Kiwis are raving about our DSIR-engineered wood fire. Here’s why.
“Best wood burner on the NZ market”
If you head over to the Facebook pages of the various New Zealand wood fire manufacturers, you’ll soon notice that the typical fireplace does not elicit much of a response or emotion from the average consumer.
It seems a fireplace is just a fireplace – nothing to get too excited about.
Yet, if you check out Pyro Fire’s Facebook page, comments like these are very common:
You may think these are cherry-picked comments especially with a proclamation such as “best wood burner on the NZ market”. However, there are plenty more people proclaiming their Pyro Fire to be the best wood fire:
These types of endorsements aren’t unexpected by the inventors. Afterall, they were scientists (DSIR) tasked by the New Zealand Government to create the ultimate solution for burning wood in the most economic and environmentally friendly way.
The DSIR identified inherent design flaws with the conventional steel firebox and thus designed a wood burner unlike any other on the market. The majority of wood burners to this very day still use a conventional steel firebox which is why, 40 years on, Pyro Fires remain unrivalled in their performance. Click here to learn more about the DSIR’s revolutionary design.
Messages left by our customers on social media
Click on any of the screenshots to go directly to the Facebook post where our customers left these comments.
Consumer NZ Reviews
“Gave up on the heatpump and installed a Pyroclassic. Best decision ever. Awesome design, great colour range, excellent heat output, efficient on wood use, and has a wetback option. Hopefully won’t need ventilation system, clothes drier or dehumidifier anymore. Plus, power bill for heating and hot water will be significantly less and you can cook on it. Power outages won’t be a problem anymore.”
“We fitted this wood burner in our 250m2 house and also have a heat pump, but now don’t use the heat pump. It is very efficient with no ash. The firebox is long and narrow so keep in mind when splitting wood. Great colours, we have the red one and looks great in the house. The wood box underneath is great as it serves as a fire safe hearth and no messy wood basket. We have the wetback model and is excellent at water heating.“
“Our house is 134m2 and is in Canterbury. We use just the Pyroclassic to heat the house and our hot water. The fire burns really hot and has minimal ask residual. The ceramic fire box keeps the room warm after the fire has died down – we can get this to burn overnight and it has a lot less smoke than our old woodburner. Aesthetically, it is a very modern fire and looks great in a new, contemporary home. The woodbox underneath means no messy wood basket in the house.“
“We love this product. It does have a wetback option and comes in a range of many colours. Our house, approximately 180m2 is entirely heated by the one heater beautifully. It burns overnight and the ceramic fire-chamber then remains warm for quite a few hours after the last embers die. I have never had such an efficient wood heater. “
“The fire is the best, I cannot understand how it rates so low on the NES test, read the reviews here and on the Pyroclassic site, made in NZ and does have the wetback option. Understand the fire by reading and watching the videos and you will have no problems and a warm dry house.“
“It is just wonderful. But you must follow the makers instructions regarding dry firewood. That requirement is critical. It truly does stay warm long after the fire has died. The efficiency is great. My wood consumption went down by at least 4-% when I installed the Pyroclassic. You must not tighten the door handle too much.“
“I absolutely love my Pyro!!!! My 260m2 house is very long end to end. It heats all but the last few rooms. And it can really crank out the heat. The ceramic storage type heater surrounding the box pumps out heat for a day after it has been switched off. It is wonderful and sturdy and looks fab, stylish with the ability to match your decor. I especially love that you can change panels or buy new if they’re getting sooty for a very reasonable price. Shove kamahi or manuka on overnight and there will be coals in the morning so no messing about. Excellent smokeless burning. “
Pyro Fires Testimonials
“We enjoyed the use of our Pyroclassic woodburner during the winter of 2009 and are looking forward to the coming winter. The warmth it creates in our home is completely satisfactory and is achieved using much less wood than our old fire did. Additionally, the burner was regularly used for cooking meals on its large hotplate top and this saved electricity costs. We thoroughly recommend this modern, well designed and efficient
woodburner.”
“Awesome look, great efficiency, clean burning. Just fantastic!!”
