Foundation Tags
What is Foundation Tags?
Foundation Tags is an automated tagging tool that labels structural foundations in your Revit model. Instead of manually placing tags on every footing, pier, or foundation wall, Foundation Tags does the work for you—placing consistent, properly formatted tags on all your foundations in seconds.
The tool reads the foundation data directly from your model elements and creates tags that display the information your drawings need, whether that's size dimensions, mark numbers, or other structural properties.
When to Use It
Foundation Tags is ideal when you need to:
- Tag new foundations - After placing footings in your structural model, quickly tag them all at once
- Prepare foundation plans - Get consistent tags across all your foundation plan views
- Update after design changes - Re-tag foundations when sizes or marks have changed
- Standardize documentation - Ensure all foundation tags follow the same format across your project
Quick Start
- Open a foundation plan view or any view showing foundations
- Launch Foundation Tags from the DB Tools ribbon
- Select which foundation types to tag
- Click Tag All to automatically place tags
- Review and adjust any tags that need repositioning
Step-by-Step Workflows
Auto-Tagging Foundations
Tag all foundations in the current view:
- Open the view where you want tags placed
- Start the Foundation Tags tool
- In the dialog, select the foundation categories you want to tag:
- Structural Foundations (spread footings, isolated footings)
- Foundation Walls
- Piers/Columns
- Choose your tag family and type from the dropdown
- Click Tag All
- Tags are placed automatically at the center of each foundation
Tag selected foundations only:
- Pre-select specific foundation elements in your view
- Start the Foundation Tags tool
- The tool will only tag your selected elements
- Click Tag Selected
Tag Positioning
Foundation Tags places tags at the geometric center of each foundation by default. You can adjust positioning:
Default placement:
- Tags appear centered on the foundation
- Leader lines are not used by default
With leaders:
- Enable the Use Leaders option for tags with leader lines
- Useful when foundations are closely spaced
- Leaders point to the foundation center
After placement:
- Move individual tags as needed using standard Revit tag editing
- Tags maintain their association with the foundation element
Updating Tags After Changes
When foundation sizes or properties change:
- Delete and re-tag - Select existing tags, delete them, then run Foundation Tags again
- Revit's built-in update - If only parameter values changed (not geometry), tags update automatically
If you've added new foundations to an existing tagged view:
- Run Foundation Tags again
- The tool will tag only untagged foundations
- Existing tags remain in place
Combined Foundation Tags: Update banner behavior
When running Update Combined Foundation Tags:
- If the tool modifies elements, the result banner stays visible and includes a Select Modified button (and Select Skipped when applicable).
- If the tool does not modify any elements (or only produces skipped/failed results), the banner auto-closes and does not show selection buttons.
Combined Foundation Tags: prerequisites (tool disabled)
Combined Foundation Tags requires specific shared project parameters to exist (correct names + GUIDs + bindings). DB Tools checks prerequisites when the active model changes and disables the commands when prerequisites are missing/mismatched.
Fix
- Open DB Tools Settings → Combined Foundation Tags
- Use the warning card Fix button (or the pack’s Install/Repair) to install/repair required shared parameters.
- This also repairs name collisions: if your model contains other parameters with the same name but the wrong GUID (or multiple definitions with the same name), Install/Repair deletes the conflicting definitions and reinstalls the correct DBTools GUID-backed parameters.
Source:
src/Tools/Structural/FoundationTags/Hooks/FoundationTagsPrerequisiteMonitorTask.cs:1
Source:src/Tools/Structural/FoundationTags/Settings/FoundationTagsSettingsPackContext.cs:1
Source:src/Tools/Structural/FoundationTags/Features/SharedParameters/FoundationTagsSharedParameterInstaller.cs:384
Source:src/DBTools.Core/Settings/Shell/SettingsWarningCardView.xaml:1
Supported Foundation Types
Foundation Tags works with these Revit categories:
| Category | Examples |
|---|---|
| Structural Foundations | Spread footings, isolated footings, mat foundations |
| Wall Foundations | Continuous footings, strip footings |
| Structural Columns | Piers, foundation piers |
| Foundation Slabs | Slab-on-grade (when modeled as foundation) |
The tool recognizes both system families and loadable foundation families.
Settings
Tag Family Selection
Choose which tag family to use from families loaded in your project. Common options include:
- Structural Foundation Tag
- Foundation Tag with Size
- Mark Number Tag
Tag Format Options
Depending on your selected tag family, tags can display:
- Mark number - The foundation's mark value
- Size - Dimensions (width x length x depth)
- Type name - The foundation family type
- Custom parameters - Project-specific data
Placement Options
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
| Tag untagged only | Skip foundations that already have tags |
| Include leaders | Add leader lines from tag to element |
| Tag orientation | Horizontal or aligned with foundation |
Combined Foundation Tag Regex Defaults
When using Combined Foundation Tag update/move workflows, the default regex settings are:
- Tag family pattern:
^DB Pier and Foundation Combined Tag(?: No Elevations)?$ - Pier family pattern:
^Foundation Pier(?: - Round)?$ - Footing family pattern:
^(?:Footing|Pile Cap)-Rectangular$
Tips & Tricks
Work in plan views - Foundation Tags works best in plan views where you can see all foundations clearly. Tags placed in 3D views may not appear correctly in plans.
Check your tag family first - Make sure you have an appropriate foundation tag family loaded before running the tool. The tag family determines what information displays.
Use view filters - If you only want to tag certain foundation types, use view filters to hide others before tagging.
Tag by phase - Working on a phased project? Set your view phase correctly before tagging to ensure you're tagging foundations in the right phase.
Batch process views - Need the same tags in multiple views? Run Foundation Tags in each view—it's fast enough to tag several views in under a minute.
Troubleshooting
No foundations are tagged
Possible causes:
- No foundations visible in the current view
- Foundations are already tagged (and "tag untagged only" is enabled)
- No valid tag family is selected
Solution: Check that foundations appear in your view and try selecting a different tag family.
Tags appear in wrong location
Possible causes:
- View scale affecting tag placement
- Foundation geometry is irregular
Solution: Tags can be moved after placement. For irregular foundations, you may need to manually adjust tag positions.
Tag shows "?" or missing data
Possible causes:
- The foundation element is missing the parameter the tag is trying to display
- Tag family references a parameter that doesn't exist
Solution: Check that your foundations have the required parameter filled in, or choose a different tag family.
Some foundations not tagged
Possible causes:
- Elements are in a different phase
- Elements are in a different workset (not loaded)
- Elements are not actual foundation category objects
Solution: Check element properties to confirm they're structural foundations. Verify phase settings match the view.
FAQ
Can I tag foundations in 3D views?
Yes, but it's not recommended. Tags placed in 3D views often don't translate well to documentation views. For best results, tag in plan views.
Will tags update if I change the foundation size?
Yes. Tags in Revit are linked to elements—if you change a parameter value that the tag displays, the tag updates automatically.
Can I tag foundations across multiple levels at once?
Foundation Tags works on the current view only. To tag foundations on multiple levels, run the tool in each level's foundation plan view.
What if I don't have a foundation tag family loaded?
You'll need to load one first. Foundation tag families are typically included in Revit's default structural templates, or you can create custom tag families for your firm's standards.
Does this work with linked models?
Foundation Tags works with foundations in the current model. Foundations in linked models need to be tagged in their host model or using Revit's tag-by-linked-element functionality.
Can I customize what information the tag shows?
The displayed information is controlled by the tag family, not this tool. To show different information, edit the tag family or create a new one with the parameters you need.