HOW TO READ Blueprints

Learn how to understand, navigate, and use residential blueprints from professional builder and craftsman, Jordan Smith. Spanish subtitles available.

Price: $75

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PURCHASE COURSE

Learn From a Pro

Professional builder Jordan Smith knows blueprints inside and out. He's built his own successful residential construction business from the ground up, and now he's sharing his knowledge and expertise with you.

9 In-Depth Lessons

Each video lesson dives deep into a component of residential blueprints. Lessons average about 15 minutes each, with a total course time of 2 hours, 15 minutes.

Practical Resources

Downloadable residential blueprints, summaries, and recommended exercises help you get real-world practice. If you would like a physical copy of the blueprints, we recommend printing them on 24" x 36" sheets at your local copy store.

Certificate of Completion

After completing the training and passing the assessments, you will receive a Certificate of Course Completion. Share with future employers to show your commitment to continuing education.

Lifetime Access

With your purchase, you have lifetime access to online training. Take the Residential Blueprints course anytime, anywhere, as often as you'd like. Our courses are meant to be an ongoing resource for you, no matter where you are in your journey.

Affordable and Convenient

Our online courses are an affordable and convenient way to develop new skills. If you aren't sure you want to make a time and money commitment to colleges and trade schools, our classes are a way to gain skills in a more flexible and cost-efficient manner.

About Your Instructor

Jordan Smith is the CEO and Founder of Smith House Company, a design+build firm based in Austin, Texas. He learned to build and weld while working on the farm with his grandad, and after earning a degree in Welding and Materials Engineering, he spent the next 10 years working in the heavy construction building everything from robots to ships to offshore oil rigs before transitioning to residential construction. After spending a couple of years working with industry leading builders in Austin, Jordan and his wife Veronica struck out on their own to form Smith House Co.

Smith House Co. strives to build more beautiful, functional and resilient spaces which are self sustaining and harmonize with their natural surroundings.

Student Testimonial

"The How to Read Blueprints class was very informative. I learned a lot, and feel a lot more confident when I go out to construction sites. Jordan is a great teacher. Not only does he teach you about the blueprints, but he also shares real-world tips and opens up a new world for you. Great class, and I highly recommend it, especially if you are getting started in the trades like me."

- Somona L., CA

Lesson Plan

9 Video Lessons (2h 15m)

Construction Teacher Teaching Blueprints Class

Lesson 1: Course Overview

A blueprint is the fundamental plan for the construction of any structure. In this lesson, Jordan provides a basic overview of the class, outlining the objectives and skills mastered in this online course.

Architect's Ruler for scales and measurement

Lesson 2: Scales & Measurement

Using a simple plan for the shed in his back yard as a guide, Jordan shares how to use an architect's ruler to make reading scales easy.

How to read title sheets and lesson plans

Lesson 3: Title Sheets & Site Plans

A title sheet gives you information about the property, a building's location on that property, the team involved in the project, and how to navigate the whole set of residential blueprints.

Lesson 4: Floor Plans

Part of the architectural drawings within your set of residential blueprints, the floor plans provide a bird's eye view of the interior plan for a house.

Lesson 5: Elevations & Sectional Views

Elevations and sections are two-dimensional views of the interior and exterior surfaces of a house.

Lesson 6: Details & Schedules

Rounding out the architectural drawings within your set of residential blueprints, details are just what they sound like: specific looks at detailed components of the building. Schedules are tables that help you accurately order and use doors, windows, and more.

Lesson 7: Structural Drawings

Structural drawings show how the design for a building can maintain the structural integrity of the home in normal and hazardous weather conditions. Jordan shows you how to understand the key components of a house's structure from the perspective of a builder and an engineer.

Lesson 8: Mechanical, Electrical & Plumbing (MEP)

No modern home is complete without the systems that make it function: HVAC (mechanical), electrical, and plumbing. As a builder or framer, it's important to know where those systems will be routed so you can leave space for them to be laid in. Learn how.

Construction Teacher in Blueprints Class

Lesson 9: Putting It All Together

Learn how to put what you've learned to practice by reading a title page and navigating a complete set of residential blueprints.

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