The WikiHouse is a low-energy house which anyone can download, adapt, ‘print’ and assemble in a few days, with no construction skills, and for less than £50,000.

The two-storey, two-bedroom house, which is slotted together, has been created by ARUP engineers, the Building Centre and designers Studio 00.

Project manager Alastair Parvin said constructing the WikiHouse would be achievable for the average “Ikea-savvy” person.

The WikiHouse website provides step-by-step information on how to go about building your own 3D printed house.

You start by downloading house designs created and shared by a community of designers from around the world.

Then, using the WikiHouse plugin for SketchUp, you can generate a set of cutting files for your house parts. The parts can then be ‘printed’ from a standard sheet material like plywood, using a CNC milling machine.

The system does not need bolts - parts are joined using wedges and pegs.

The WikiHouse creators say a single-storey house can be created in “about a day”. Once the basic house ‘chassis’ is in place, important elements such as cladding, insulation, windows and, of course, a toilet can be added.

www.wikihouse.cc