The house-building project had double benefit, reported The Canberra Times 44 years ago.

Five Canberra architecture students earned part of their degree by building a house with their own hands.

As a side benefit, they saved the future owner more than $10,000.

The walls were built with a double layer of mud bricks compressed with a 20 tonne force through a one-man operated CINVA-ram from Colombia.

The Canberra College of Advanced Education students - Sergio Carcia, Pedro Geleris, Peter Adamson, Graham Butler and Domenic Caprarelli - built the house on a panoramic point of the Bungendore Escarpment, overlooking Lake George.

Their client, Mr John Durst, paid $15000 for materials and labour.

At the time of the article, the "house" consisted of 30 vertical telegraph poles, set in concrete and rammed rocks and a concrete slab.

In a clay gully downhill from the house, the five students were pumping bricks out of the $250 CINVA-ram at the rate of 300 per day.

CCAE's architectural-technology lecturer, Mr John Favre produced a 127-page report that the students had written on their project.

It detailed their inquiries into producing the most energy-conserving house design and tailoring it to Mr Durst's wishes as well as those of the Yarrowlumla Shire's building inspector.

See trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/110853088