The Norwegian-style house designs presented in this section of the catalog are built from different building materials: wood, brick, aerated concrete. Scandinavian low-rise architecture has preserved the historical features inherent in a way of life in harsh climatic conditions.
Architectural features of the style
Most private houses in Norway are built on one, or less often two, floors. The following features of the northern building can be noted as the most typical.
- A simple rectangular shape, usually with an entrance along the long side of the house.
- Colors of natural shades: sand, green, beige - in exterior decoration facade.
- Gable, wide roofs (“wings”) with a slight slope of up to 20 degrees.
- Uniting under one “vault” a living space, a bathhouse, a garage, and outbuildings.
The modern design of a Scandinavian Norwegian house, of course, differs from historical examples. The "turf" on the roof was replaced by brown tiles, small open terraces and balconies.
Various designs of Norwegian houses
| House made of wood. Project No. 13-57 | House made of stone. Project No. 58-33 |
The architects of our company offer several solutions for a Norwegian house. The project is developed taking into account the building material preferred by the customer. The technology for constructing wooden houses of this style differs in national characteristics.
- A wooden house is a traditional type of construction. The famous “Norwegian felling” involves filing a log on both sides, after which it turns into a “half-beam” or “carriage”. Another feature - corner connections wedge-shaped with a spike (“ Norwegian castle"). It is believed that this technology solves the problems with shrinkage of the house, and due to the tight connection of the logs, it retains heat well. Example of a wooden house: No. 13-57.
- Stone cottage - usually has a simple composition with a built-in garage. The laconic appearance dilutes decorative finishing stone facade that highlights architectural elements: division into floors, entrance area. The design of such houses is no different design features, style is maintained through decor. House made of aerated concrete - No. 58-33.
The Norwegian-style house projects developed by the company have been implemented in practice. Each of them contains a complete package of documentation for construction: working drawings, masonry plans, specifications of materials. A ready-made solution speeds up construction, relieving the customer of the need to delve deeply into technical details.
Eco-Friendly Homestead: Norwegian style wooden houses made from gun carriages are attracting the attention of many people from all over the world. This happens not only because they are able to withstand the influence of extraordinary weather conditions, but also because they look quite democratic, one might even say universal, which allows this construction technology to be used in almost any part of the world.
Norwegian style wooden houses made from gun carriages have attracted the attention of many people from all over the world. This happens not only because they are able to withstand the influence of extraordinary weather conditions, but also because they look quite democratic, one might even say universal, which allows this construction technology to be used in almost any part of the world.
The ability of local people in Norway to build their lives in such a way that they have the most necessary condition for a comfortable life, arouses the natural interest of those who are faced with the choice of design of a country house.
Norwegian style house project
WOODEN HOUSES IN NORWAY
Norwegian builders have a long tradition of using wood as a building material. Traditionally, Norwegian fishing villages were characterized by small houses that were so close together that they formed one front of a row of houses. The technology of building and finishing a house in the Norwegian style is now of great interest to designers who work in the field of low-rise housing.
Design features:
Traditionally, these Norwegian houses are built from gun carriages - logs hewn on both sides. For floor coverings and creating ceilings using wooden slabs or slabs. If you look at the house from the street, it will seem squat.
However, there is plenty of space inside, which is achieved by combining the kitchen with the living room, which does not have a direct ceiling. Due to this, the height of the room increases to 3 and a half meters, which significantly increases the volume of the room.
Norwegian houses are very easy to breathe, as they are made mainly of natural materials, and are spacious. interior spaces do not apply pressure.
Bedrooms are made small, since only a small room can warm up to comfortable temperature in the cold season, when there is bitter frost outside and the northern winds rustle. Stairs to houses are built using Norwegian technology small sizes, since the main thing for which they are valued is functionality and ease of use.
The main features of a house in the Norwegian style are such qualities as solidity and reliability.
Typical Norwegian houses are made of solid logs, have small windows, wooden gutters, and the facades are painted in bright colors, for example, colors such as green and orange, blue or bright red are popular.
Sometimes the facade is brown, gray, black, but the window frames should always be decorated and bright. This is used to ensure that the house pleases and improves the mood of people looking at it. A traditional element of a Norwegian-style house, without a doubt, can be a grass roof, which is also called a “Green” roof.
