Finally: A Z-Tree Calculator That Doesn't Suck!

July 19, 2007

Are you building a Z-Tree? I must admit that they look pretty cool but the only thing I've seen to help determine the dimensions is a SPREADSHEET! How lame is that? In addition to being - let's face it: gay - it displays all measurements in 16ths of an inch. 4' 2 12/16"?!? You've GOT to be kidding me! That should be 4' 2 3/4"!

Fortunately for you, I've addressed these issues in a new utility.

Not only that...but this utility OPTIMIZES the layout of each piece of PVC so there's no waste. It even shows you where to cut!

Here's an overview:

Just enter the Height, Base Diameter and Number of Tiers you want. BAM! OK, that's not much more useful than the spreadsheet was - but you'll notice that the number of 10' PVC pipes you're going to need is less than that suggested in the spreadsheet! That's because the PVC lengths are optimized to reduce slack!

You'll also note that the measurements are displayed in "normal" fractions and not things like "12/16".

Scroll down for more...

Click on the "PVC Layout" tab and you'll see each piece of PVC you'll need and where each element is to be cut:

Hmm, that's a little hard to read...No Problem! Click the "Show Lengths on Chart" checkbox:

I'm still working on optimizing the performance of the calculations and will probably be making the chart a little easier to read. But you can download the current version here. (Free of course.)

You're welcome.

 

This many people think using a spreadsheet to calculate the dimensions for a Z-Tree is gay: