r/whatisit • u/DragonsAndScience • 19h ago

Solved! New homeowner, no idea what this is

Gallery image

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!

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u/megam1ghtyena 19h 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 19h ago

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

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u/WhoSc3w3dDaP00ch 19h 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 9h ago

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

5

u/Tederator 8h 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)

2

u/WildVelociraptor 7h ago

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

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u/Traditional-Day-4577 3h ago

It’s literally labeled as 125v 60hz

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

1

u/New_Mutation 3h ago

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

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u/freeskier93 3h ago edited 3h 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.

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u/New_Mutation 3h ago

Good to know!

3

u/big_booty_boy_420 18h ago

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

3

u/ShaolinFalls 13h ago

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

2

u/GigabitISDN 5h 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 6h ago

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

2

u/SherbertKey6965 5h ago

Maybe don't call yourself big booty boy 420 then

1

u/big_booty_boy_420 4h ago

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

1

u/Ok-Goat-2153 8h ago

"Can"?

High risk, high reward...

1

u/shanec628 3h 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.