Pest and vermin control (Skadedyrbekjempelse)

Specialist companies provide pest and vermin control as well as services to combat rot (hussop) and condensation damage (fuktskade); look for them under skadedyrbekjempelse in the Yellow Pages. A useful vocabulary of pests and vermin: ants (stokkmauer), black ants (jordmauer), cockroaches (kakerlakker), deathwatch beetles (borebiller), flies (fluer), larder beetles (fleskeklanner), longhorn beetles (husbukk), mealworms (melbiller), mice (mus), moths (møll), pigeons (duer), rats (rotter), silverfish (sølvkre), termites (termitter) and wasps (veps).

Pine furniture, care of (Rengjøring av furumøbler)

Natural wood furniture can be scrubbed with a weak solution of warm water and soft soap. For stubborn ingrained dirt, add 3/4 dl domestic bleach (klorin) to 5 litres of warm water in a bucket; this is particularly effective on garden furniture and teak decking on boats. Caution! Bleach is corrosive (etsende). Handle it with care; always wear rubber gloves and wear protective glasses when using it. Apply a coat of furniture polish (møbelpuss) to indoor furniture and teak oil (teakolje) to outdoor furniture.

Plant import (Innførsel av planter)

The import of plants or parts of plants is subject to restrictions intended to curtail the spread of pests and plant diseases. For instance, the import of chrysanthemums, geraniums and gerbera and the seedlings, but not the seeds, of cucumber, lettuce, strawberry and tomato plants is prohibited without an approved health certificate (sunnhetssertifikat) conforming to the international FAO (Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations) norm. So if you intend to import plants or receive plants from abroad as gifts, contact the nearest office of the Food Safety Authority (Chapter 18), listed under Mattilsynet in the Yellow Pages.

Refuse (Avfall)

Refuse collection is a municipal service and may be performed by a public department or by a private contractor to the municipality. If you live in a flat, the cost of refuse collection is included in your rent or share of the common expenses of the building. If you live in a house, the cost of collection is included in local taxes. Collection is done in two ways.

In larger cities, each household has two waste bins, one for paper and cardboard and one for waste, including food waste, to be incinerated. The bins usually are emptied once a week. A comprehensive overview of waste collection in the Oslo area is available in 11 languages in printed and online versions from the Waste Management Authority (Renovasjonsetaten), PO Box 4533 Nydalen, 0404 Oslo, Tel: 23483600, Fax: 23483601, www.ren.oslo.kommune.no, postmottak@renovasjonsetaten.oslo.kommune.no.

In smaller cities and towns, the municipality places bins at blocks of flats and gives each house a roll of refuse bags to line a large container at curb side. If you have two containers you will receive two rolls of bags, calculated to last you six months. Paper, cardboard, glass bottles, tin cans and glass and plastic bottles not returned for deposit are collected for recycling (Chapter 8). In most municipalities, paper is collected once or twice a month in special fibre-reinforced plastic sacks.

You can discard bottles and tins in recycling containers, usually located at supermarkets and municipal car parks. Larger items like furniture that are in good or repairable condition, can be donated to a flea market (Chapter 40) or delivered to the local refuse tip (fylling, avfallspark). Larger items, like white goods and bicycles that are beyond repair can be taken to the tip. Drink containers on which there is a deposit (Chapter 40) are taken back to shops for refunds at in-shop automats. You can discard usable clothing and shoes in special containers marked Freselsarmeen (“Salvation Army”), usually located together with glass recycling containers.

Rentals (white and brown goods, TV/radio/computers) (Utleie av hvite- og brunvarer)

White goods are not always provided with a rental house, so if you rent, you may be interested in renting them. The largest chain for rentals is Thorn, Tel: 07575, www.thorn.no, with some 30 rental outlet shops across the country. Thorn can supply cookers (komfyr), dishwashers (oppvaskmaskin), DVD players (DVD spillere), freezers (dypfryser), refrigerators (kjøleskap), stereo systems (stereoanlegg), televisions (fjernsyn), tumble dryers (tørketrommel), video equipment (videoutstyr) and washing machines (vaskemaskin). The shops also stock mobile telephones and computer equipment, but this is for hire purchase (kjøpe på avbetaling) only. Look under hvitevarer in the yellow pages for companies that sell and may also rent white goods.

