Home Construction

My husband, Kory, is a retired union carpenter. He worked for a small construction company two days a week the year we lived in Norway. He didn’t mind working because he loved seeing how Norwegians build things. They use the highest quality materials and they build things to last.




There are wooden churches still standing in Norway that were built in the 1100s. Norwegians are good about planning ahead. Back in the “old days,” before any building was built, they identified which trees would be used for the construction, then they stripped off all the bark the year before they cut it down. The tree, in an effort to “save” itself, emits a pitch that acts as a preservative and makes the wood impervious to rot or insects. It’s incredible to stand in wooden buildings that are almost nine hundred years old. It’s not uncommon to have wooden buildings from the 1600s still being used on farms today.



Each day Kory went to work, he’d come home and tell me a little about what he’d learned from these very “forward thinking” Norwegians as it related to the construction of houses today. For example, just after the framing is done, they run plastic conduits throughout the house wherever there will be plumbing or wiring. The plumber and electrician then snake the wires and water pipes through these conduits. The water “pipes” look almost like an industrial garden hose as they are flexible and all one piece so they can’t break. Assuming they did break though, the water would be contained inside the plastic conduit and it would all come out at the junction box where there is always an in-floor drain – so water damage to a home from “broken pipes” isn’t really an issue. And since the electrical wires are also protected inside a conduit, little critters can’t gnaw on them as easily.



All rooms have interior doors in Norway because heating is zonal, not central. All interior doors are kept closed all the time and as a result, they hang little signs on the outside of the bathroom door so visitors don’t accidentally walk into a closet or bedroom when they need to pee. Most of the signs say “W/C” –borrowing from the British term “Water Closet,” but the other option is the sign I put on our bathroom door that just says “BAD.” That’s actually the real Norwegian word for “bathroom,” but it’s also an accurate description of how that room sometimes smells – so it also serves as a warning. That’s my version of “forward thinking.”