SURPRISE VISITOR: "Rocky", which came to rest in the hall way of Phil Johnson's house after the Christchurch earthquake.

The boulder which gained notoriety for destroying a Christchurch home now has a name, and is up for sale.

It is one of a few examples of humour coming out of the quake-hit suburbs.

''Rocky'' crashed through Phil Johnson's Morgans Valley house in Heathcoate after becoming dislodged during last Tuesday's devastating 6.3 magnitude earthquake.

Now the boulder, still firmly wedged in Johnson's house, has been listed on the online auction website, Trade Me.

''For sale 1 owner 25 - 30 tonne landscape feature (answers to the name Rocky),'' the listing, by phil.johnson, begins.

''He is in pristine condition (just a little bit of concrete dust). Suitable for garden feature, or as in our case a magnificent addition to your living area.

''Rocky will enhance your "indoor outdoor" flow considerably, especially if you load him in through the garage roof like we did.''

By 5pm, the auction has hit $5000, after 53 bids and attracted a wealth of comments.

''My 3yo little princess has nearly worn out her pet rock. Could you please advise an estimated shipping cost to Auckland?,'' techguy2 posted.

''OMG his pink batts are showing,'' over.rated added, while krystlehart asked if ''Rocky's papa was a rollin' stone?''.

The successful bidder of the auction will get a personalised photo with Rocky, once the cordons lift, and all proceeds will go the Christchurch Earthquake Relief Fund, Johnson added.

Click here to view the auction.

Trade Me spokesman Paul Ford said a number of people have been going onto the Christchurch earthquake section of the site to offer and seek accommodation, advertise lost and found pets and even offer space to business owners who could not access their workshops.

Between Wednesday, when the section was built, and Sunday, there had been about 160,000 people visit the site - generating about 1.5 million page views, he said.

"It's unprecedented, really. It's the first time we've done something like this, building a page within 24 hours of a disaster happening.

"It's just heart-warming to see people are using it and finding it useful."

Mr Ford said about 6000 items had been listed since the section was built.

By the end of today, he hoped Trade Me would have a dedicated section built for businesses looking for equipment or space, or for those firms offering space or equipment.

Meanwhile, on a city street lined with piles of drying liquefaction, one generous resident has stuck a sign reading "free" into a pile of silt.

On another street is a notice attached to a wheelie bin stating "you can't get out".

Portaloos man the corners of the streets of the beachside suburb of Sumner, which is still without sewerage and water.

Some have been decorated by members of the public. Tinsel and christmas decorations are sticky-taped to one, while a portrait of Marilyn Monroe hangs on another. Chairs and magazines have even been placed beside some portaloos to comfort neighbours who may have to wait their turn.