When to use: Set a room’s width x depth, then drag electrical symbols from the palette onto the floor outline (or click a symbol, then click the canvas) to freehand-sketch a device layout — outlets, switches, lighting, safety, and panel/junction points. Drag any placed symbol to move it, click it and press Delete to remove it, and undo/redo every placement. This is a preliminary layout-planning tool for visualizing device placement and estimating loads — final electrical design, code compliance (including NEC receptacle-spacing rules), and permit drawings require a licensed electrician or engineer.
Sketch a freehand electrical device layout over a simple rectangular room outline: set your room's width and depth, then drag symbols — duplex and GFCI outlets, single-pole and 3-way switches, ceiling and recessed lighting, a ceiling fan, a smoke detector, an electrical panel, and a junction box — from the palette onto the canvas. Move any placed symbol by dragging it, delete a selected symbol with the Delete key, and undo or redo every placement action. A live device count and circuit-planning schedule update as you place symbols, alongside an NEC 220.12/220.52/220.42 general load estimate for the space. Export the finished layout as an SVG or PNG image.
Enter a room width and depth in feet — the canvas draws a proportional rectangular outline that symbol positions scale to automatically if you change the dimensions afterward. Drag any palette symbol onto the canvas using native drag-and-drop, or click a symbol to make it the active "stamp" and then click anywhere on the canvas to place it — both methods work side by side. Click a placed symbol to select it (shown with a dashed selection ring); drag it to reposition, or press Delete/Backspace to remove it. The Undo/Redo buttons (or Ctrl/Cmd+Z, Ctrl/Cmd+Shift+Z) step back and forward through every add, move, and delete action in a simple history stack.
The device schedule totals a typical unit VA for each symbol type placed (for example, 180 VA per duplex/GFCI outlet, 100 VA per ceiling light) purely for circuit-count and layout planning — it mirrors the unit-load convention used elsewhere on this site's electrical calculators, but for a dwelling unit these general-use receptacle and lighting outlets are already covered by the blanket general lighting allowance and are not meant to be added a second time. The actual code-mandated load estimate below the schedule follows the same NEC 220 method as the Residential Electrical Designer: general lighting at 3 VA per square foot of room area (NEC 220.12), small appliance circuits at 1500 VA each (NEC 220.52(A)), laundry circuits at 1500 VA each (NEC 220.52(B)), summed to a subtotal and then reduced by the NEC 220.42 demand factor (100% of the first 3000 VA, 35% of the remainder).
This tool models one rectangular room or space, not a full multi-room dwelling — for a whole-house NEC 220 service size calculation with appliance, HVAC, and EV charger loads, panel schedule, and voltage drop, use the Residential Electrical Designer. It does not check NEC receptacle spacing/placement rules (the 6-foot/12-foot wall-space rule of NEC 210.52), switch leg wiring, or circuit routing/homerun assignment — placement here is for visualizing device layout and rough load planning only. Symbol positions and the room outline are schematic, not scaled construction documents; final device locations, circuiting, and code compliance require a licensed electrician or engineer's design.
No. This is a preliminary layout-planning tool for visualizing where devices might go and getting a rough load estimate. It does not enforce NEC receptacle spacing rules, produce a scaled construction document, or replace a licensed electrician's or engineer's permit-ready drawing set.
For dwelling units, NEC 220.14(J) already covers general-use receptacle and lighting outlets under the blanket 3 VA/sq ft general lighting allowance in NEC 220.12 — you are not meant to count every outlet and fixture a second time. The device schedule totals here are informational, for circuit-count and layout planning (how many outlets will end up on a circuit, roughly how much connected load a room has), while the load estimate summary uses the actual code method: area-based lighting load plus any additional small appliance/laundry circuits, reduced by the NEC 220.42 demand factor.
Not in this tool — it is scoped to one rectangular room or space at a time, matching the "draw your own layout" gap this tool fills alongside the wizard-driven Residential and Commercial Electrical Designers. For an auto-generated multi-room floor plan (without device placement), see the Parametric Floor Plan Generator in the Civil & Structural studio.
Click and drag a placed symbol to move it anywhere on the canvas — its position updates live and is scaled to the room outline. Click a symbol once to select it (a dashed ring appears around it), then press Delete or Backspace, or use the "Delete Selected" button, to remove it. Every add, move, and delete is tracked in an undo/redo history stack.
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