Residents’ Associations (Velforening, Grendelag)

There are some 6,000 local residents’ associations in the country. Those in cities and towns are called Velforening, which usually is shortened to Vel and translates to “benefit association”. Those in rural districts are called Grendelag, which translates to “grange association”, with the word “grange” used in the older English way, to designate a small group of farms or farm buildings. Each Vel or Grendelag acts within its locality to preserve the local environment and to act in the collective interest of the local residents, such as in matters concerning road works, developments and municipal or county planning. The larger Vel and Grendelag also have telephone numbers or offices where the public may obtain free information and advice when having difficulties with the authorities or organisations or when wishing to lodge a protest, as against planned buildings, car parks and the like. In a typical city or town, the local Vel is most visible through the facilities it provides, such as benches in parks and along woodland paths and hinged-cover sand coffers located along steep uphill stretches of roads and along walkways, sanding and salting. Indeed, the Vel and Grendelag deal mostly in practical everyday matters; in many municipalities, the local Vel originally was founded for a practical reason, such as to provide street lighting. Each Vel and Grendelag is supported in part by subsidies and in part by voluntary annual membership fees paid by the local residents. There is also a national association, The Norwegian Coalition for Neighbourhoods (Norges Velforbund), Pottemakervn 8, 0954 Oslo, Tel: 23338080, Fax: 23338081, www.velnett.no, post.nvf@velforbundet.no.

Roofs (Tak)

Buildings are well insulated to withstand the cold of winter, so there usually is airspace between the uppermost insulation that prevents heat escape and the roof above. This design feature makes the roof “cold”, so heat is not wasted in melting snow on it. You can see that in driving past houses after snow has fallen, as snow stays on the roof and doesn’t melt, as it does in countries with less well insulated houses. Aside from conserving heat, one advantage of a cold roof is that unless heated by the sun, accumulated snow doesn’t melt to water that will run off and freeze to ice in gutters and drainpipes. The downside of that advantage is that in a winter with unusually heavy snowfalls, accumulated snow may overload a roof, so you will need to shovel snow off it. Building regulations now require roofs to be designed to withstand “worst case” snow loads, but older roofs may be endangered by accumulations of heavy snowfalls in a long winter. If in doubt or if you hear the roof creaking under a snow load, consult the local building authorities (Bygningsetat) listed in the Pink Pages under the name of the municipality, as they will be able to advise you as to whether you need shovel the roof.

Rugs, care of (Stell av tepper)

Rag rugs (filleryer) are made of cotton and are found in most homes. They may be washed in a household washing machine using the gentle, low-temperature (40°C) cycle with no spin, and then hung on a sturdy clothesline to drip dry. A traditional trick for wintertime cleaning is to fling a rug upside-down on fresh show, beat it to knock out dust, and then hang it up to dry. Large or expensive rugs are better dealt with by professionals, look under teppe- og møbelrensing in the Yellow Pages. If you want to clean wall-to-wall carpeting, either contact carpet cleaners or hire equipment yourself from them or a dry-cleaning (Chapter 9) company. You can wash a smaller rug by soaking it in a detergent suitable for wool laundry. All these tasks are most easily done when weather will help to dry the carpets. Always hang a carpet with the underside up, so that the sun will not discolour the fibres.

Sanding and salting (Strøing)

In winter, sand (sand), grit (single) and salt (salt) are strewn on roads, streets, pavements and outdoor steps to improve traction for cars and foothold for pedestrians.

