Firewood!

If you plan on using it every day you'd be best to get 3 sq metres. Get a mix of pine and a harder wood like macrocarpa or ti tree. The pine is faster burning and helps get it all going but doesn't put out as much heat. I usually start with pine and then when i've got some good embers put on some bigger, slower burning pieces to keep you going. Otherwise you just churn through the pine.

You'll also need to get your chimney swept for insurance purposes.

I love out fire, can't wait till it's cold enough to start!

We get our chimney swept once a year and lit the fire for the first time today! Im home with a cold so thought it would be nice to warm the place up and it is so cosy now.

We also get a mix of pine/mac and go for about 3m. If you are planning on using it this winter, make sure the wood is dry enough to use. Not sure where in Auckland you are, but there is a guy on trade me who we got wood from. Hes in Papakura and delivers for a minimal amount.

I went through 5m last year..... Have no idea how as we had it down low all the time. Make sure your shop around to get the cheapest stuff, and also ask how long it has been drying for. Its also get a load of kiln dry off cuts for starting the fire if the wood is damp. If you have no where to store it make sure you cover it will a tarp at all times.

Yeah, I always used to go through 3 cubic metres when I was working and we were just using the fire at night, but since I had DS and I was having it during the day as well, we went through 5 cubic metres last winter.

We go through about 2 - 3 cord (6 - 9 cubic metres) but we have the fire going pretty much all the time. and live in the south island where it can get pretty cold.

And as others have said, make sure you ask for dry firewood ready to burn straight away.

And if you can afford it, and have somewhere to put it, buy next years firewood soon. It is cheaper when it isn't dry.

We used 3 cubic metres last year (every last stick) and had it going most days during Winter. Hubby was at home with bubs for most of the Winter. I used The Woodshed and bought it in Feb (this year too). They delivered for free for that amount of wood, they came on time, tried to put the wood as close to where it was going to be stacked and were just all round nice!

We got another 3 cubic metres this year but we prob won't go through all of it because we're at work/daycare most days and will only have it on at night.

I think we brought something stupid like 10 cubic metres the first year then 5 the second and now we just get an extra 1 each year to top it up...this year will prob be more as i am home all day, we normally only lit it late arvo. We use coal once its all fired up too.

We're in the "get up, light the fire" category so we chow thorugh the wood like nobodies business. Although it's a lot lot lot colder where we are than in Auckland. We have already had more than a couple of days in the last few weeks where the max temperature didn't make double digits. Luckily though we are able to obtain (through a huge gut busting effort on dh's behalf) as much pine dry firewood as he can collect in one weekend for the sum total of $20 through the GWRC.

Something else that will effect how much heat you need to generate is the presence and quality of insulation in your house as well as how many windows you have, if they are double glazed and what type of curtains/blinds you have. I have, this year, hung a second set of thermal backed curtains over every window in the house and we have just had the ceiling re-insulated under the warm up NZ scheme as seen on tv (it cost us a grand total of $27, we clearly aren't wealthy, lol) and it has made a MASSIVE difference to the heat retention.

I hope you get lots of firewood to keep you toasty warm this winter.