Six fire brigades, Gunnedah police and ambulance service were called to a fire and explosions at the Curlewis tip on Thursday night.
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Curlewis, Piallaway and Gunnedah Rural Fire Service (RFS) were flanked by crew from Gunnedah and Tamworth Fire and Rescue after receiving a report about 9pm.
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Liverpool Range RFS district manager Myles O'Reilly said the explosions were probably caused by aerosols, "which can be quite frightening when they do go off".
"There was good cooperation and a quick response from all agencies involved," he said.
"The fire was brought under control quite quickly and this morning we have local brigade Piallaway up there ... and [Gunnedah Shire] Council brought a water loader and excavator to dig out some of the refuse so we can extinguish it.
"There are layers of refuse on top and it can be smoldering for quite some time so we have to watch it ... Putting large amounts of water onto it may not hit the hot spots."
Fire and Rescue superintendent Tom Cooper said it was the third time crews have been called a fire at the tip.
"It is being investigated because it could have been deliberately lit," he said.
"That's obviously a cause for concern because crews were out there for three hours on Thursday night.
"They had to use quite a lot of foam on that fire, which has a financial impact on us as well as resources."
Mr O'Reilly said the RFS would conduct its usual investigation into the cause but "tip fires are common".
"In a tip, you have various places green waste is stored, domestic rubbish is stored, and once it gets compressed, with the moisture you can get anaerobic and aerobic ignition," he said.
Kaputar fire keeps crews busy
Tip fires aren't the only thing keeping the RFS busy - Mr O'Reilly said the Liverpool Range Fire Control Centre deployed a strike team to the raging bush fire at Mount Kaputar near Narrabri on Thursday.
Eleven crew and five trucks from Gunnedah, Curlewis, Currabubula, Wingen and Parkville are on the ground until Sunday, "which is sorely needed up there".
There is a very high danger rating today but Mr O'Reilly said "they've got a good strategy in place at the moment".
"They are doing back-burning operations [and] we are pretty confident that the strategies in place are effective but having said that, wind conditions can change very quickly," he said.
"They're planning ahead for worst-case scenarios."
The RFS said the fire was more than 11,000 hectares in size in all directions and was being controlled.
Strong north-westerly winds will develop over the fire ground today, pushing the fire in a south and south-easterly direction.
Firefighters will continue patrolling the perimeter, looking for any breaks in the containment lines or spot fires and aircraft and heavy plant will aid ground crews when needed.
