Factorio Forums

Currently, I'm working on a mod where certain types of recipes have effects in-world. (creating/destroying/modifying entities)
One of these changes depending on the rotation of the machine - for one particular machine, which currently is using the placeholder graphics of an assembling machine 2, I want to (at least for now) use the existing fluid box graphics to help convey which direction the machine is facing.

I first tried setting the fluid_boxes_off_when_no_fluid_recipe property to false, which I thought would make both fluid boxes visible at all times, but as mentioned here, this property doesn't do what anyone would expect it to do. Instead, it being false just makes the fluid box visible when no recipe is selected. This can't happen with my machine though, since it has fixed_recipe set.

I propose that either the fluid_boxes_off_when_no_fluid_recipe property starts actually doing what it says in the name, or a new property is added that can also allow me to force the fluid boxes to be visible.

a non-fluid recipe validates the "no fluid recipe" requirement because its not a fluid recipe. perhaps instead it should be fluid_boxes_always_on?

protocol_1903 wrote: Sat Jun 13, 2026 10:23 pm a non-fluid recipe validates the "no fluid recipe" requirement because its not a fluid recipe. perhaps instead it should be fluid_boxes_always_on?

Yeah, but it acts as if the fluid part isn't there. When false, it only shows the fluid boxes when there isn't a recipe or when the recipe uses the fluid boxes, but it should always be showing both fluid boxes.

I'm asking for the property to do what it says in that case, or for a new property to be added that does what you'd think setting fluid_boxes_off_when_no_fluid_recipe to false would do.