It not only looks very interesting, but is also practical, since in connection with air gap, which forms around the grass stems, mitigates temperature fluctuations. The sound insulation of the house thanks to the roof increases noticeably. Moreover, the roof becomes another source of oxygen, which has a beneficial effect on the environment.
And in the hot season, under such a roof you don’t have to worry about overheating, since the temperature at the roots of the grass does not rise above 0 degrees. When using this roof covering technology, it is worth making it high-quality waterproofing.
The advantages of such structures are their durability and reliability.
All lumber used in construction is carefully checked in advance with our own hands in order to identify hidden defects. Saving heat and sound insulation, which distinguishes Norwegian wooden houses, are always at the required high level.
The carriages must be connected in a special way, which is called the Norwegian castle. Its use allows you to ensure uniform shrinkage of the house. The instructions for building a house do not include the stage of insulating the joints between the logs.
NORWEGIAN INTERIOR, DESIGN INSTRUCTIONS
This style requires quite bright colors, which will be as different from each other as possible.
Natural materials should also be present, but at the same time, modesty is the main component of the design of the interior space of a house in the Norwegian style.
Features of interior design:
With all this, frame houses, built using Norwegian technology, are very spacious inside. This becomes possible due to the fact that only the most necessary furniture is present in such rooms.
If you intend to build a chalet, then it must have a clear functional division premises.
Cold light colors can be diluted with warm colors. The presence of natural wooden elements in the interior is mandatory. Textiles are also widely used in Norwegian style.
The floor and ceiling, naturally, should be made only from natural wood. Light fluffy carpets will look good on it. Furniture, as well as these interior elements, should mainly be made of wood.
Functionality is a prerequisite for a Norwegian interior. Norway and other Scandinavian countries are distinguished by the fact that they have a large number of forests on their territory. Wood cutting and carving has remained one of the dominant occupations of the Norwegians for many centuries. That is why wood plays such a dominant role in the construction and decoration of houses.
A distinctive feature of these decorative elements is the image of dragons on them.
Particular attention is paid to interior lighting. Daylight is valued very highly, so windows in this style are used quite wide, and the curtains on them should be light and light. But natural light in the harsh Scandinavian regions is quite a rare occurrence.
In this regard, various types of lamps are widely used in the interior:
Floor lamps.
Table lamps.
Spotlights on a metal frame or on a rope.
Norwegian house designs are proving extremely popular in these days. Decorative elements are mainly decorated with a variety of pagan images; they can also be applied to clothing and temple decorations.
Unfortunately, over time, the architects of the Scandinavian countries gradually began to move from their national style to styles that came from Europe - classicism and baroque. But still, some masters managed to preserve the distinctive features of the Norwegian style.
Today, this style, along with the Swedish direction, combines the latest technologies in interior design with natural, environmentally friendly materials. It should be noted that this project is suitable for both the design of a private house and an apartment. The main thing is that the rooms in the room are spacious.
As for the color scheme, the most suitable here are pale and cold shades such as:
Light blue.
White.
Light yellow.
Ivory.
To ensure that these shades do not seem so lifeless, designers advise using a textured paint with which they will be mixed. In order for the room to be warm and cozy, it is necessary to install wooden objects in it. Textiles in Swedish and Norwegian interiors should always be bright and contrasting. It welcomes floral patterns and patterns of small and large cells.
At the same time, blue and white colors, of course, should predominate in textile elements, and much less often you should try to use a combination, for example, red and white. Bathroom walls require additional comfort and warmth, so it is better to decorate them with wide, lightweight boards rather than ordinary ceramic tiles.
A mandatory element of a bathroom in this style is, perhaps, a large mirror, not framed. It can also be placed in almost every room of your house or apartment. Norwegian interior requires wood finishing not only on the walls, but also on the ceiling and floor.
Floor boards must be bleached in a special way to create a faded effect. The following materials can also be added to wood in Scandinavian interiors:
Brick.
A natural stone.
The walls can also be decorated with images in this style. An indispensable attribute of the Norwegian interior is the use of a large amount of living greenery. But if you don’t like installing fresh flowers at home, then this move can be played out in other ways.
For example, painting on the ceiling and walls would be an excellent solution. A climbing plant that gradually slides from the ceiling to the wall will look quite impressive. It does not need to be watered, fed, dusted or washed.
