Residents in central Victoria are spending another night on edge as fire crews struggle to contain a massive blaze that has raged in the Lancefield area since Tuesday.

Jacqueline Lehmann's house on Feeneys Lane, Benloch, has been under siege since the fire started and was at one stage under attack on three sides.

Mrs Lehmann thought the worst was over on Thursday morning and went to sleep for two hours - her first shut eye in 48 hours.

But by midday the fire had roared back to life just 300 metres from her back door.

"We thought it was all over this morning but now it has flared up again at the rear of the property and firefighters have been trying to contain that since noon," she said on Thursday night.

"Out there at the moment the fire keeps flaring up over and over again."

Mrs Lehmann said 30 acres of land had been scorched at the rear of her property and CFA crews were using bulldozers to build containment lines.

"It's moving slowly because, thank God, those ferocious winds that we had yesterday are no longer there, but they just haven't been able to contain it or control it."

Mrs Lehmann, who works from home as a consultant, praised the Country Fire Authority volunteers who have fought to save her home.

"I don't have any words: they are just amazing," she said.

The CFA said it was struggling to contain the 4000-hectare Lancefield fire because of the difficult terrain in the area but hoped to bring it under control on Friday before an expected wind change and possible lightning on Saturday.

"The fire is burning slowly, it's really just the rocky and steep terrain that's stopping us getting in there and finishing the job off," CFA spokesman James Todd said.

More than 200 firefighters were expected to work through the night in Lancefield.

Mr Todd said temperatures in the mid-20s and light winds forecast for Friday would work in their favour, with hopes of containing the fire before the weekend.

Hundreds of people still do not know whether their houses have survived the blaze that swept north of Lancefield, as CFA and police roadblocks remain in place.

Authorities have confirmed two houses, seven sheds, two vehicles and farm equipment have been destroyed, but there are fears that toll could rise as people return to the area.

Meanwhile 130 firefighters have gained the upper hand at Tallarook, where a fire is now burning within containment lines.

Residents are furious that the Lancefield fire started from a controlled burn-off in Cobaw, with some calling for "heads to roll" at the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning.

The state government has announced an external review into the fire, led by Western Australia's Office of Bushfire Risk Management Murray Carter.