Just finished cutting and stacking this winters firewood in the shed. Doesnt get any easier each year, but a fire in winter is hard to beat.
Cut 4 x 8'x5" trailer loads which should see me through.
We ordered our firewood from the local fuel merchant. He is a very nice, elderly gentleman. His family has been part of the local community for over 100 years.
The wood was delivered by his assistant. A thirty-something blonde woman, tanned legs, short short cutoff jeans and Blunnies. We certainly had wood that day.
I'm environmentally friendly cause i rug up and have a blanky....
and a tight a$$ and lazy , but warm 
I chopped down 2 very large gum trees that were dead in my front yard at the ski lodge. Ended up with 2 lines stacked timber to the roof.
I think I'll be right for the winter.
Y'day - Neighbour just tracked Whitees into my pile - buggers 
1 bonus - had not chopped up yet...
AP
Yep, the stinkers have arced up their wood fires around our patch so now we have to close up the house and make sure my wife's got her Ventolin handy
Can't wait for the f'ken things to be banned
feel like climbing on a few roof's and blocking some chimney's to see how they like it[}:)]
we changed to gas last winter, its not a patch on the woodheater, but the area where I cut my wood was getting a bit thin.
we had stopped noticing the little diggings that indicated echidnas in the area
we plan to have a look at the woodheater again next year
We got rid of our gas heater a while back when we got reverse cycle air conditioning
We have an open plan living area, the aircon heats the whole lot up in under 5mins on a frigid morning have the temp set low 22-23º so it doesn't suck the electrickery and it just maintains a nice comfortable temp.
We got rid of the gas heater as it would just burn up all the oxygen in the house, couldn't open a window because of all the stinkin wood fires in the area.
Driving home at night in winter is like driving through "foggy hollow" down here, you'd swear there was major bush fire each night.
One thing I miss living on a farm, cutting up firewood, collecting sticks for kindling and lighting a fire in the fireplace. Now living in a unit that gets very cold in winter. Its brilliant in summer, very cool on hot days but freezing in winter.
We've installed some heavy, two layer curtains, replacing crappy vertical blinds. So hopefully they will help insulate our rooms a bit this winter. The next step is to install a reverse cycle airconditioner. Though I'm not sure how they operate when the air temperature gets close to or below zero.
Electric heating is expensive and generally ineffective.
I can understand the concern about smoke in built up areas with certain topography. I used to live in Armidale NSW. The town is built in a valley. It gets quite cold there in winter and many houses had wood fires. So the place gets quite smokey. I think the local council was planning on banning open fireplaces but I left there before the ban came through.
It gets quite cold in Queensland too in winter. Even on the Gold Coast it can get down below 10 degrees at night in winter, the sort of temperature where having a fire burning at home very inviting.
4 trailer loads is about our winters worth too. Got 2 loads chopped and stacked so far.
Havent thought much about the smoke issue from the nieghbour perspective but burning dry dead wood from a well managed forest is a greener alternative to flicking the switch on the air con.
we seem to be surrounded by mugs that insist on "burning" (smouldering is a better name for it) thier wet/ green firewood.
from our front door I can usually see 8 or 9 chimneys chugging away pouring out smoke, and similar from the back verandah.
2 or 3 others have "open" fireplaces and good quality firewood as you can hardly tell they have fires burning.
being surrounded by ruddy slow combustion fires is painfull.
not looking forward to the cold when it finally arrives here again.
stephen
Yeah I guess I can understand the atitude toward wood fires in built up areas, having smoke billowing into your house from next door would probably piss me off as well.
I'm well out of town on acrage or is that hectarage? Nearest neighbours about a km away.
A/C might be OK for you lot in mild areas away from the hills but does'nt cut it where I am, when I get my water front house on the beach I'll pontificate on the evils of wood fires as well
Found myself a magic rental for $50 a week on 3000 acres, nearest neighbour five k's away. comes with double size Olympic pool, double storey and open plan. Sand flies are an extra bonus. About ten minutes from a magic fishing spot where the sand flies are so thick if you could halter the bastards you could kite behind them!
^^^^Geez mate!! You should take in some refugees at $300/week each and instill some genuine Aussie Kulcha into 'em.
^^^^ Dogs are like that. As long as you feed them they will understand anything else you do.