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Besides this, this green plant, which, perhaps, will bloom constantly, will not wither or die. Perhaps once every few years the image will need to be adjusted. Another quite effective option would be to stick canvases on walls and ceilings. This material does not fade in the sun and does not wear off, so choosing it in favor will be absolutely correct, especially since the price of such stickers is low. published
Norway is the northernmost country of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The predominance of the mountainous landscape and the harsh climate leave their mark on the architecture and life. A Norwegian-style house is distinguished by extreme rationalism, complete unity with nature, combined with the use of the most modern energy-saving technologies. In this article we will talk about the advantages and disadvantages of traditional and modern Norwegian houses, the features of their finishing and arrangement landscape design.
Advantages and disadvantages of Norwegian-style houses
Traditional construction material Norwegian style houses - sanded logs large diameter. Nowadays such houses are practically not built due to the high cost of construction. wall material, and further operation of the structure.
Norwegian house from gun carriage
Round logs were replaced by a more technologically advanced carriage. This is an already processed log, sawn on both sides to a semi-oval section. Its standard size is 240x400mm. The main difference from the classic Russian log house is the method of fastening the logs through the so-called “Norwegian lock”. The technology is quite complex, it is not for nothing that among professional carpenters the slang name for its main component is “furniture”. It requires high professionalism and long-term installation practice.
Video with an example of cutting a Norwegian castle:
Building a Norwegian-style house from a gun carriage provides additional benefits:
- Smooth walls inside the house, unlike classic log houses with round logs, allow you to conveniently mount various structural elements (lathing, interior partitions, stairs) or place furniture near the walls.
- The increased contact area between the logs and the complex lock with a large number of angles increase the thermal efficiency of the walls.
- The cross-sectional shape of the castle is such that with increasing external loads the connections between the crowns are compacted, which helps strengthen the entire structure.
- Mechanical loads are distributed evenly, eliminating excess stress nodes, which reduces the likelihood of uneven shrinkage deformations, the formation of cracks or misalignment individual elements building.
The disadvantage of houses made from Norwegian gun carriages is their high price, as well as the need for systematic treatment with antiseptic impregnations.
Norwegian frame
The second, today more popular technology for building houses in Norway, is frame construction. It accounts for more than 70% of all residential buildings in Scandinavia.
About the advantages and disadvantages frame houses A lot has been written, but the Norwegian frame has significant differences from the Russian one. The main advantage of Norwegian projects (Swedish, Finnish) is their extreme rationalism. When designing domestic houses, the focus is usually on the design of the exterior, and the layout does not sufficiently take into account the specifics of living in country house, is formed according to “apartment” principles. Norwegian-style house designs eliminate useless areas in the form of corridors or halls. But there are many utility rooms, because a basement and attic are not provided in such houses.
Features of design and construction of houses using Norwegian technology
Mostly Norwegian-style house designs are one-story or with an attic. The main building material is wood - solid wood or laminated veneer lumber in energy-saving panels. Residential buildings made of brick and stone are practically never found. The area is within 150-180 m2. Despite the rather modest total area, thanks to the thoughtful open layout inside the house there is enough usable space for accommodation big family. On the ground floor there is a kitchen combined with a dining room, often with a living room, on attic floor- bedrooms. The height of the living quarters on the first floor does not exceed 2.4 m; the rooms in the attic are even lower. This is due to economic considerations - low rooms are easier to heat.
Foundation
The base is either a shallow strip foundation or an insulated Swedish plate - USHP. The standard foundation for a Norwegian house is arranged as follows:
- A bulldozer cuts off the top layer of soil, leveling the construction site.
- The gravel (crushed stone) preparation is filled in and compacted.
- In places where the walls support, a metal frame 20x60 cm is welded.
- When pouring concrete, permanent formwork made of extruded polystyrene foam is used, outer side which already has a rough protective coating.
- Crushed stone is poured inside the cells formed by the foundation walls and compacted.
- Extruded polystyrene foam up to 200 mm thick is laid on top.
- A metal frame is installed on the insulation, then poured with concrete.
