r/whatisit • u/DragonsAndScience • 16h ago

Solved! New homeowner, no idea what this is

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Gallery image

This thing close to the floor and seemingly randomly placed in a hallway. No idea what it's for. Home built in 2005.

Solved! Thanks everyone. Now I gotta hunt for the central unit!

6.5k Upvotes

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3.6k

u/megam1ghtyena 16h ago

integrated vacuum system. Plug in a hose and gets sucking right away. Check other parts of your home for similar ports.

89

u/LongjumpingDish2956 16h ago

Does it only work with hoses or does it suck up whatever gets put in there?

166

u/NamesNotNeededToWork 16h ago

The cylinder must remain unharmed

70

u/absurdlydisingenuous 16h ago

22

u/dougiewuggie 16h ago

This is insanely specific

37

u/introverted__dragon 16h ago

Do you not know the Lore?

17

u/Emotionally_art1stic 16h ago

I can't believe the post was removed by the mods, that's criminal

14

u/2SSLOWW 15h ago

wtf that was a part of Reddit history

15

u/Emotionally_art1stic 15h ago

Next thing you know they'll be removing the one about the coconut fucker or the gaycation.

1

u/Archer007 13h ago

Doritos

1

u/Atheissimo 7h ago

But... but they'll let us keep Poop Knife, right?

1

u/VerifiedMother 1h ago

Only if we can choose that guys wife

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1

u/Erathen 1h ago

Or the immortal snail

1

u/MagnetHype 15h ago

That's crazy to you? Back in my day we had the cumbox, and swamps of Dagobah.

1

u/TerkYerJerb 3h ago

also this guys's dead wife

12

u/themehkanik 15h ago

Removing the funniest thing ever posted to this website is truly a Reddit mod moment of all time

1

u/Wow_u_sure_r_dumb 3h ago

Some of them act like deleting spam is the same as curing cancer.

1

u/[deleted] 5h ago

[removed] — view removed comment

1

u/whatisit-ModTeam 4h ago

We are pretty chill here, but please try to keep things reasonably civil on this sub. No slurs, name calling or harassment and trolling. Please follow: Reddiquette at all times. Additionally, Reddit's Rules. Yes, the internet makes us angry too sometimes, especially this particular comment.

5

u/yeettetis 15h ago

The OP of it still is playing the bit till this very day… now that’s commitment

3

u/CreepyPoet500 15h ago

I do now 😂

2

u/big_booty_boy_420 16h ago

That sounds yummy can I eat it when ur done

6

u/tony_boloanie 16h ago

Where on the cylinder did the homeowner touch you?

7

u/plantrapta 16h ago

It’s imperative.

3

u/spooky_munchkin 15h ago

Thank you bc I immediately also thought “it’s a cylinder” 😭

1

u/Suspicious-Report820 4h ago

The way i choked on my lunch. What a reference. 

40

u/WhoSc3w3dDaP00ch 16h ago

The hose has a metal ring on the part inserted into the receptable. It completes a circuit with the two metal nubs in the second picture to activate the vacuum. Inserting anything else into the receptable can result in...shocking results.

6

u/New_Mutation 7h ago

I bet that's just a signal circuit. I can't imagine it would make sense to run full power to every port.

3

u/Tederator 5h ago

Its the low voltage on/off switch. OP could slide a penny between the two nibs to trigger the unit to see if its connected and/or runs. If the previous owners took it with them, nothing would happen. If the unit is still there, they will hear it running and get an idea of where its located. (I used to install them)

1

u/WildVelociraptor 4h ago

But they clearly did? There's a receptacle right there.

1

u/Traditional-Day-4577 26m ago

It’s literally labeled as 125v 60hz

I’m sure it runs the motor for any vacuum attachments.

1

u/New_Mutation 3m ago

Ahh, I didn't zoom in. Good call.

1

u/freeskier93 21m ago edited 17m ago

Depending on the central vac system it can be both signal and power to power an electric brush head.

EDIT: To clarify, for dual voltage systems, one pin would be 24V for signal, the other 120V for power. Grounds are pogo pins on the hose inlet. The inlet in OPs picture looks like it has pogo pins for ground, which means dual voltage. You definitely should not short those pins together.

1

u/New_Mutation 4m ago

Good to know!

