@@foreignersinfinland1170 You know - in Finland you don't need to know your neighbor for them still to help you out if something is going wrong. I never talked with my neighbor - but when I found her apartment door all open and did not see or hear her anywhere even after asking and checking the most usual locations one would go to at the building, well like sauna, laundry, storage and so on. I literally looked her name up and called the phone central number service giving them the address and the name asking to connect the call. It turned out she had gone to the central of the town and somehow forgotten her door open. No-one had stepped inside or tried to take anything from her, all was fine otherwise as far as I could see. So I asked if she was sure she had her keys - and as she did - before I did as she asked, to close the door for her. After that she bring me some nice things she had bought from a bakery - to thank me. We never really spoke that much - but at times I would drop off some berries. My parents grow blue berries for a hobby, but they try to dump too much of them on me. Same went sometimes with fishing. Anyhow - so I would ring her bell and as if she wanted some berries or fish as well. And from time to time she then would bring something in return. But it never was a relationship to talk over about things or such. It was just based on showing consideration and well - at times for me to get rid of too much of things - lol. It's troublesome to try to deal with liters up on liters berries when you do not wish to eat so many and the freezer would get filled up too much too. Anyhow - the reason in Finland to not contact with your neighbor much - is out of being polite as to not bother or disturb them. That is a bit over done kind of courtesy - but indeed, it mostly is about that. And still most of the time, unless someone is really busy - like going to work or something like that - they aren't that troubled by few words exchanged. It just is about being the kind to dare to say the first word - to be a bit less 'considerate' in the right way. Well now I do live in France these days as my husband is French. But the story above is from the time I still lived in Finland. I tell you this though - having any short of extra edges or things on bathroom floor are bloody dangerous. Frankly, sorry guy's but that short of stuff falls into category of stupid features. Same goes for any and all bathroom doors that literally open towards the interior of the bathroom. That is illegal building feature in Finland - because you have very hard time getting inside that bathroom, if someone has fallen ill and on the floor of the bathroom right behind that door. And having a tub - omg I hate tubs. Firstly dangerous to just get out of. I have fallen like 3 times by now, because we haven't yet been able to replace that cursed thing here in our apartment if France. And someone has to clean that thing after every time someone has taken a shower - hell no - I want it gone, but the bloody thing is made out of iron so we don't have the ability to carry it out just like that, never mind that bathroom jobs are expensive. (Here it is somehow legal to also sell a apartment without a stove/oven, fridge and generally built in cabinets in the kitchen - a no go - in Finland). But fore most, I want those perfect Finnish bathrooms back, where all is made wet space so I don't need to fear splashing some sensitive material outside of it - or bother to clean it up later with too much effort. To me standing before a sink for five minutes is hard - so no, you are not supposed to have to bend and scrub and God-knows what just to get a place cleaned. Speaking of which.. I also miss perhaps the most the tiny shower next to the toilet seat - called bidet shower. That is an absolute MUST for us women during that time of a month. I hate not having it. Why the hell am I supposed to take entire shower for just wanting to clean up... ehm. I'll return to this device later. The separated bidet bowl like french sometimes have is both pure waist of money and space taker.. another a issue similar also to having a dammed tub. Idk what it is about those - no-one ever was as clean after a bath in a tub than after taking a sauna or just taking a shower. At least we were able to install a shower head - but need to worry about the dammed floor cause is isn't made for possibility of water perhaps splashing. And yea not having that - I miss sauna very much. Shower alone is best alternative. But without sauna, even that makes old dead skin just pile up on your skin and make it anything but soft - as I don't want to use what ever products for extra expenses to get rid of it. Also... Honestly I have never figured out how people who don't have shower head but just a tub even claim to get clean. They first go in and was with soap, then get out and let all the water out and clean the residue of that off the tub and then let in water to clean the residue of soap of themselves too? And yes, I miss the dishes drying cabinet too. I hate having to have that rack on the sink it causes only more cleaning. In fact it makes to me no sense in having clothes washing machine in kitchen out of all