The total height of such a foundation on a flat construction site does not exceed 60 cm. In addition, the creation of a monolithic foundation has another goal. It serves as a heat accumulator, since Norwegian frame houses have low thermal inertia. The air in them heats up quickly, but also cools down quickly (with intensive ventilation). In addition, to increase thermal inertia inside the house, partitions are made of brick.
Frame
The frame of a Norwegian house is strictly standardized. The distance of one cell between the centers of the supporting posts is 600 mm, and free space 550mm. All thermal insulation materials produced in Norway have a width of 575 mm, which gives 25 mm for their tight installation in the cell. Size sheet material for rough finishing interior walls multiples of 600 mm (1.2, 1.8, 2.4 m). That is, when insulating and finishing, the amount of waste is minimal.
Soft fiberboard is used as hydro- and wind protection for the Norwegian frame. MDVP is used for both internal and external walls (for external ones it is impregnated with wax). Next, through the rail that forms ventilation gap, the facade is covered with unplaned wooden boards.
According to fire safety requirements in all Scandinavian countries, the inside of the room is sheathed with a double layer of gypsum board. Basalt wool with a thickness of 200 mm in walls and 350 mm in roofing structures is used as insulation. Windows in residential buildings wooden, but made using energy-saving technologies with a thermal gap.
Roof
Traditional Norwegian style houses have grass (earth) roofing. However, it requires specific knowledge and careful care. Therefore, contemporaries as roofing material Cement-sand tiles are installed almost everywhere. Wooden flashings with attached chains to direct water flow help to give the house a characteristic Norwegian ambience.
Traditional grass roofs in Norway are still used today, including on tourist cottages.
Energy resources
Norway is a northern country, whose climate is no less severe than in Russia, so much attention is paid to energy efficiency issues. First of all, this is the installation of recuperators in the ventilation system, returning more than 75% of the heat from the exhaust air.
IMPORTANT! Norwegian houses built according to frame technology, do not have air exchange through the diffusion of building structures. They are sealed to prevent heat loss and therefore require the installation of a forced ventilation system.
Practicing DHW systems based on solar collectors with high performance, even in winter. Electric boilers and heat pumps are used as the main source of heating. Also often used solar panels, wind power plants, biogas reactors.
Decorating a house in Norwegian style
The exterior of a house in the Norwegian style is distinguished by its simplicity of shape - square or rectangle. The main entrance is located on the elongated side. It is equipped with a porch that performs both decorative and utilitarian functions. On the back side of the building there is an open veranda, often without railings, completely merging with the surrounding landscape. Visually, the structure looks squat, as it has a low foundation. The roof is gabled and gabled, facilitating the rapid melting of snow.
Unsanded, unplaned boards are often used for finishing the facade. They arrive horizontally, overlapping. Thus, the necessary wind and waterproofing is provided in combination with good vapor permeability to remove moisture from thermal insulation materials. The boards are treated with special antiseptics or matte varnishes that preserve the basic properties of wood and its natural texture. The facade is often painted in dark gray, beige, brown or ocher shades. The use of dark colors allows you to accumulate thermal energy inside the building. The color palette is monochrome - combining several colors with contrasting accents is not typical for the Norwegian style. The material for driveways is fine crushed stone. Pedestrian paths in the surrounding area are laid out with large slabs of wild stone.
The interior decoration of a house in the Norwegian style is characterized by restraint and functionality. Color combinations aged in pastel colors with a predominance of cold colors: white, blue, gray. This interior is accentuated by the use of natural wood, wood, and textiles. Brown, beige, yellowish sand are used as additional shades. For accents, colors of the same palette are used, but more saturated: dark blue, indigo, sunny yellow, deep red.
The following are used as finishing materials:
- natural stone;
- wood - lining or panels;
- unglazed ceramics - terracotta or gress;
- plaster;
- textiles - linen or jute.
The furniture is simple, functional, massive, reliable. Exclusively solid wood is used as a manufacturing material. No chipboard, laminate, plastics. As upholstery for upholstered furniture - leather, suede, upholstery linen or cotton fabrics - plain or with a faint pattern.
Norwegian landscape design
Long winters cold climate, the abundance of stone in the soil - form the basic principles of landscape design in the Scandinavian countries. Norway has specific features Scandinavian style especially pronounced. They stand out in the distinctive Norwegian style of the timber house and its surrounding area. Usually, personal plot has no fences. For the Scandinavian peninsula with its sparse population, this is not a problem. However, for dense buildings it is better to mark the boundaries of the site, at least with a low, sparse picket fence or green hedges.
