibrate from a printed dimension in two clicks. Every acceptance flashes a calibrated sanity bar on the sheet, and nothing measures until a scale is set.

Nothing measures without a scale

Until a sheet has a scale, the Scale chip reads Set scale… in red and committing a measurement refuses with “Set the scale for 〈sheet〉 first.” The one exception is Count — each (EA) quantities don’t depend on scale. This is deliberate: a tool that silently measures in pixels produces confident-looking garbage.

Scale is per sheet, and remembered per sheet — because a plan set is never one uniform scale.

Adopting the plan’s own note

When a sheet’s title block states a scale, TakeoffQuote reads it as the sheet opens. The Scale menu then leads with Plan says 1/4″ = 1′-0″ — use it. Pointing at the item previews the calibrated guide bar on the sheet behind the menu, so you can sanity-check before you commit.

Mixed-scale detail sheets need a manual check. Details are often drawn larger than the floor plan on the same sheet. When the sheet shows several different scales, the suggestion is marked ± and the tooltip tells you to confirm against a known dimension; when there are several scales and no title-block note, nothing is suggested at all — ambiguity is not a suggestion. On those sheets, verify against a printed dimension before you trace.

Calibrate from a known dimension

No usable note? Calibrate two points…: click both ends of something the drawing dimensions — the longest string you can find — then type the real length and Apply. ⌫ pops a misplaced click.

The sanity bar

Every scale acceptance drops a calibrated ruler bar on the sheet: a round length with foot ticks and the caption a door opening is about 3′ — if this bar looks wildly off, the scale is wrong. It dismisses itself after a few seconds and is never saved. A 2×-off scale is visually obvious before anything gets traced.

Verify with Check a dimension (K)

K is the ten-second habit that saves re-takeoffs: click both ends of a printed dimension string, type what the drawing says, and a verdict chip grades the error — green within 1% (scale checks out), amber within 5% (re-check), red past 5% (wrong scale; recalibrate). One click on Recalibrate to this turns the check into the calibration. Run it on every new sheet before tracing.

Rescaling

Change a sheet’s scale after tracing and every shape on that sheet re-prices to the new scale immediately (counts keep their EA). If the scale you set disagrees with the note printed on the sheet, the chip warns you in amber so you can double-check before tracing.