places and drying rack in the kitchen - I mean WTF - all the residue of cooking oils and such rising in the air will then land on the clothes drying there (because obviously no-one thought of installing a dammed top over the stove to take the steam and such out)? Never mind having someone visit and your panties hang right there... just oops embarrassing. The reason I highlight the subject of dangerous features of having additional steps or lips or that tub anywhere in a bath room and such is because I have mobility issues a bit. Also very tiny separated toilet spaces make no sense what so ever - because if you have to back up in the space, on count of not being able turn in that cupboard space, called the separated toilet - it is nothing but inconvenient. Really - waist of coin to build a wall that only takes more of the small space anyhow. In fact - I dislike additional walls in such spaces - but God save me from having to live in an apartment with open kitchen to living room. I don't want to be forced to always clean up dishes immediately on count of maybe having some unexpected guest - so yea - well an reasons more yet - I don't want cooking oils on the living room furniture, period. So that wall HAS GOT TO EXIST. To me the Finnish way of building homes is highly practical in comparison. But I don't lie to you - in Finland 'tupakeittiö' aka open kitchen is in no way anything modern or new - we have had such space in farm houses for hundreds of years. And I wish the world did not want that all over the homes these days. And yes we do have some locations where people for some reason did that great no-no of putting a clothes washing machine into kitchen - but those are kinda rare. I just have had very large dosage of very inconvenient solutions to face when I moved elsewhere and while visiting for example the US. So I can't say anything but that it's lazy to not sweep a bit of that water aside or to get oneself some flip-flops for the bathroom. Or better yet, just one of those mats that can be lifted a bit side while taking shower and placed down - you know the kind that rolls up but is wood, to keep your toes dry if you need to pop back in only few moments later. Well and yea - that bidet shower is also useful for you men - for kindly washing down there before intimate moments. Or indeed - well doing some cleaning for the entire floor of the bathroom, the toilet and the sink - all of those in one swift go. After all, none of the household work is only for us ladies now is it :P. All such stuff is half and half or it is a no go. Bathrooms that are not build as wet spaces fully are entirely useless and will cause only water damage aka later bills for the owner. Including mold issues.
The drying rack was the most mind-blowing thing I had seen during my time in Finland. So simple and practical! Really wish we had this in the US because of the space it saves in the kitchen. It made washing dishes all the more enjoyable to be honest.
Having the lip in the shower could work if you have something other than just shower curtain separating the shower, but having the curtain allows more space when you can push them aside when you are not showering. Also cleaning the bathroom floor is easier when you don't have the lip so you can just use the shower head or the bide to rinse the whole floor and let it just run in to the shower drain. Even if you would have two drains it's much easier all the grime likes to pool up in the sides that needs more work to clean off. So having to mop up after shower is kind of less work and in a way you are cleaning the floor so you don't have to do a bigger clean up later.
Finns have events like "kevättalkoot", where everyone in an apartment building is expected (though not required) to come out to the common areas of the building property to help rake leaves, pick up trash, and enjoy perhaps a juice/coffee. These are usually arranged in late spring when the snow has melted, and creates an opportunity for people to meet their neighbors in a socially accpetable way. There is no "lip" because when you take a shower waters -gets everywhere-, and the squeegee is supposed to remove all the water into the drain. Throw in heated shower floors and the water dries very quickly. I am curious to know if any of you speak fluent Finnish, and if so, perhaps you could have a segment where you speak in finnish.
Hi, you guys just ooze positive energy, I like watching your podcasts. As a side note, I live in a quite small city and everybody here almost know each other at least in the neighbourhoods. It has it benefits but can also be a bit tiring.
Thanks for sharing - glad you're enjoying! I suppose smaller areas generally have closer connections between neighbours, this is also how it works in Aus and the USA.
Well, knowing the neighbour thing is different in the different parts of Finland. Smaller the city/town you live, more likely you know your neighbours. Also old neighbours are usually talkative if you strike a conversation because they might be lonely. Some areas of Finland also are known of their sosiable habits like Pohjanmaa or Karjala or I guess Savo too. But in Helsinki it's not something you usually expect to happen.
