Firewood in Olinda
Olinda began as a logging settlement. Today over half of it is public land, and every house is under the bushfire overlay.
We connect you with a local firewood supplier who works in the hills.
Ask for a quoteOlinda Forest. Photo: Nick Carson, CC BY 3.0
A logging settlement first
Olinda started out as a logging settlement and only grew in the early 1900s, when land opened up for berries, dairying and flowers. The town sits at about 569 m. After the 1962 bushfires the Forests Commission widened the golf course on the State forest land to 18 holes, because it doubled as a firebreak. In 2017 the state announced the old course would become part of the Dandenong Ranges Botanic Gardens.
Checked 25 October 2026 against Wikipedia: Olinda, Victoria.
Very little of it is house blocks
On the planning maps, over half of Olinda is public conservation land and parkland, and most of the rest is green wedge. Almost none is zoned residential, so the houses here mostly stand on green wedge land rather than town blocks. Room for a woodpile is rarely the problem. Where to put it is.
The Bushfire Management Overlay covers all of Olinda. CFA's landscaping guide puts woodpiles at least 10 m from the house, and its bushfire-season advice is to keep them away from it: a summer stack against the wall or under the deck is an ember trap. About a third of the locality is also under the Erosion Management Overlay, which marks land at risk of slipping. On a steep block, the spot 10 m out may be a long carry from where the truck can tip, so mention the slope when you ask for a quote.
Checked 25 October 2026 against Vicmap Planning, the state's zone and overlay maps (DataVic), measured across the suburb, CFA: Landscaping for Bushfire (version 3, June 2022) and CFA: preparing for bushfire season.
Chimneys in a village street
The village is a weekend destination of cafés, galleries and craft shops, and its chimneys share the street with them. EPA Victoria asks for dry, seasoned, untreated hardwood, stored for at least 8 months under cover with air around it, and a flue cleaned before winter. The wood smoke guide covers what to do about a neighbour's chimney. Yarra Ranges Council takes smoke complaints on 1300 368 333.
Checked 25 October 2026 against Wikipedia: Olinda, Victoria, EPA Victoria: manage smoke from wood heaters and Yarra Ranges Council: wood heaters, burning off and air quality.
Garden waste and fire pits
Yarra Ranges puts each address in an urban, bushland or rural burning category, with different days and permits for each, and its burning-off page has the lookup. A fire pit is allowed except on a Total Fire Ban day, provided the smoke isn't offensive. In the Fire Danger Period, CFA's conditions apply too.
Checked 25 October 2026 against Yarra Ranges Council: burning off and CFA: can I or can't I?.
Along the ridge from Olinda
- Mount Dandenong, Sassafras and Kalorama
- The same mix of public conservation land and green wedge, all of it under the bushfire overlay. All Yarra Ranges, except an eighth of Sassafras that is in Knox.
Collecting your own means a trip out to the State forest areas around Powelltown, Warburton and Toolangi, the only ones open this spring in the Port Phillip region. See the collecting guide.
Checked 25 October 2026 against Vicmap Planning, the state's zone and overlay maps (DataVic), measured across the suburb and Forest Fire Management Victoria: find a firewood collection area.
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