Sand is cheap and affords good traction on sheet ice. But it sticks to soles and is easily tracked indoors, and it blows away when dry. Grit, which is crushed gravel, of 3–8 mm grain size, is also cheap and easier to remove in the springtime than sand. But it can slip on hard, sheet ice, unless mixed with salt. Salt helps melt ice by lowering the freezing temperature of water. But it melts ice to a salty slush, which if not removed, sticks to soles and irritates the paws of dogs and cats. Moreover, it pollutes surrounding plants, and when it dries in the spring, it blows about.

The Oslo City Roads Administration (Oslo Vei), the largest of its sort in the country with the most streets, roads and pavements in its care, uses a mix of equal amounts of sand and grit to which 3–4% salt is added. Large green or bright yellow wooden or fibreglass-plastic, hinged-lid sand coffers are often located along steep uphill roads, at car parks, along walkways in housing complexes, on the platforms of unattended commuter train stations, and the like, for public use. These are regularly filled with sand in the wintertime by the local public roads administrations (Vegvesen) or a local residents’ association (Vel), and often are labelled to indicate the organisation responsible, such as strøsand fra velforeningen (sand for sprinkling, from the residents’ association). Supermarkets, building supply shops and petrol stations sell sacks of mixed sand, grit and salt for home use.

Sewage (Avløp)

If you live in a house or flat, the drainage circuit is almost always connected to the municipal sewage system (avløpssystem). If you build a new house, you most likely will be required to connect its drainage to the municipal sewage. If you build a cabin or cottage (hytte) far from a sewage system, you most likely will be required to provide for sewage treatment on site, because new outdoor toilets are not allowed in most municipalities (though older ones may still be used). There are three approaches. The simplest is the so-called “spin privy” (snurredass), named because it resembles an outdoor privy and is fitted with three composting bins fixed to rotate under the seat. The biological lavatory is more advanced. It resembles an ordinary W.C., which is mounted over a composting tank. Builder’s merchants (byggevarer in the Yellow Pages) sell these lavatories. Year-round homes away from sewage systems will be equipped with a septic tank (septiktank) in which solid waste is decomposed by bacteria. A septic tank service truck (septiktanktømming in the Yellow Pages) may periodically empty the tank. Alternatively, the tank may drain into a leach field (filtreringsområde). For further information, contact the municipal utility section, listed under kommunalteknisk under the name of the municipality in the Pink Pages.

Sewing (Søm)

You can buy fabrics (stoffer), patterns (mønsterer) and notions (sytilbehor) at hobby shops selling quilting supplies or shops specialising in fabrics; look under syartikler or tekstiler in the Yellow Pages. Shops selling sewing machines, listed under symaskiner og strykemaskiner in the Yellow Pages, frequently sell sewing materials. Pattern books by Burda, Butterick, Neue Mode Stil and Vogue are available. When looking for a pattern, check for clothing sizes (Chapter 9). Butterick and Vogue patterns use the US sizing standard with the directions written in English and French and fabric requirements in both yards and metres. The other pattern books state sizes in both European and US standards with directions written in Danish/Swedish/Finnish and fabric requirements in metres only. The diagrams are detailed enough for you to be able to construct a garment with a minimum knowledge of the language. You can also order woven name tapes. Some useful terminology: bobbins (symaskin spoler), buttons (knapper), cotton (bomull), dressmaker’s workshop (systuer), facing (belegg), hooks and eyes (haker), interfacing (innlegg), interlining (mellom for), needles (synåler), pins (knappenåler), quilt batting (bomull vat), scissors (sysaks), sewing machine (sysmaskiner), stiffening (stivning), thimble (fingerbøl), thread (sytråd), wool (ull), zipper (glidelås).