Well for example in Pohjanmaa if somebody graduates they put party invitation in local newspaper and everyone is welcome to party. That could never happen in some other parts of Finland 😄
As a finn I know my neighbours near my apartment in city and at my summer cottage in the countryside. I have been active to know my neighbours, as a single mother it has been safety matter. My son was 1 year old when we started to travel to my cottage. I wanted my son know all neighbours, if something happened, he could go there. I use axe and I cut trees at my cottage, so it is possible that something can happen. I have triple windows both at my cottage and in city. I think that is more common in Finland. I like to listen your conversation, thank you! 😃
Ooh, I hate that rise in bathroom if there is one! It makes it sooo annoying to clean the bathroom floor 😂. When it's flat you can just rise the floor toilet top etc. and squikey it off. Very small batrooms of course can get wet and shower curtain doesn't help. Best thing is tightly fitting doors that you can open completly and keep most of the water off the rest of bathroom. Different strokes for different folks 😂.
Interesting video - thus, thank you! One additional positive side of taking your shoes off is that it is simply good for your feet. A question: How did you get to know your neighbours in Australia/the US? Was it usually the old ones that introduced themselves to new tenants? Personally, I can just say that in my small housing association of 21 units (i.e. not a block of flats), most of us know one another and we talk to each other when we have the occasion. So what did you do differently in your countries, and did you try to do that here, too?
why finland doesn't have small lip in shower/bathrooms is so drunken people can't drown in them. also bathroom have 2 or more drains, in case of drunk fall on top of shower drain.
Thanks guys! Enjoy your videos. 👍 Underfloor heated isn't standard in Finland. It's standard in new apartments/houses, but out of the four Helsinki apartments I've lived in, only one had underfloor heating. To be clear, the double-glass windows you mentioned are actually triple glazed. 🙂 I agree about the neighbour thing, though there are quite a few neighbours we've had that we really didn't want to know (various reasons). However, the apartment building we currently live in would be classed as ultra friendly by Finnish terms. Certainly the longer term residents are always conversational. Our apartment has a communal grill and the housing company pays for food and drink at regular social get-togethers like Vappu, Juhannus, and Christmas. And certain neighbours have dog-sat for us and watered plants when we're away. Some lucky apartment buildings have District Cooling as well as District Heating. Unfortunately, it's usually just business buildings that have it. You are missing the point of the open floor bathrooms. You can easily wash the entire floor with the removable showerhead because the whole floor is waterproof.
Great comments - thanks for sharing! Sounds like you have a great building! I think we got the point of washing, just aren't sure if it is worth the trade off of a wet floor every day...I'm sure the debate will continue :D
@@foreignersinfinland1170 I get what you're saying, but squeegeeing the floor takes ten seconds and becomes second-nature. You'd spend the same amount of time squeegeeing/wiping the glass of a shower cubicle each use (if you want to stop it getting covered in limescale spots). 🙂
I’m finding the weather in the U.K. the last few years just too warm, our houses aren’t built to keep the heat out , also we’re so crowded compared to Finland the heat has nowhere to go
Hi guys! Taking your shoes off is also the custom in our Scandinavian neighbor countries, as least in Sweden. The Nordic countries are so much alike when it comes to practical things, laws and morals. The dish drying cabinets, though, are a uniquely Finnish invention and are or were totally unknown in Sweden. Nowadays, most people have a dishwashing machine as standard equipment, so the drying cabinets are not quite as useful as they used to be. As to taking off one's shoes, you may offer slippers for your guests, or you may tell them that they don't have to take their shoes off. Also, because of our climate, we wear a lot of boots outside and few people would think of wearing cruddy boots inside on people's carpets and wooden floors. At formal parties, where people are wearing evening or gala attires, you do of course not ask them to take their shoes off. (Though it could be fun to see white-tie guests all standing or dancing in their socks! 