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Is a heater on a marketplace that looks barely used, at a fraction of the price of a new one a good deal? One thing you don't know is that the one photo you have on the listing tells you almost nothing. Five checks decide whether it is a bargain or a trap, starting with the one that stops an installer signing it off.

You can picture it already. The fire sits flush in the wall, framed by the plaster, throwing warmth across the lounge on a grey Melbourne afternoon. No box standing out on the floor, no legs, just flame set into the room like it was always meant to be there. That look has a name. It is an inbuilt wood heater, and the reason it looks so settled is that the choice to have one is made early, before the plaster goes up and sometimes before the frame does.

You load the firebox, hold a match to the kindling, and wait. The fire catches, then sputters. The wood hisses, steam creeps from the cut ends, and the glass fogs with smoke. An hour later the room is still cold. Nine times out of ten, the problem is the wood rather than the heater.  

Wood heater terminology can become confusing when product choices, installation checks, fire behaviour and spare parts all use different words for connected parts of the same system.

The cabinetmaker has gone. The slab is poured. The installer's marked where the flue boots will sit. You're standing in the lounge with a tape measure, working out where everything goes. The sofa you bought before the renovation started is in the wrong place.

Have an older wood heater? If you have, have you ever opened the firebox door to see a wisp of smoke come back into the room? If you're trying to work out why, you may...

Not all firewood is equal. The species you burn affects how much heat you get, how much smoke you produce, and how often you need to reload. Here’s a guide to choosing the best firewood for your wood heater in Australia.