The cold climate prevents the planting of perennial flowering plants, which for the most part are heat-loving. Used for landscaping coniferous trees various breeds. Much attention given to primroses, but they are not planted in flower beds. Flowers are arranged in pots, complementing various stone compositions.
Ceramic and metal sculptures are often used as a design accent. Benches, gazebos, and various small architectural forms are made of stone and wood. At the same time, wooden structures are given a wild, rough-hewn look. The use of simple forged elements is encouraged.
A Norwegian house is one of the most practical solutions for a home in a country with not too cold winters, but with a lot of snow in winter and rain in summer.
In many ways, the conditions of Norway resemble the climate of our North-West, and therefore a story about the features of a Norwegian house may be of interest to domestic builders.
A Norwegian house is the optimal combination of price, efficiency and quality of construction, multiplied by preservation national traditions house building.
Although when we mention the words “Norwegian house” we immediately think of a massive log carriage with a characteristic Norwegian lockhouse, in fact, a typical Norwegian house looks completely different.
In the same way, Norwegian dachas differ from Norwegian houses.
Now our story will focus on real Norwegian residential buildings:
A 19th-century Norwegian house from the coastal region is practically no different from the houses of its northern European neighbors. Simple shapes, pointed roofs, tiled roofing. The white color of a Norwegian house in the 19th century spoke of the wealth of the Norwegian homeowner: imported white paint cost seventy times more than red ocher made from local raw materials. Therefore, most Scandinavian houses had (and have) a characteristic red-brown ocher color. White paint bought only for platbands. However, there was also an option when only the main facade of a Norwegian house was painted white.
The post-war (WWII) Norwegian house is distinguished by its laconic forms and modest dimensions. However, restraint and frugality have always been characteristic of the Norwegians. A Norwegian house is, first of all, comfortable, rational and inexpensive to build and operate. In a Norwegian home, as a rule, there is nothing superfluous. This applies to both external decoration and interiors, which we will talk about separately.
Post-war Norwegian houses had small area and were often factory-made from wood panels. Above is a plan of a typical post-war Norwegian house (1949). Visible on the plan characteristic of all Norwegian homes: combining the kitchen and dining room into one space.
After the war, Norwegians began to enjoy special love for houses in American style ranch. There are several explanations for this love for this type of house. Firstly, at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, about 800 thousand Norwegians emigrated to the United States. After World War II, many of them or their descendants returned to Norway, and brought with them the most common post-war architectural style of mass housing in the United States. Interestingly, there are currently more Norwegians living in the United States than in Norway itself.
Secondly, the layout of the ranch-style house appealed very well to the Norwegians: after all, squat elongated houses with a large common living room combined with a kitchen and dining room, with small bedrooms - this is nothing more than a modern interpretation of the classic Norwegian “long” Viking houses. The picture shows the layout of a modern Norwegian "almost-long" house.
The forerunners of the Norwegian Viking longhouses were houses whose roofs were constructed from an overturned Viking longboat. Therefore, the shape of the roof of a “long” Norwegian house retained the traditional shape of a boat. The walls of the house were made of hewn logs placed vertically (cooperage wall). Initially, the Norwegian "long" house was not divided into rooms (livestock were also kept there), but as these houses evolved, small bedrooms began to be enclosed in them. The tradition of small bedrooms that are easy to heat is still preserved in Norwegian houses.
During the Middle Ages, the traditional Norwegian longhouse was transformed from a structure frame structure into a typical Norwegian log house. In terms of layout, it was the same “long” house with a cattle shed connected to the house. The traditional black color, which has migrated to modern Norwegian houses, is the color of tree resin, which was used to protect the wood.
Norwegian "long" house in a modern (20th century) two-story interpretation in classic Norwegian colors: ocher and white.
In Norway there are two categories of houses: houses for permanent residence and houses for holidays in the mountains ("dachas" in our Russian understanding). Some Norwegian holiday homes look like full-fledged residential buildings - they can only be distinguished by a flagpole with a Norwegian pennant. When the homeowner comes on vacation, the pennant is raised on the flagpole. However, most Norwegian "dachas" continue the tradition of old small shepherd's houses in the mountains, where women and children went in the summer to graze livestock and store supplies for the winter. For many Norwegians, summer life in a mountain cabin is the happiest period of their childhood.