😂 Would reduce much of the possibly stilted and stiff attitudes at such gatherings... I agree completely with the shower thing. Water over a part of the bathroom floor. Not a good idea. The housing company where I live recently renewed all the plumbing, wiring, and so on. They also renovated all bathrooms and I had to exchange my 'sitting' bathtub for a shower. Much less useful. I was dissuaded from getting a lip on the floor to keep the water from running all over the place. "You might trip on it an fall!" I may slip on the wet bathroom floor, too... There are of course all kinds of bathrooms. Many have enclosed shower cabinets and the water stays in those. Most of these cabinets are way too cramped though, in my opinion. The tripple-glazed windows are fantastic! Not only do they keep the heat and the cold outside, they are also terrific noise-reducers. I've had a building construction crew working every day this summer right outside my windows, and when I close them, all that noise is reduced to a whisper or becomes totally inaudible! Finnish homes are heated by lots of different energy. In our climate, the main thing is to stay warm in wintertime. Good isolation is the key. The usually rather short heat waves are not enough to warrant air-conditioning or ceiling fans in people's homes. Usually all that you need is to open a couple of windows and to get a through-draft. The breeze is always cooler than the surrounding air. In addition, people have been installing a kind of boxes that can be regulated to warm your home in wintertime and to cool it in summertime, so that the indoor temperature always remains exactly as you prefer. I really like to hear about your experiences and observations! Thank you - and keep up the good work! 🏞️🌅🌲🌳🍀
Back in the day when houses shared stuff, everyone knew their neighbors. Like if you move to a house with a common laundry room you will learn to know em. Its today's world with having everything yourself and even the sauna time is reserved for only 1 apartment at a time while back in the day it was more common to have lady, men and mixed sauna times. Small areas do still know every neighbor, its only the apartment houses that has lost it totally and even if you try to say hello they look at you as you are disturbing their secret life. Edit: The need of a AC thing is a new phenomena here and is growing so new apartment buildings could even have em. Shower: Back in the day almost every apartment had a shower cabinet or a bathtub to shower in. It got popular to remove em because they gathered a lot of mold, bacteria and dirt(was a hygienic thingi to remove em).
While I agree with the convenience, that lip is a massive tripping hazard, like you would not believe the amount of bathroom related injuries caused by 'em. lol
8:58 he might have watched some of your episodes and invited you to his apartment to not behave like a stereotype Finnish person, haha. (just kidding) One thing I dislike a bit about Finnish apartment buildings, is that they often look like boxes. Very gray, very few nice details. Of course there are nicer ones too, but many suburbs are rather ugly if I can say it like that. The inside is a different story.
Air-sourced heat pumps(mini-splits) aren't unusual in houses, about every other house on my street has one and I'm living north from arctic circle. They are reversible so they can also cool, traditional one way AC's don't make much sense. With recent hikes of energy prices, demand has been increased a lot. Waiting times are months to get one installed. Apartments however are typically connected to district heating network with fixed costs, they would benefit only from cooling a few weeks in summer. And installing outdoor unit might not even be possible if it's not allowed to make changes on exterior walls. Housing co-ops are worst, there's often petty people who want to enforce the rules to the letter.
@@Hypetreme Around every fourth home has air-sourced heat pump. More than 100k are sold annually exceeding amount of cars sold. Not exactly rare. Maybe it's just your circles.
@@kognak6640 I don't really know a lot of people with a house. I think the big thing is that in US even the apartments have AC but that's kinda unheard in Finland.
Finnish homes offer you Finnish "dish-dryer" in a cabinet to let water drip, if you know what I'm talking about. Soon there'll be a small spray in the bathroom to clean ourselves with water
One thing I don’t like about Finnish apartment is the extracting fan in the kitchen, it’s so weak that it barely does anything. I have to keep the windows open if I want to stir fry.