Sizes (Størrelser)

Most furnishings are now made in sizes based on modules, so that items of different manufacture will work together. For instance, beds and bedding are in standard sizes, so mattresses will fit frames, sheets will fit mattresses, pillowcases will fit pillows, and so on. Likewise, other furnishings that must work together are of standard dimensions. Kitchen counters are 60 cm deep and 85 cm, 88 cm or 90 cm above the floor. Most kitchen appliances, such as cookers, dishwashers and refrigerators, are 60 cm deep and 60 cm wide, though some are 70 cm wide. Doorframes are 190 cm, 200 cm, 210 cm or 220 cm high by 70 cm, 80 cm, 90 cm or 100 cm wide. Window frames are sized in a similar matrix of multiples of 10 cm, but vary widely, according to the age of the building and its exterior architecture.

Snow clearing (Snørydding)

Snow clearing is a commonplace public and private wintertime chore; only people living on the southern and south-western coasts may avoid it. Indeed, snow (Chapter 8) is so much a part of winter life that the means of dealing with it are efficient, swift and routine.

The Public Roads Administration and private contracted trucks, road machinery and tractors fitted with ploughs (brøytebiler) clear roads, streets, pavements, pedestrian precincts and public car parks. Larger companies, shopping centres and the like will clear their car parks and walkways with their own equipment or will contract for clearing services.

If you live in a flat, the building caretaker (vaktmester) usually will take care of snow clearing on the grounds. If you live in a house, you may hire services or clear it yourself. You will find clearing firms listed under snørydding or vaktmestertjenester in the Yellow Pages. In rural districts, local farmers and building contractors often keep their tractors and equipment busy through the winter by offering clearing services; your neighbours most likely will know whom to call. However, don’t wait until snow falls to call, but call in advance, as those who clear prefer contracts for an entire winter, so they can plan their workloads.

Do-it-yourself clearing is commonplace, and a wide range of implements for it are sold by hardware shops (jernvareforretninger), building supply centres (byggevarer), garden centres (hagesentre) and larger petrol stations (bensinstasjoner). You can choose to clear by hand or by using a machine.

Among the hand tools, the snow shovel (snøspade) and the larger snow scoop (snøskuffe) are the most common, but also the most hazardous to use. The forward bending, twisting and lifting movement of shovelling snow overloads the spine, which is why so many people complain of back pains after a snowfall. Two implements are designed to minimise such overload hazards by allowing you to move snow along the ground without bending and twisting to lift it. There are two principal types. One is the hand snowplough (snøskyver or skyffel), which has a long handle and a blade similar to that of a snow plough vehicle; you push it to plough snow. The other is the snow mover (snørydder), popularly called the southern scoop (sørlandsskuff) because it was first devised in southern Norway to move the heavy snows there. It has a large pan resembling an oversized dustpan and fitted with a handle bar similar to that of a garden roller or hand mower. You push the front blade into snow until the pan is full, and then move it by sliding along the snow surface. The Snedy model in plastic has accessory wheels that can be fitted in summer, so they may also be used when you rake leaves or grass cuttings.

Motorised snow blowers (snøfresere) are increasingly favoured by people with larger properties or driveways that need to be kept clear. There are many makes and models, from smaller machines that resemble ordinary power lawn mowers, up to mini tractors. In buying, check for features such as the number of blower stages. Single-stage machines work well in light snows, but may clog up in heavy, wet snows. The best machines have two stages (to-trinn) to prevent clogging: the first impeller at the front cuts into the snow and the second impeller in the throw duct ejects it.

Soft soap, potash soap (Grønnsåpe)

The traditional European semi-liquid soap used since about 1650 remains in everyday use. It is made from potash lye (potassium hydroxide), vegetable fatty acids, fragrance and water. Several brands, in concentrations of 15% to 30%, are sold in 0.75 to 2.5 litre plastic bottles by grocers, supermarkets and hardware shops throughout the country. The principal fragrances are ordinary (vanlig) and pine needle (furunål). As in other countries, soft soap is used as a pesticide and in a variety of products, including rubber lubricants and leather preservatives. Its household uses include loosening self-adhesive labels, removing stains and combating the odour of cat urine. It is most widely used for washing floors and wood furniture, using about 50 ml of liquid soft soap in an 8 litre household bucket of water. Some pharmacies sell a medicinal grade used in traditional cures for minor maladies to clinical treatment of burns and infected fingers.

