Tonight is the night when daylight saving begins, which means if you're working a standard day, for the next few months you get to enjoy an extra hour of sunshine after work to enjoy summer barbecues, beaches and the garden.

Clocks go forward by one hour at 2am on Sunday September 29 2019. Instead of waking up at 2am to do this, it's easier before heading to bed tonight, to put your clock forward one hour.

For some with electronic timepieces, this will happen automatically.

Daylight saving starts each year on the last Sunday in September, and ends on the first Sunday in April, which in 2020 will be April 5.

During the daylight saving months we are on ‘New Zealand daylight time', which is one hour ahead of New Zealand standard time.

Fire and Emergency New Zealand also advise Kiwis to test their smoke alarms. On the smoke alarm check list is the expiry date, the battery, cleanliness, and correct placement. Press the test button to sound the alarm, and if you cannot reach the button easily, use a broom handle.

History of daylight saving in NZ:

New Zealand first introduced daylight saving time in 1927. The current times have been fixed since 2007.

1868 — New Zealand officially set a national standard time — called New Zealand Mean Time — at 11 hours and 30 minutes ahead of Greenwich Mean Time - GMT.

1927 — New Zealand first observed daylight saving time. The dates and time difference were changed several times over the following years.

1941 — New Zealand summer time was extended by emergency regulations to cover the whole year.

1946 — New Zealand summer time - 12 hours in advance of GMT - was adopted as New Zealand standard time. Daylight saving time was effectively discontinued at this point.

1974–5 — Daylight saving was trialled again in 1974, and introduced in 1975. Daylight saving time is one hour ahead of New Zealand standard time.

1985 — Public attitudes were surveyed and over the next few years the period of daylight saving time was extended twice.

2006-07 — Following public debate and a petition presented to Parliament the period of daylight saving was extended to its current dates. New Zealand observes daylight saving from the last Sunday in September to the first Sunday in April.