@Gibbetoo Gibgib I don't know to which one of us you meant that comment but at least I have done that without it helping much. Also I have had same problem in many apartments, so it's not about one machine not working. Only effective one I have seen is in my parents house. Maybe because it's house, not apartment 🤷♀️
You can add another one with good filter if you want. It just has to be model that circulates air in the room. You can not connect that in to the vent. That will mess up the whole house. Thats why they are so weak. They goes in to every kitchen in the bulding. If you add more power for 1 place it will blow out your smells in to someones kitchen 😝
Most Finnish windows are actually triple glassed. One small gap and then the big gap. Often mistaken for double glassed :)
Thanks for correcting :)
@@foreignersinfinland1170 You know - in Finland you don't need to know your neighbor for them still to help you out if something is going wrong. I never talked with my neighbor - but when I found her apartment door all open and did not see or hear her anywhere even after asking and checking the most usual locations one would go to at the building, well like sauna, laundry, storage and so on. I literally looked her name up and called the phone central number service giving them the address and the name asking to connect the call. It turned out she had gone to the central of the town and somehow forgotten her door open. No-one had stepped inside or tried to take anything from her, all was fine otherwise as far as I could see. So I asked if she was sure she had her keys - and as she did - before I did as she asked, to close the door for her. After that she bring me some nice things she had bought from a bakery - to thank me. We never really spoke that much - but at times I would drop off some berries. My parents grow blue berries for a hobby, but they try to dump too much of them on me. Same went sometimes with fishing. Anyhow - so I would ring her bell and as if she wanted some berries or fish as well. And from time to time she then would bring something in return. But it never was a relationship to talk over about things or such. It was just based on showing consideration and well - at times for me to get rid of too much of things - lol. It's troublesome to try to deal with liters up on liters berries when you do not wish to eat so many and the freezer would get filled up too much too. Anyhow - the reason in Finland to not contact with your neighbor much - is out of being polite as to not bother or disturb them. That is a bit over done kind of courtesy - but indeed, it mostly is about that. And still most of the time, unless someone is really busy - like going to work or something like that - they aren't that troubled by few words exchanged. It just is about being the kind to dare to say the first word - to be a bit less 'considerate' in the right way.
Well now I do live in France these days as my husband is French. But the story above is from the time I still lived in Finland. I tell you this though - having any short of extra edges or things on bathroom floor are bloody dangerous. Frankly, sorry guy's but that short of stuff falls into category of stupid features. Same goes for any and all bathroom doors that literally open towards the interior of the bathroom. That is illegal building feature in Finland - because you have very hard time getting inside that bathroom, if someone has fallen ill and on the floor of the bathroom right behind that door. And having a tub - omg I hate tubs. Firstly dangerous to just get out of. I have fallen like 3 times by now, because we haven't yet been able to replace that cursed thing here in our apartment if France. And someone has to clean that thing after every time someone has taken a shower - hell no - I want it gone, but the bloody thing is made out of iron so we don't have the ability to carry it out just like that, never mind that bathroom jobs are expensive. (Here it is somehow legal to also sell a apartment without a stove/oven, fridge and generally built in cabinets in the kitchen - a no go - in Finland). But fore most, I want those perfect Finnish bathrooms back, where all is made wet space so I don't need to fear splashing some sensitive material outside of it - or bother to clean it up later with too much effort. To me standing before a sink for five minutes is hard - so no, you are not supposed to have to bend and scrub and God-knows what just to get a place cleaned. Speaking of which.. I also miss perhaps the most the tiny shower next to the toilet seat - called bidet shower. That is an absolute MUST for us women during that time of a month. I hate not having it. Why the hell am I supposed to take entire shower for just wanting to clean up... ehm. I'll return to this device later. The separated bidet bowl like french sometimes have is both pure waist of money and space taker.. another a issue similar also to having a dammed tub. Idk what it is about those - no-one ever was as clean after a bath in a tub than after taking a sauna or just taking a shower. At least we were able to install a shower head - but need to worry about the dammed floor cause is isn't made for possibility of water perhaps splashing. And yea not having that - I miss sauna very much. Shower alone is best alternative. But without sauna, even that makes old dead skin just pile up on your skin and make it anything but soft - as I don't want to use what ever products for extra expenses to get rid of it. Also... Honestly I have never figured out how people who don't have shower head but just a tub even claim to get clean. They first go in and was with soap, then get out and let all the water out and clean the residue of that off the tub and then let in water to clean the residue of soap of themselves too? And yes, I miss the dishes drying cabinet too. I hate having to have that rack on the sink it causes only more cleaning. In fact it makes to me no sense in having clothes washing machine in kitchen out of all places and drying rack in the kitchen - I mean WTF - all the residue of cooking oils and such rising in the air will then land on the clothes drying there (because obviously no-one thought of installing a dammed top over the stove to take the steam and such out)? Never mind having someone visit and your panties hang right there... just oops embarrassing.