In some Norwegian country houses, the owners deliberately do not provide electricity (although it is available almost everywhere - in Norway the state helps and does not hinder the electrification of houses, does not introduce “social norms” for electricity consumption, does not kill small businesses with gigantic fines for “non-contractual” electricity consumption and etc.) The fact is that Norwegians want to be closer to nature during their weekends and recreate the authentic atmosphere of antiquity in their houses. In places where it is really impossible to supply electricity (high in the mountains), Norwegians install systems autonomous house(solar panels) and bring gas in cylinders. Here you can read about simple systems for an autonomous Norwegian home.
Country houses as large and opulent as the ones pictured are relatively rare in Norway. As in other Scandinavian countries, in Norway it is considered bad form to boast of one’s wealth and build odious castle palaces. A large and rich house will have exactly the same design solution as ordinary house: frame insulated with mineral wool, covered with painted unplaned boards: the Norwegian’s house is simple and functional.
If the homeowner has more owner financial resources, then his house may be larger than that of the average Norwegian (average salary is more than 3,000 euros per month). A wealthy Norwegian homeowner would rather invest money not in the size of the house and a five-meter-high fence (there are practically no fences in Norway), but in good architecture and receive one of the modern Norwegian architectural masterpieces (the picture shows the work of the Norwegian architectural bureau WRB Architects), and not the likeness of assorted fairy tales castles from a bad parody of Disneyland, so often found in the vastness of our country.
In 1972, the Norwegian Council of Ministers decided not to develop the construction of multi-storey buildings in Norway. Therefore, instead of concrete high-rise buildings, nice two-story townhouses or private houses were built in Norway. Such houses do not require grandiose thermal power plants, colossal heating pipelines and other not the most economically rational utility solutions, of which the modern Russia.
Contrary to popular belief, log houses with traditional Norwegian gun carriages are not very common in Norway. In residential buildings you will find literally only a few of them. Most of the houses from the Norwegian timber frame are found in the form of holiday cottages. The reason, apparently, is the innate practicality of the Norwegians: wooden frame houses are much more energy efficient than logs thinned on the sides by fire monitors.
The overwhelming majority of Norwegian houses are built using frame technology. First or ground floor can be cast from monolithic concrete or made of concrete or expanded clay concrete blocks, if the house is located on a difference in relief. The second floor will still be frame. Brick or gas-expanded clay and other concrete houses are practically not built. In conditions high humidity, frequent temperature changes, these materials do not behave as well as frame construction. Yes, and insurance for brick houses much more expensive...
As you can see in the picture, Norwegian frame houses are not built from 150 x 150 timber, as solid domestic builders like to do. The strength of the frame is determined not only by the thickness of its elements, but by the uniform configuration of the frame as a whole. A dry plank of the frame of a Norwegian house will not behave like a damp timber. Such a frame of a Norwegian house will not shrink. Naturally, all elements of the frame of a Norwegian house are treated with antiseptics, which in our country is also often ignored in the usual construction race “faster, even faster.”
Norwegian houses are insulated mainly with glass wool from the local company Glava.
Insulation thickness standards: roof and walls 20 cm. Present on the Norwegian insulation market and ecowool. In some options for wall insulation, insulation with a thickness of 198 mm + an inner layer of insulation of 50 mm is used.
The walls of the vast majority of Norwegian houses - both private and public - are finished in the same way: cladding with UNWOOD boards and multi-layer painting. The main colors for painting the walls of a Norwegian house are: white, ocher, black, brown. Norwegians conducted research and found that unplaned wood, unlike planed wood, absorbs paint better and withstands the effects of natural weather factors much better than planed, painted wood. And here we all line the walls with planed blockhouse and wonder why after 5 years the paint (antiseptic) begins to peel off...
The cladding of the walls of a Norwegian house is done with boards horizontally (ship type) or vertically (cooper type cladding).
The main types of foundations in Norway are an insulated Scandinavian (Swedish) slab and a shallow strip foundation with a monolithic slab covering the first floor.
Foundation on slopes when there is a possibility of backing groundwater from a slope, be sure to protect it with a wall drainage membrane. Do not forget about the wall underground drainage.