“The Pyroclassic is fantastic, we have had only positive comments from our respective families and friends regarding it’s ‘look’ and heat output. The warmth factor is great (excellent for drying all the baby clothes!), and we have found the house to be noticeably dryer. Also the fire is very efficient in fuel consumption as compared to our previous burner. Thanks again.We love our Pyroclassic fire because it’s New Zealand made, keeps the house lovely and warm, burns over night & uses a lot less wood. And we love telling people about it and seeing the expression on their faces, so far we have talked three people into buying them.”
“Our certified builder doing the installation was impressed with the quality of the flue components & how easily the whole fireplace fits together. This is a convection heater and heat-store so should not be expected to deliver instant warmth, its gameplan is to build up its own heat first, over about 30 minutes from cold, which it does very well. Once hot it transfers its heat primarily from the top, the front & the lowest stage of the flue. One soon appreciates that it is the massive cylindrical firebox which brings all this about. The Turboslide is brilliant at igniting fresh wood after the fire has burnt down and having a stash of dry pine/casuarina needles & twigs on hand, guarantees that the fire can be restarted with ease on the morning after the night before. When the fresh wood load is not excessive, there is very little smoke outside, yet plenty of warmth inside. There is no ashtray & very little ash as this fire burns just about everything. Having the raised hearth is a must, firstly this saves you from possibly working on your knees & secondly the wood is stored conveniently out of the way, under the fire. Finally, what a treat to have a narrow unobtrusive stainless flue instead of an imposing wide black one. The possibility of colour-co-ordinating the fireplace panels with the surrounding décor either now or at some future time when the décor may change is great. All in all the Pyroclassic has been one of the best home appliances we have had.“
“I have owned and operated my Pyroclassic IV woodburner for over 2 years, using it to heat the entire house, to cook on, plus keep a kettle boiling and to heat the hot water cylinder through the wetback.
It is a very fine piece of equipment and fulfills all these functions superbly. I am most impressed by the Pyroclassic’s easy starting and by its heat storage capabilities. One large-ish log keeps it going overnight and, even if the log itself is gone by morning, the stove still emanates warmth and has embers ready to rekindle. The added bonus I wasn’t entirely expecting – given that the woodstove operates at high temperature – is its economical consumption rate. Owner’s of other types are impressed by (and envious of) how little wood it uses and how little is needed to keep it ticking over.
I believe I have now done just about every type of cooking on my Pyroclassic and, once accustomed to the stove top oven, all forms of cooking can be accomplished very well. I bake bread on it regularly, about 3 times a week during winter. It bakes and roasts very well, and, once I acquired a cast-iron frypan, fries quite adequately too. Boiling in pots is never a problem. I would also like to pass on that the builder who installed my Pyroclassic stated quite clearly to me that the instructions provided were the best instructions for anything he had ever bought, used, built, installed or seen, bar none. When my building project started to go over budget I contemplated canceling my order for a Pyroclassic – despite it being cheaper than the stove originally spec’d – in favour of a very cheap model. I cannot say how happy I am that I did not do that. The Pyroclassic IV is among the 2 or 3 best purchases I made in the entire building of my house.”
“I love our Pyroclassic. We live in the South Island and winter is cold apparently (not that we would know!!). Honestly, we have been so toasty warm two winters running – our home is healthy and we haven’t been unwell AT ALL so I am one very pleased Mum!“
“It’s stylish and nothing heats the house like a Pyroclassic! And if you need to light it it’s like magic! Super easy. I LOVE my pyroclassic.“
“I’m not a ‘fire’ type of person. I come from the land of central heating (UK). I love how idiot-proof the fire is to light and keep going. I also love how it retains the heat. Magic!“
“Pyroclassic heats my whole house plus my water! I love its red panels….they match my cushions! Should we have a power cut I can cook on its top….mmmmm……casserole! Love it! Stays in all night. Clean burning. The list is endless…“
“The Pyroclassic is stylish, puts out an amazing amount of heat, plus has a wetback that really does the job. It also heats up the kettle for a cup of tea in no time! Love it!“
“Love its fuel efficiency and all the cooking functions plus all the fantastic colours. All that and it keeps you cozy warm too. Amazing!“
“We love our Pyroclassic fire because it’s New Zealand made, keeps the house lovely and warm, burns over night & uses a lot less wood. And we love telling people about it and seeing the expression on their faces, so far we have talked three people into buying them.”