The reason I highlight the subject of dangerous features of having additional steps or lips or that tub anywhere in a bath room and such is because I have mobility issues a bit. Also very tiny separated toilet spaces make no sense what so ever - because if you have to back up in the space, on count of not being able turn in that cupboard space, called the separated toilet - it is nothing but inconvenient. Really - waist of coin to build a wall that only takes more of the small space anyhow. In fact - I dislike additional walls in such spaces - but God save me from having to live in an apartment with open kitchen to living room. I don't want to be forced to always clean up dishes immediately on count of maybe having some unexpected guest - so yea - well an reasons more yet - I don't want cooking oils on the living room furniture, period. So that wall HAS GOT TO EXIST. To me the Finnish way of building homes is highly practical in comparison. But I don't lie to you - in Finland 'tupakeittiö' aka open kitchen is in no way anything modern or new - we have had such space in farm houses for hundreds of years. And I wish the world did not want that all over the homes these days. And yes we do have some locations where people for some reason did that great no-no of putting a clothes washing machine into kitchen - but those are kinda rare. I just have had very large dosage of very inconvenient solutions to face when I moved elsewhere and while visiting for example the US. So I can't say anything but that it's lazy to not sweep a bit of that water aside or to get oneself some flip-flops for the bathroom. Or better yet, just one of those mats that can be lifted a bit side while taking shower and placed down - you know the kind that rolls up but is wood, to keep your toes dry if you need to pop back in only few moments later. Well and yea - that bidet shower is also useful for you men - for kindly washing down there before intimate moments. Or indeed - well doing some cleaning for the entire floor of the bathroom, the toilet and the sink - all of those in one swift go. After all, none of the household work is only for us ladies now is it :P. All such stuff is half and half or it is a no go. Bathrooms that are not build as wet spaces fully are entirely useless and will cause only water damage aka later bills for the owner. Including mold issues.
The drying rack was the most mind-blowing thing I had seen during my time in Finland. So simple and practical! Really wish we had this in the US because of the space it saves in the kitchen. It made washing dishes all the more enjoyable to be honest.
We agree! Should be everywhere!
Having the lip in the shower could work if you have something other than just shower curtain separating the shower, but having the curtain allows more space when you can push them aside when you are not showering.
Also cleaning the bathroom floor is easier when you don't have the lip so you can just use the shower head or the bide to rinse the whole floor and let it just run in to the shower drain. Even if you would have two drains it's much easier all the grime likes to pool up in the sides that needs more work to clean off. So having to mop up after shower is kind of less work and in a way you are cleaning the floor so you don't have to do a bigger clean up later.
Finns have events like "kevättalkoot", where everyone in an apartment building is expected (though not required) to come out to the common areas of the building property to help rake leaves, pick up trash, and enjoy perhaps a juice/coffee. These are usually arranged in late spring when the snow has melted, and creates an opportunity for people to meet their neighbors in a socially accpetable way. There is no "lip" because when you take a shower waters -gets everywhere-, and the squeegee is supposed to remove all the water into the drain. Throw in heated shower floors and the water dries very quickly. I am curious to know if any of you speak fluent Finnish, and if so, perhaps you could have a segment where you speak in finnish.
Hi, you guys just ooze positive energy, I like watching your podcasts. As a side note, I live in a quite small city and everybody here almost know each other at least in the neighbourhoods. It has it benefits but can also be a bit tiring.
Thanks for sharing - glad you're enjoying! I suppose smaller areas generally have closer connections between neighbours, this is also how it works in Aus and the USA.
Well, knowing the neighbour thing is different in the different parts of Finland. Smaller the city/town you live, more likely you know your neighbours. Also old neighbours are usually talkative if you strike a conversation because they might be lonely. Some areas of Finland also are known of their sosiable habits like Pohjanmaa or Karjala or I guess Savo too. But in Helsinki it's not something you usually expect to happen.
Thanks for commenting - I hadn't heard that there were areas known for their social habits, thanks for the info!
Well for example in Pohjanmaa if somebody graduates they put party invitation in local newspaper and everyone is welcome to party. That could never happen in some other parts of Finland 😄
As a finn I know my neighbours near my apartment in city and at my summer cottage in the countryside. I have been active to know my neighbours, as a single mother it has been safety matter. My son was 1 year old when we started to travel to my cottage. I wanted my son know all neighbours, if something happened, he could go there. I use axe and I cut trees at my cottage, so it is possible that something can happen.
