Prevent certain building elements to print

[abink]

I'm working on a site plan for hillside grading and need to show the topo lines below my decks. I drew overhead lines along the edges of the decks and then hid the decks, but the decks will still print. How do I prevent them [and other elements like railings, etc] from printing?

Thanks,
Axel

[Rhythmick]

Hide does not work for plotting!
If you built your deck with the floor tool you can turn the floors and railings off in the view properties.
Another solution would be to use phasing to bring the deck in at a later phase.
You can also use Worksets, but that comes with a substantial learning curve.

[aaronrumple]

Na. Na. and Na. All are too tough.

Use the hidden line tool. The topo will show under the deck without having to hide the deck itself. will only take two clicks.

Should you have to hide the deck - filters is the way to go.

Even me - a long time advocate of using worksets to solve many visibility issue am getting away from that.

[abink]

Oh gosh, that just opened a can of worms...please look at attached jpg to understand what I'm talking about:

1. Actually there is an existing deck that I drew with the floor tool [the gray square to the left of the building]. I don't want that to disappear. Probably I could make it a mass, or a roof, so I can switch off floors and railings in view properties. I need to see the topo lines below the orange coloured deck and the edges of this deck as Overhead lines

2. This project is an addition to an existing residence, so I am already marking the new decks as 'New Construction', so switching off the new construction in order to not show decks doesn't work. Unless there is a way to create 'New Construction - Phase 1' and 'New Construction - Phase 2'?

3. I've checked on the Hidden Line tool (thanks for pointing its existence to me). The thing is that so far I've decided to go a different route that won't allow to use this tool: Instead of using the Toposurface, I'm using the imported AutoCAD dwg file. The Hidden Line tool won't accept that. I've chosen the dwg file over the Toposurface because the contours did not cover the complete lot and I found it easier to fake the missing contours in AutoCAD.

3a. The jpg shows both - Toposurface in gray and the AutoCAD dwg overlay where I faked the missing contour lines. The Toposurface has an edge in the middle of the lot which I don't want to show because it's confusing. Probably I could just as well fake the contours for the Toposurface by adding additional points and then I could go ahead and use the Hidden Line tool...but then I still wouldn't show the deck with Overhead lines. Or?

I hope I'm making some sense here, and thanks for hanging in there with me.
Axel

[Rhythmick]

Unless there is a way to create 'New Construction - Phase 1' and 'New Construction - Phase 2'?
You can create as many phases as you need and name them what you like. For example, I typically have a foundation phase that I use to view and plot the foundation without the rest of the building.