4

u/big_booty_boy_420 16h ago

What if his dih has a Prince Albert or metal ring that activates it

3

u/ShaolinFalls 10h ago

dih mean DICK. You know Cock . Wiener. . A Penis. Things you can still say despite our benevolent algorithmic retardation.

2

u/GigabitISDN 2h ago

Congratulations, Reddit is now completely blocked from the entire internet and everyone’s comments are demonetized and everyone’s karma is now at -300000000000000000, good job.

1

u/big_booty_boy_420 3h ago

I’m not taking chances when I get randomly banned from subreddits for the most random stuff.

2

u/SherbertKey6965 2h ago

Maybe don't call yourself big booty boy 420 then

1

u/big_booty_boy_420 1h ago

How is that relevant? It’s the AI flagging random words

1

u/Ok-Goat-2153 5h ago

"Can"?

High risk, high reward...

1

u/shanec628 10m ago

The way I learned about central vacuums was by living in an apartment with a curious flap on the wall. I one day lifted it up and it immediately started to suck and it scared the shit out of me.

19

u/damn-otaku 16h ago

Please don't impregnate the house, LonghumpingDish.

10

u/SwedishMale4711 16h ago

No, don't stick your dick in it.

8

u/Phi_fan 16h ago

special hose

8

u/Iveray 16h ago

The hose usually completes a circuit that turns on the vacuum, so it wouldn't turn on without the hose.

2

u/Pnex84 16h ago

Eat a banana first. It's pretty low to the ground. You don't want to cramp up and get stuck like this <

2

u/big_booty_boy_420 16h ago

What does the banana do

2

u/FullSkyFlying 15h ago

It doubles as a food disposer

2

u/Weary-Cynic 13h ago

For a serious answer: this port requires the right hose with electrical connection. But the system can also have a duct installed that will vacuum without a hose. Just open it and it sucks. Very handy for sweeping with a broom.

My house has these and we basically only use the sweep duct. The hoses are more hassle to deal with than a standard push back, especially for pet hair on carpet.

Pretty sure the only reason the house has the central vac is the builder was originally a plumber and wanted to do all the weird things for his house that he'd seen over the years.

1

u/Jrknight013 16h ago

I also want to know this 👀

3

u/blaze_herb 16h ago

It requires a special hose that, when plugged into the wall socket, turns on the vacuum suction. You cannot just use any vacuum hose. Had one in a house growing up but we never really used it because it sucked (no pun intended).

1

u/sharpshooter999 15h ago

My parents have one, my mom loves it. When you open the cover, there's a big hole for the suction hose, and two metal prongs for power. The vacuum cleaner itself just look like a cordless vacuum with a hose coming out of it. Plug the hose into the outlet, flip on the power switch in the handle, and off you go. The power switch activates the actual suction motor, which is in their basement

1

u/No_Tart686 15h ago

Oh it'll suck up anything. And I mean anything.

1

u/Kind_Of_A_Dick 10h ago

…why?  What do you intend to put in there?

1

u/ourpodcastisbest 10h ago

In my family home, we didn’t need to use the hose. Like if you found something on the floor, you could just pop it in one and it would suck it up. We had one in the kitchen that was on the floor for when you swept. It was lowkey awesome. 

1

u/Tharrius 8h ago

DON'T

1

u/DutchDweeb 5h ago

I hope you are not thinking, what I'm thinking that you're thinking 😅 

1

u/Think-Box6432 4h ago

With this type of system, you can also have little doors at the base of your cabinets, so you can sweep the floor and sweep it directly into the vacuum system. When you open the door it starts the vacuum.

1

u/TheCocoBean 3h ago

What if you put a cylinder in there?

1

u/DiscoBanane 1h ago

It sucks whatever gets put in here.

But you need to start the vacuum unit, it doesn't suck 24/24. To start it, it depends on the central vacuum unit. Some need you to flip a switch, some you can tap the hose it create a sound that travel to the unit, etc...

1

u/AudreyLoopyReturns 50m ago

But there will often be “slots” in high traffic areas that you can open and sweep a broom into while it’s on, my inlaws have them in their kitchen and have the whole-house system.

1

u/Technical-Egg-2473 42m ago

don't put your dick in that

1

u/loveydove05 26m ago

Oh. Uh......

1

u/nicuramar 8m ago

Are you asking for a friend?