I have triple windows both at my cottage and in city. I think that is more common in Finland. I like to listen your conversation, thank you! 😃
Ooh, I hate that rise in bathroom if there is one! It makes it sooo annoying to clean the bathroom floor 😂. When it's flat you can just rise the floor toilet top etc. and squikey it off. Very small batrooms of course can get wet and shower curtain doesn't help. Best thing is tightly fitting doors that you can open completly and keep most of the water off the rest of bathroom. Different strokes for different folks 😂.
I’m about to come for studies your podcast is a life savior
Wow, so happy we've been able to help you out! Feel free to reach out if you have any questions.
Interesting video - thus, thank you! One additional positive side of taking your shoes off is that it is simply good for your feet.
A question: How did you get to know your neighbours in Australia/the US? Was it usually the old ones that introduced themselves to new tenants? Personally, I can just say that in my small housing association of 21 units (i.e. not a block of flats), most of us know one another and we talk to each other when we have the occasion. So what did you do differently in your countries, and did you try to do that here, too?
why finland doesn't have small lip in shower/bathrooms is so drunken people can't drown in them. also bathroom have 2 or more drains, in case of drunk fall on top of shower drain.
Thanks guys! Enjoy your videos. 👍
Underfloor heated isn't standard in Finland. It's standard in new apartments/houses, but out of the four Helsinki apartments I've lived in, only one had underfloor heating.
To be clear, the double-glass windows you mentioned are actually triple glazed. 🙂
I agree about the neighbour thing, though there are quite a few neighbours we've had that we really didn't want to know (various reasons). However, the apartment building we currently live in would be classed as ultra friendly by Finnish terms. Certainly the longer term residents are always conversational. Our apartment has a communal grill and the housing company pays for food and drink at regular social get-togethers like Vappu, Juhannus, and Christmas. And certain neighbours have dog-sat for us and watered plants when we're away.
Some lucky apartment buildings have District Cooling as well as District Heating. Unfortunately, it's usually just business buildings that have it.
You are missing the point of the open floor bathrooms. You can easily wash the entire floor with the removable showerhead because the whole floor is waterproof.
Great comments - thanks for sharing!
Sounds like you have a great building!
I think we got the point of washing, just aren't sure if it is worth the trade off of a wet floor every day...I'm sure the debate will continue :D
@@foreignersinfinland1170 I get what you're saying, but squeegeeing the floor takes ten seconds and becomes second-nature. You'd spend the same amount of time squeegeeing/wiping the glass of a shower cubicle each use (if you want to stop it getting covered in limescale spots). 🙂
I’m finding the weather in the U.K. the last few years just too warm, our houses aren’t built to keep the heat out , also we’re so crowded compared to Finland the heat has nowhere to go
Seems like all of Europe is going to need to build resilience to heatwaves now...
Hi guys! Taking your shoes off is also the custom in our Scandinavian neighbor countries, as least in Sweden.
The Nordic countries are so much alike when it comes to practical things, laws and morals. The dish drying cabinets, though, are a uniquely Finnish invention and are or were totally unknown in Sweden. Nowadays, most people have a dishwashing machine as standard equipment, so the drying cabinets are not quite as useful as they used to be.
As to taking off one's shoes, you may offer slippers for your guests, or you may tell them that they don't have to take their shoes off. Also, because of our climate, we wear a lot of boots outside and few people would think of wearing cruddy boots inside on people's carpets and wooden floors. At formal parties, where people are wearing evening or gala attires, you do of course not ask them to take their shoes off. (Though it could be fun to see white-tie guests all standing or dancing in their socks! 😂 Would reduce much of the possibly stilted and stiff attitudes at such gatherings...
I agree completely with the shower thing. Water over a part of the bathroom floor. Not a good idea. The housing company where I live recently renewed all the plumbing, wiring, and so on. They also renovated all bathrooms and I had to exchange my 'sitting' bathtub for a shower. Much less useful. I was dissuaded from getting a lip on the floor to keep the water from running all over the place. "You might trip on it an fall!" I may slip on the wet bathroom floor, too...
There are of course all kinds of bathrooms. Many have enclosed shower cabinets and the water stays in those. Most of these cabinets are way too cramped though, in my opinion.
