Efter renoveringen var hela hallen dammig, men nu känns luften bättre.

Efter usually means after, and here renoveringen is in the definite form: the renovation.

So:

• efter renoveringen = after the renovation
• efter en renovering = after a renovation
• efter renovering can occur in some contexts, but it is less natural here if you mean one specific renovation that has just happened.

In this sentence, the speaker is clearly referring to a particular renovation, so renoveringen is the natural choice.

The ending -en marks the definite form of many common-gender nouns in Swedish.

Here:

• en renovering = a renovation
• renoveringen = the renovation

Unlike English, Swedish often adds the definite article to the end of the noun instead of putting a separate word before it.

Hela hallen means the whole hallway or the entire hall.

Breakdown:

• hela = whole / entire
• hallen = the hall / the hallway

In Swedish, when you use hel / hela with a noun like this, the noun is usually definite:

• hela dagen = the whole day
• hela huset = the whole house
• hela hallen = the whole hallway

So this pattern is normal.

It can very often mean hallway / entrance hall / foyer in everyday Swedish.

That is important for English speakers, because hall in Swedish is not always a big ceremonial hall. In a home, hallen very commonly means the entrance area or hallway.

So in this sentence, hela hallen probably means the whole hallway/entryway was dusty.

Because hallen is an en-word (en hall), and the adjective here agrees with that noun.

Compare:

• en hall → hallen var dammig
• ett rum → rummet var dammigt

So:

• dammig is used with an en-word in singular
• dammigt is used with an ett-word in singular

Since hall is an en noun, dammig is correct.

Dammig means dusty.

It is related to damm, which means dust.

So:

• damm = dust
• dammig = dusty

Very common pattern in Swedish: a noun plus -ig often creates an adjective meaning full of / characterized by that thing.

Because the sentence contrasts a past situation with a present one:

• var = was (past tense of vara, to be)
• känns = feels (present tense passive/deponent-style form of känna/kännas in this use)

So the meaning is:

• after the renovation, the hallway was dusty
• but now, the air feels better

The word nu makes the shift to the present especially clear.

Because Swedish often uses känns to talk about how something seems or feels from experience.

So:

• luften känns bättre = the air feels better
• more naturally in English: the air seems better / the air feels cleaner

This is a very natural Swedish way to talk about air quality, comfort, atmosphere, and physical sensations.

Känns is the present-tense form used in the expression kännas, meaning to feel / to seem.

Examples:

• Det känns bra = It feels good
• Rummet känns kallt = The room feels cold
• Luften känns bättre = The air feels better

Even though it looks related to känna (to feel / know / sense), kännas is used when something feels a certain way.

A useful contrast:

• Jag känner luften = I feel the air
• Luften känns frisk = The air feels fresh

Because bra has an irregular comparative.

Forms:

• bra = good
• bättre = better
• bäst = best

So:

• Luften känns bra = The air feels good
• Luften känns bättre = The air feels better

This is similar to English good → better → best.

Swedish follows the V2 rule in main clauses, which means the finite verb usually comes in the second position.

Here, nu is placed first for emphasis:

• nu = first position
• känns = second position
• luften = comes after the verb

So:

• Nu känns luften bättre
• literally: Now feels the air better
• natural English: Now the air feels better

If the subject came first, you could also have:

• Luften känns bättre nu

But the original version emphasizes now.

No, that would be incorrect.

Because hallen is an en-word, the predicate adjective must be dammig:

• hallen var dammig ✅
• hallen var dammigt ❌

Use dammigt with an ett-word, for example:

• rummet var dammigt = the room was dusty

Not automatically, but that idea is strongly suggested by context.

Literally, efter renoveringen means after the renovation. Depending on the situation, it may also imply a connection: the hallway was dusty as a result of the renovation.

So the phrase mainly gives time, but the listener will very likely also understand the cause from common sense.

Yes. That is the most direct and natural translation.

• men = but
• nu = now

Together, men nu creates a contrast with what came before:

• it was dusty before
• but now the air feels better

So it helps show improvement after the earlier problem.