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Re: Can't place sink on counters

It definitely seems like something's corrupt.  Here's what I've just tried:

I tried loading a different lot in the same save.  It seems like on other lots I still can't place new sinks, but I can move existing ones around, which I can't do on my active family's lot.

I tried making a new save, and it behaves like above: moving existing sinks is okay, but putting new ones won't work.

I tried repairing my game... twice!  I didn't know that was a feature, it seems very handy.  Unfortunately it didn't work for my sink problem.

I thought repairing would have done it for sure!  Is there a file somewhere that I can delete to fix my game without hurting my save?  Some kind of cache file, or something that the repair feature will repopulate?

I'm stoked that you guys are helping, I don't remember having this kind of support for previous Sim games.  Or maybe I was googling the wrong things.  In any case, thanks!

18 Replies

  • BryonyRae's avatar
    BryonyRae
    Hero (Retired)
    10 years ago

    @drd47r You could also try a folder reset.

    Reset your sims 4 folder by moving your sims 4 folder ( that is in Documents -Electronic Arts - then the sims 4 folder is there ) to the desktop. Then start the game, and a new sims 4 folder will be generated.  Test whether the issue is still occurring.  Once you've finished testing, exit the game and then add back the "options.ini" file and the "saves" , "screenshots" "tray" "custom music " folders from the desktop sims 4 folder to the new sims 4 folder, replacing the new generated file/ folders with the old file/folders.

    If the problem still occurs after a full reset (but before you copy any old files back), I think we will be scratching our heads.  If not, then I hope it will be gone for good.  Let us know.

  • drd47r's avatar
    drd47r
    10 years ago

    @BryonyRae That absolutely should have worked!  But it didn't.  I should have known--whenever something breaks for me, it REALLY breaks!  

    I then tried to uninstall the game from the control panel, redownloaded it, and still have the same problem!  In a brand new download with no old files reintroduced!  The whole Origin Games folder got deleted in the uninstall!

    I guess now I'm trying to find out if there are any files outside the Origin Games and My Documents folders that I can delete.  Of course, I was thinking of wiping my whole computer so I could repartition it (and maybe upgrade to Windows 8), so... now might be a good time.

    I can't believe I broke my game so bad in the first three days, but thanks for trying to figure it out with me!

  • BryonyRae's avatar
    BryonyRae
    Hero (Retired)
    10 years ago

    @drd47r I can only recommend a workaround at this point, which would be to use the cheat bb.moveobjects whenever you want to place a sink.  Just type CTRL+SHIFT+C to bring the cheats console up, then bb.moveobjects in the console to turn it on.  This cheat will allow you to place objects virtually anywhere, so you should be cautious when using it if you are not familiar with it.  It should definitely work to allow you to place the sinks.  Once placed, turn it off by typing the same command into the console again, and close the console with another CTRL+SHIFT+C.

  • crinrict's avatar
    crinrict
    Hero+
    10 years ago

    Willing to share your save game ?

    If so, please zip up this folder: documents\electronicarts\thesims4\saves, upload to mediafire or dropbox and PM me the link.

  • drd47r's avatar
    drd47r
    10 years ago

    @BryonyRae I was wondering what happened to the moveobjects cheat!  Thanks for that.  I still can't place sinks with it, though, not even on the floor.  Other objects can go wherever (I put a smoke detector on the floor, hehe), but sinks are just stubborn.  Thanks for all the suggestions, I definitely have a good collection of things to try when something else goes wrong in the future.  I think I'm either going to start using only pedestal sinks or wipe my computer (which is something I wanted to do eventually anyway).

  • drd47r's avatar
    drd47r
    10 years ago

    @crinrict I PMed my original save game to you.  Since I have sink problems with or without my save files, I don't think you'll have the same trouble with my save that I do, though.  It's worth checking out, though, just in case!  Thanks!

  • crinrict's avatar
    crinrict
    Hero+
    10 years ago

    As expected, I'm not able to replicate the issue.

    Did you try a new game after the folder reset ? Before putting anything back ?

  • drd47r's avatar
    drd47r
    10 years ago

    @crinrict Yup.  Brand new game, no old files introduced, both Sims 4 folders deleted in the uninstall.  My best guess is that there are files elsewhere on the computer that the game uses and one of them went corrupt.  The game crashed a couple of times on me, so it seems probable that a crash corrupted something.

    It's funny, last night I went to play a new household, and I placed a sink!  It worked!  Just once.  Then it stopped working, and I realized I can't place coffee pots and microwaves, too.  I'm starting to think that it might be something memory-related.  I had the task manager open to monitor CPU usage, and right when the game crashed last night, I noticed it was using 100% of the CPU.  My game seemed fine, it wasn't slow or anything.  My windows partition isn't very large (It seemed like an appropriate amount at the time, back in the day), and I'm already using almost 90% of it (I have only 4Gb RAM, maybe the game needs more than 10% open hard disk space to run right).

    So I think this is my solution: I just upgraded my OSX version to 10.11, and now I'm going to download the game there.  I noticed that the Sims 3 worked better on windows than it did on OSX, which is the only reason I was playing the Sims 4 on windows!  If my bug somehow carries over across partitions, then everything I thought I knew about computers will be out the window.

  • crinrict's avatar
    crinrict
    Hero+
    10 years ago

    From what I see with other Mac users, Sims 4 runs much much better then Sims 3 on mac as it's not using cider but was build from scratch for Mac.

    Go for mac. Way better than playing on outdated  XP

  • drd47r's avatar
    drd47r
    10 years ago

    I just tried it on OSX and it's working pretty well.  It gave me a warning saying my graphics card wasn't good enough, but the only problem it caused was opaque windows.  Much better than not being able to place things on counters.  I think it's dumb that my graphics card was good enough for the Windows version, but not for the Mac version, but it's good enough.

    @crinrict and @BryonyRae, thanks for going through the problem with me!  Seriously, I've tried to ask around about bugs in previous Sims games, and it was hard to find anyone who knew anything who was willing to help.  It's very much appreciated!

  • Hey I found this report searching bugs on counters and am afraid I have the same issue as the OP. Sadly the OPs solution won't work for me!

    Whenever I create a new household in the game, counter become utterly bugged. I cannot place sinks, coffee machines etc. just as the OP decribed. In addition, counters are not even selectable or deletable in build mode, it is pretty much as though I never placed them, undo is the only way to affect them.

    Everything works fine when I load my old save and households, but every new houehold is affected.

  • Ok, I just did a folder reset and it seems to be, unlike the OP, a modding issue after all. No new custom content has been added recently, but Get to Work, Spa Day and Outdoor Retreat where newly installed just before the issue showed up. So there might be something clashing there.

  • Rogue_Explorato's avatar
    Rogue_Explorato
    10 years ago

    Ok, I did some further testing.

    As said, a folder reset resolves the isue (but puts back to day one).

    Putting back in the "options.ini" file and the "saves" , "screenshots" "tray" "custom music " folders from the old sims 4 folder bring back the issue.

    The problem persists with all mods/cc removed.

    Removing all old saves and starting anew likewhise sees the issue persist.

    I don't see how the ".ini" file could be corrupted, so my guess would be a problem in the "tray" folder? Kann that be fixed?

  • Rogue_Explorato's avatar
    Rogue_Explorato
    10 years ago

    My testing concludes.

    The only solution seems to be to start entirely from scratch. Whenever I put in any old data into the sims 4 folder, the issue returns, even on an entirely new freshly purged folder. Even if I then remove all the old data, the problem persists.

    I guess I will now begin an entirely new game, make regular backups of the entire folder and see if the problem shows up again.

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