How to Save Default Parameters in Parashape SketchUp

How to Save Model Parameters in SketchUp with Parashape

The default parameters of a model in the Parashape SketchUp plugin (3dshouse Dynamic) plugin let you set the starting values once without having to repeat the same editing every time you load a fresh copy of that model. This is one of the most useful Parashape features for production workflows. Example: you design a cabinet door using 18mm plate wood, but the model ships with 17mm thickness as its default (the same applies to other parameters).Re-typing that value on every insert is slow, so instead you can edit all of the default parameters to match your workflow once, then click the Save model parameters button. The next time you pull that model out, your saved defaults are already filled in.

What gets saved is the default state of the model definition itself, not the individual instance you happened to select — so every future copy you place inherits the new values, while components you placed before saving keep whatever they were drawn with. This is why the change feels global rather than per-object.

The parameters you can edit (except the width and height of the component) :

  • Thickness
  • Gap between, gap left, gap right
  • Frame width
  • Mullions width…

Width and height are deliberately excluded from the saved defaults because those are the dimensions you draw or scale per door — baking a fixed size into the default would force every new model to spawn at one size and defeat the point of a parametric component. So Parashape only persists the construction values (material thickness, gaps, frame/mullion widths) that you genuinely want to standardize.

Save model option dynamic sketchup

If you want to reset to the original factory values of the dynamic SketchUp model, select it and click the Reset Default tool. Reset reverts the selected model back to the factory defaults that ship with it — it does not undo your saved profile, so after a reset you can re-apply your own values or save again, and the original baseline is never lost. A practical habit: edit and Save your defaults once per material standard you use (for example one pass for 18mm boards), so every cabinet, drawer or panel you generate afterwards starts at production thickness without manual re-entry.

Nguyen Huu Khanh

Architect turned developer