The tripple-glazed windows are fantastic! Not only do they keep the heat and the cold outside, they are also terrific noise-reducers. I've had a building construction crew working every day this summer right outside my windows, and when I close them, all that noise is reduced to a whisper or becomes totally inaudible!
Finnish homes are heated by lots of different energy. In our climate, the main thing is to stay warm in wintertime. Good isolation is the key. The usually rather short heat waves are not enough to warrant air-conditioning or ceiling fans in people's homes. Usually all that you need is to open a couple of windows and to get a through-draft. The breeze is always cooler than the surrounding air. In addition, people have been installing a kind of boxes that can be regulated to warm your home in wintertime and to cool it in summertime, so that the indoor temperature always remains exactly as you prefer.
I really like to hear about your experiences and observations! Thank you - and keep up the good work! 🏞️🌅🌲🌳🍀
Back in the day when houses shared stuff, everyone knew their neighbors. Like if you move to a house with a common laundry room you will learn to know em. Its today's world with having everything yourself and even the sauna time is reserved for only 1 apartment at a time while back in the day it was more common to have lady, men and mixed sauna times.
Small areas do still know every neighbor, its only the apartment houses that has lost it totally and even if you try to say hello they look at you as you are disturbing their secret life.
Edit: The need of a AC thing is a new phenomena here and is growing so new apartment buildings could even have em.
Shower: Back in the day almost every apartment had a shower cabinet or a bathtub to shower in. It got popular to remove em because they gathered a lot of mold, bacteria and dirt(was a hygienic thingi to remove em).
Not knowing your neighbour is probably a Helsinki and a bigger city thing. In rural areas we do know our neigbours.
While I agree with the convenience, that lip is a massive tripping hazard, like you would not believe the amount of bathroom related injuries caused by 'em. lol
8:58 he might have watched some of your episodes and invited you to his apartment to not behave like a stereotype Finnish person, haha. (just kidding)
One thing I dislike a bit about Finnish apartment buildings, is that they often look like boxes. Very gray, very few nice details. Of course there are nicer ones too, but many suburbs are rather ugly if I can say it like that. The inside is a different story.
Air-sourced heat pumps(mini-splits) aren't unusual in houses, about every other house on my street has one and I'm living north from arctic circle. They are reversible so they can also cool, traditional one way AC's don't make much sense. With recent hikes of energy prices, demand has been increased a lot. Waiting times are months to get one installed. Apartments however are typically connected to district heating network with fixed costs, they would benefit only from cooling a few weeks in summer. And installing outdoor unit might not even be possible if it's not allowed to make changes on exterior walls. Housing co-ops are worst, there's often petty people who want to enforce the rules to the letter.
They are getting more popular in Finland but I think they are still rare. I haven't seen a one in my circles.
@@Hypetreme Around every fourth home has air-sourced heat pump. More than 100k are sold annually exceeding amount of cars sold. Not exactly rare. Maybe it's just your circles.
@@kognak6640 I don't really know a lot of people with a house. I think the big thing is that in US even the apartments have AC but that's kinda unheard in Finland.
Finnish homes offer you Finnish "dish-dryer" in a cabinet to let water drip, if you know what I'm talking about.
Soon there'll be a small spray in the bathroom to clean ourselves with water
Video needs the occasional picture to help people better understand what you're talking about 👍
Good point makes it easier to visualise different cultures
Thanks for the feedback and very good point, maybe on the next one :)
One thing I don’t like about Finnish apartment is the extracting fan in the kitchen, it’s so weak that it barely does anything. I have to keep the windows open if I want to stir fry.
This. In my kitchen it's a passive fan that I have no control over.
Yeah, even as a Finn, I don't really understand the hoodranges since they don't seem to do anything.
clean the filter.
@Gibbetoo Gibgib
I don't know to which one of us you meant that comment but at least I have done that without it helping much. Also I have had same problem in many apartments, so it's not about one machine not working. Only effective one I have seen is in my parents house. Maybe because it's house, not apartment 🤷♀️
You can add another one with good filter if you want. It just has to be model that circulates air in the room. You can not connect that in to the vent. That will mess up the whole house. Thats why they are so weak. They goes in to every kitchen in the bulding. If you add more power for 1 place it will blow out your smells in to someones kitchen 😝