“We love our Pyroclassic as it keeps the house super toasty, one of the best things is being able to chuck some wood in the fire in the morning and there’s still enough coals from the night before to get it cranking again really quickly. On these cold mornings we have got the fire going before work to keep the house super snug for when we get home.“
“Great overnight burn and uses a lot less firewood than our old wood burner!“
“The Pyroclassic stove is the only really well designed stove in NZ, I presume one of the best in the world. As a potter, I have built many wood kilns, you can see the difference with the Pyroclassic when you see the flame movement and quality of flame and the heat keeping quality of the castable brick used. It always lights first time and stays warm all night and is the most ecological stove. We hardly use our oven and cook top in winter and the food just tastes so much better. I really could go on …and on but last and not least it it the most beautiful stove around and comes colour coordinated for all room colours …we just love our stove.“
“Keeps us warm ALL night long!! Been “burning” for over 72 hours flat so far – we are toasty warm. LOVE our Pyroclassic!!“
“Keeps us warm ALL night. We just built our first house and love our fire. No curtains yet but it keeps us warm and toasty all night and still embers in the morning to go for the day. Bought before we even started building, we love it!“
“Our Pyro was the first thing we turned on when we moved into our new build last year during the floods in Christchurch just to show the code of compliance council man that it was installed well! (which the man liked so he could see it was all ok plus it was freezing). We love the wetback, how it retains heat and slowly releases it meaning you don’t need to keep putting heaps of wood on it to have heat (great on a sunny winters day). Plus, the cat thinks it’s the best. It has been the topic of many visitors who ask about this unique, quirky coloured looking fire in our lounge and of course we give them the full rundown on the Pyro. Plus, we don’t have curtains and are hitting -4 and -6 last few nights and still toasty warm.“
“We live in a batch at the beach and our Pyroclassic fire was the best ever investment while we save up to build a well insulated new home in a few years time. Radiates throughout the night, coals ready to ignite a new log in the morning, looks stylie and does not take up much room. We are raving fans and share our experience with everyone.“
“I love it because it stays warm all night, can be reignited from the hot coals in the morning then stays warm all day while I’m at work. No other wood burner that I know of can do that.“
“This fireplace is a life changer – so much easier than any other fireplace I have used. Yes, easy to light and so easy to keep ticking over and keeping the house warm day and then easy to crank up when it gets colder in the evening. Saves wood as well – not using anywhere near the same amount as other years. This is a love affair for me.“
“Keeps us warm, great to look at, super efficient and you don’t need to be a pyromaniac to get it to light and keep it going, great Kiwi design and thought gone into this product.“
“Had ours for past winter. Incredibly efficient and puts out heaps of heat. Hell, we love it so much we light it when the weather has warmed up, just for the ambiance. I have spent a lifetime in engineering and have never seen anything that couldn’t be improved upon – until Pyroclassic. Don’t buy a fire without checking this on out. You won’t be disappointed.“
“Love our Pyroclassic, it keeps our 1920s house toasty warm! Our kids love sitting in front of it after their bath. It is easy to light and burns wood slowly. Very happy with our choice, thank you!!“
“We have had ours in for 4 months. I have recommended this fire to lots of people. The love of this fire for us is it burns overnight and in the morning all you do is open it up and throw another piece of wood on and away she goes. We appear to be burning less wood and keeping a LOT warmer, and bonus it heats our hot water. If you are looking for a fire you cannot go past this fire they are AMAZING!!“
“I would like to say that we installed a Pyroclassic fire at the end of June and we love it. I thought you would like to see what has happened to our power/gas bill since we installed the fire. Our latest bill shows our consumption has dropped enormously when you look at last July to this July. Our bill last July was about $1,000 this July it is $188.55!!! The fire looks great and it works so well.“
“I purchased a flame red Pyroclassic Mini for my new-build Lockwood home. I finally moved in a few weeks ago and wanted to say how impressed and delighted I am with your product. It is wonderful. It looks great in the Lockwood setting, is so easy to light and then steadily pumps out the perfect amount of heat and for an impressively long time.
I wanted to thank the people involved in designing, constructing and then installing this fire. I would recommend it to anyone.”
“Works like a dream! Very happy!!“