It is difficult to visualize certain aspects of design without putting it to scale on paper. The designer should think with drawings or sketches and make the mistakes on paper not on the landscape site. The plot plan should consist of 1) accurate house placement on the lot/ office building interior, 2) accurate lot and house dimensions with window and door placement and 3) existing driveways and/or walks. It saves a lot of time if the customer has an accurate plat of the house/ office building and lot and a house floor plan with inside/outside dimensions. These plans maybe secured from the builder, developer or county or city property records. Although the floor plan scale will probably be different from the scale you use, it will still be easier to convert the scale than to physically measure the house, lot, etc.

Once the house position on the lot has been determined (or interior position), this should be drawn to a predetermined scale on tracing paper placed over grid paper. Commonly, 1 inch equals 5 feet or 1 inch equals 10 feet, but you may choose another scale based upon your drawing equipment and project dimensions. Recommended drawing equipment includes: drafting pencils, T-square, scaled rulers, triangle, art gum eraser, drafting tape, grid paper (8 or 10 squares to the inch) and tracing or drafting paper. The designer must have a firm, steady working surface.