Basically, the roof of a Norwegian house is natural material. Rolled ones are the least common in Norway. bitumen roofs, bitumen shingles and as a class there is practically no ondulin. Slate roofing is quite common on Norwegian houses - after all, Norway produces its own slate. However, in our country there is slate, but for some reason there are no beautiful and durable slate roofs in it...
Wooden roofing is a fairly rare option in Norway. Most often, wooden roofing can be seen on Norwegian holiday homes or tourist sites. Although, a properly constructed wooden roof treated with antiseptics is no less durable than the same beloved ondulin in the country with a guaranteed service life of 15 years.
One of the most common roofing options for a Norwegian house is simple ceramic or glazed ceramic tiles.
Traditional Norwegian inverted green roofing is also most often found on Norwegian holiday homes or tourist/public buildings. In the photo: concert hall near Edvard Grieg's house in Bergen.
Unlike Sweden, where tile or steel seam roofing reigns supreme, metal tiles are widespread in Norway. Almost all metal-tiled roofs of Norwegian houses are black: this way the roof of a Norwegian house warms up better and the snow melts off it faster.
Metal tiles on Norwegian houses are not simple, but with a protective layer of basalt chips: such a layer better protects the roof from UV rays and climatic factors.
Some types of metal tiles with basalt coating are difficult to distinguish by appearance from natural tiles. Please note that the metal tile fastening nails are driven exclusively along the end surfaces of the sheets - this reduces the likelihood of leakage in the roof of a Norwegian house.
The most ingenious option for a cheap and durable roof: a reinforced, paint-painted fiber-reinforced concrete casting from a sheet of ordinary metal tile. I saw such a roof in a single copy - apparently this is the know-how of the homeowner.
Heating in a modern Norwegian home is most often done with electric convectors and heated electric floors. Traditionally, houses are equipped with fireplaces and cast iron stoves, which can quickly heat up the house. The chimneys of a modern Norwegian house are most often a Schiedel chimney (a ceramic modular pipe with basalt insulation inside expanded clay concrete block). today it is the safest and reliable design chimney.
Old brick chimneys restored by sleeving them with a bellows stainless pipe or composite stainless steel sleeves. The design of the chimneys of a Norwegian house is traditional: a flat sheet of slate on four stones or bricks, which is pressed on top with cobblestones. There are options for concrete composite deflectors for chimney, as in the previous photo.
Ventilation is brought to the roof using steel “chimneys” - plastic is not held in high esteem on the roof of a Norwegian house. There are options for organizing the ventilation of a Norwegian house, when several ventilation ducts are led into one such extended hood, which is ventilated at the top point.
IN living rooms in Norwegian houses, the windows are made panoramic: without frames and as much as possible possible size so that sitting in the living room you can feel unity with the surrounding landscape.
The color scheme of the interior of a Norwegian house is a continuation of the surrounding nature, which enters the Norwegian house through panoramic windows. You can read about the features of modern Norwegian interior in a separate article.
Solid fences around a Norwegian house are extremely rare - only in cases where they cannot be avoided: for example, next to a busy highway. In all other cases, if it is necessary to hide a Norwegian house from prying eyes, a live green hedge. In most cases, fences around Norwegian houses are simply absent or made in the traditional way. European style fences
The area around the Norwegian house is marked, if necessary, with a low picket fence or low mesh.
We hope you enjoyed our story about Norwegian houses.
Many of the site users have heard that building a Norwegian house first of all means building housing according to national Norwegian traditions, multiplied by the optimal combination of price and quality. And when the phrase “Norwegian houses” is mentioned, the imagination pictures massive log-carriages with memorable castles in the Norwegian style. This is not entirely true. After reading our article, you will learn:
- What is it - building a house in Norwegian style;
- How to build a Norwegian house;
- What are houses built from in Norway?
- How does heating work in a Norwegian house?
What is a Norwegian house
The magical phrase “house in Norwegian” means the opportunity to live in your own own home in maximum unity with nature, but have all the benefits of civilization.
In Norway, in 1972, the Council of Ministers decided not to develop the construction of multi-storey buildings. And instead of cramped concrete high-rise buildings, concentrate the main efforts on the construction of private houses or townhouses.