Timber and woodwork (Trelast)

Wood is the most common building material for homes: most houses are wooden framework and interiors of flats in concrete or masonry buildings are often finished in wood. So a full range of timber and woodwork is available throughout the country, from timber merchants (trelast) and builders merchants (byggevarer). All architectural drawings and materials are measured in centimetres and millimetres, but tradesmen and merchants still speak of materials in inches (tommer), such as a ‘two-by-four’ (to-fire), a common size of plank.

However, measurement in inches can be imprecise. In 19th century Europe, the yard, divided into three feet, was defined in many ways. In Norway and Denmark, it was set equal to 94.14 centimetres, so an inch was equal to 26.15 millimetres. That inch was in everyday use up to 1960, when Norway standardised on the international UK yard of 91.44 centimetres. The resultant inch, equal to 25.40 millimetres, is the current standard and is used on the common carpenter’s folding rule (tommestokk), which is graduated in both inches and centimetres. However, some older folding rules are still in use, so unless a rule is new, it’s best to check its graduations if you measure in inches: if the 10 inch mark is at 25.4 cm, it’s a new rule; if it is at 26.15 cm, it’s an old rule and should not be used.

The common names, which you might use in buying timber and woodwork or in describing work for a carpenter, are listed below, alphabetically by their equivalents in English:

architraving ramtre
balustrade balustrade
bamboo bambus
baseboard gulvlist
beading perlekant
beam bjelke
beech bøk
birch bjerk
casing karmlist, gerikt
casing bead brannmurlist
ceiling tak
ceiling, panelled himling
chamfered høvlet
concave moulding hulkil
coping dekklist
corner vinkellist
door dør
door sill terskel
doorsteps trapp
dowelling rundstaff
fillet bånd
finished (machined) justert
fir gran
floor gulv
floor joist gulvbjelke
flooring boards gulvbord
frame karm
framework reisverk
ground beam svill
half round halvstaff
hand rail håndlist
hickory hikkori
impregnation impregnering
jamb sidekarm
joist bjelke
mahogany mahogani
moulding taklist, feielist
newel spindel
oak eik
panelling panelprofil
parapet moulding brystningslist
parquet parkett
picture-frame moulding rammelist
pine furu
planed høvlet
plank planke
purlin takås
quarter round kvartstaff
queen post hengestav
rafter taksperre
reveal smyg
ridgepole mønsås
riser opptrinn
roof tak
roof truss takstol
skirting gulvlist
stairs trapp
stave sprosse
stile midtpost
strut strebebjelke
stud stender
teak teak
threshold terskel
tongue and groove not og fjær
trapdoor lem
tread trappetrinn
trellis espalier
weather bar vannbrett
window vindu
window sill karmunderstikke

Tools and utensils (Verktøy og redskap)

Hand tools and power tools are widely sold by hardware shops, home furnishings shops, supermarkets, automobile supply shops, larger petrol stations and many specialist shops. Many are made in Norway, but most are imported, principally from China, Germany, Japan, Italy, Spain and Sweden. Most are sold from self-serve racks and have international packaging with information in several languages. So if you don’t know the name of a tool or utensil in Norwegian, you can probably find it just by looking in shops. Easier yet, you can look up the tool in the Clas Ohlson discount hypermarket catalogue, printed or online at www.clasohlson.no. But be cautioned, then, that not all the names of tools and hardware are the same as those used elsewhere in the country. Clas Ohlson is a Swedish company, and its Norwegian catalogue is a translation from the original Swedish, with the result that the language in it sometimes is a mix of Swedish (svensk) and Norwegian (norsk), an informal form of inter-Scandinavian humorously called svorsk.