The benefits of this approach to house building are obvious - a private house does not require the construction of huge thermal power plants and the connection of utility networks. It is in this kind of national approach that the answer lies to why private housing construction is so developed in Norway.
Norwegian house building is more of a philosophy than a technology. As mentioned above, contrary to popular belief, traditional log buildings from gun carriages are not built very often. The bulk of the buildings are frames. A log houses, paying tribute to the past, are mainly used for the usual dachas and for going out with the family into nature - just like in Moscow.
In Norway there are two categories of houses: for permanent residence and for holidays in the mountains. Some Norwegian dachas look like full-fledged homes for year-round residence, they have one characteristic feature- flagpole with pennant.
In a special section of our forum you can learn about choosing a contractor for construction
Despite the fact that electricity is ubiquitous in Norway, some owners of log cottages deliberately refuse to supply electricity.
This is due to the fact that Norwegians tend to be alone with nature during their weekend holidays.
And sometimes, to recreate the atmosphere of antiquity as much as possible, wood stoves and oil lamps are used during relaxation.
In those buildings to which, for one reason or another, it is impossible to supply electricity or is very expensive - the home is located high in the mountains, Norwegians install autonomous sources of electricity - solar panels. And for cooking they use imported gas in cylinders.
In Norway, large and very expensive cottages are not usually built, since it is not customary for local residents to flaunt their wealth.
The average area of houses in Norway is between 160 and 200 m2. Since the Norwegians are famous for their frugality, they rightly believe that a relatively small cottage is more profitable to operate.
If there is a large income, the Norwegian homeowner will prefer not to build huge mansions or castles, but to invest money in a design project for a modern and stylish home.
Norwegian frame
Also in Norway they practically do not build stone houses, preferring frame houses. In addition to low insurance, frame houses perform much better in the rather cool Norwegian climate, allowing you to heat your home with great savings.
The construction of any frame begins with laying the foundation. But there are local peculiarities here. In Norway, the main types of foundations are USHP foundations and shallow strip foundations with floors on the ground, since Norwegians believe that such foundations are best suited for frame frames, increasing their heat capacity and energy efficiency.
The standard for a frame in Norway is a 20 cm layer of insulation in the walls, but to create an energy-efficient or so-called passive house, the insulation layer is increased to 40 cm.
The walls of most Norwegian homes are finished with unplaned boards, which are then painted in several layers. The Norwegians found that unplaned wood, unlike planed wood, absorbs paint better and is much better able to withstand adverse weather factors - snow, wind and rain. The main colors for painting the walls of a Norwegian house are ocher, white, brown and black.
The cladding of the walls of a Norwegian house is done either horizontally, the so-called ship type, or vertically, the barrel type cladding.
Natural building materials are mainly used as roofing - ceramic tiles and metal tiles. Contrary to popular belief, wooden roofing is as rarely used in Norway as shingles.
Most of the roofs of Norwegian houses are made of black metal tiles. That's whythe roof warms up better and the snow melts off it faster.
Traditional Norwegian green roofing is mainly found on holiday homes or tourist accommodations.
How do they heat houses in Norway?
Heating in this cool region has to be given great importance, but it is designed on a completely different principle than ours. Heating in Norway is mainly electric convectors and heated electric floors.
Norwegians like to warm themselves with potbelly stoves.
Additionally, Norwegians can heat their homes by simply wood stove, most often called a potbelly stove.
In Scandinavian countries, due to the high cost of gas heating, it is very popular to heat houses with wood.
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In conclusion, it is worth saying a few words about the interior of a Norwegian house. Since rooms, in the Norwegian understanding, are a continuation of the nature around them, in living rooms they try to make panoramic windows, devoid of frames and of the largest possible size, so that while sitting in the living room you can feel like a part of nature.
Also in Norway, as in other European countries, there are practically no high and solid fences that are familiar to us.
If necessary, because of the nearby road, Norwegians can build a fence from a low picket fence, or, if it is necessary to hide the house from prying eyes, a green hedge is planted.
And one more interesting feature of local construction: it is customary to erect beautiful outbuildings here.
This is not a well-preserved ancient building or summer house made antique E that's a change house in Norwegian!
There is a topic on our forum with detailed coverage of all stages of building a house. Watch the video about a complex made from alternative energy sources to