Mystery object

[BruceinSanity]

12 hours ago, mross said:

It would be interesting to see more context, ie a photo from further away so we can see what it might do.  I think it covers a valve.  At some stage a taller valve has been fitted - hence the speed hump.

I thought about such a photo, but no point, nothing else near it. It's just sat there on the edge of the towpath, concrete slab under it. Made a handy sawhorse for cutting up some scavenged wood.

[Neil Smith]

Just open it and put us all out of our misery.

Neil

[sharpness]

Michael Miles, wasn't he "the quiz inquisitor" or was that Hughie Green

[BruceinSanity]

Heigh ho, thanks for the thoughts! Looks like it's some kind of valve, but with no visible power supply, not clear how it functions.

[WotEver]

12 hours ago, sharpness said:

Michael Miles, wasn't he "the quiz inquisitor" or was that Hughie Green

Michael Miles was Take Your Pick. Hughie Green was Double Your Money. The Yes/No Interlude was in Take Your Pick. 

[1st ade]

3 hours ago, BruceinSanity said:

Heigh ho, thanks for the thoughts! Looks like it's some kind of valve, but with no visible power supply, not clear how it functions.

Water level monitoring. Plastic "speed hump" is the radio bit of a mobile phone; sends a text to CRT every few hours with the current water level. With careful design could last months on one set of batteries. Or could only send when water is outside pre-set limits (danger of flooding / more than 6" down) in which case batteries could last years.

[mross]

48 minutes ago, 1st ade said:

Water level monitoring. Plastic "speed hump" is the radio bit of a mobile phone; sends a text to CRT every few hours with the current water level. With careful design could last months on one set of batteries. Or could only send when water is outside pre-set limits (danger of flooding / more than 6" down) in which case batteries could last years.

 

 

Is that an educated guess or do you have inside knowledge?  It certainly sounds a good explanation.  But would you mount a phone under a metal cover?  It would weaken the signal.  Also, those four screws would be easy to remove by some vandal.

Edited May 7, 2017 by mross

[1st ade]

1 minute ago, mross said:

Is that an educated guess or do you have inside knowledge?  It certainly sounds a good explanation.

A guess but based upon knowledge of how many small and insignificant devices use the mobile networks for non critical "stuff" and having seen similar "speed bumps" on, for example, air quality sensors and (road) traffic counters.

[cuthound]

6 hours ago, 1st ade said:

Water level monitoring. Plastic "speed hump" is the...

Well, it would certainly slow down any cyclist who ran over it 

[Peter X]

I like 1st ade's theory, sounds highly plausible to me. The metal box wouldn't block the signal if as he speculates the radio transmitting part of the equipment is in that plastic bump on top. And water level monitoring would explain why the box is at the water side of the towpath, whereas I'd expect equipment which didn't need to be right by the water to be located at the hedge side.

[mross]

that hump looks like metal, not plastic.

[Guest]

Gargle Blaster shaker 

[MtB]

Isn't it a Pangalactic gargleblaster?? 

And does it need shaking?!

[Peter X]

2 hours ago, mross said:

that hump looks like metal, not plastic.

Hmmm yes, it does look like metal which would make the radio transmission idea unlikely. Maybe our man on the spot BruceInSanity can confirm this?

[BruceinSanity]

6 hours ago, Peter X said:

Hmmm yes, it does look like metal which would make the radio transmission idea unlikely. Maybe our man on the spot BruceInSanity can confirm this?

I'm no longer on the spot, long since gone. But my memory is that it could well have been non-ferrous. I'd taken the black to be a plastic coating but might have been a stiff plastic box. The Torx heads were clean and shiny as though put in place comparatively recently, so looks like the beast is visited from time to time.

[mross]

Here are pictures of two gate valves.  In one the threaded stem only rotates and the gate moves up and down.  In the other the threaded stem fises from the top of the valve - this type would nee extra 'headroom' hence the speed hump.  The valve is underground and the box is to give access to the handwheel.

Edited May 8, 2017 by mross
adding pics

[Nightwatch]

I'm so surprised that non of you experienced boating types have any idea what it is.

[bizzard]

So its a cock up. They didn't make the main box tall enough in the first place to contain whats inside and so had to add the carbuncle.

[mross]

Well, maybe they got tired of the first valve getting too stiff to operate?  A rising stem valve makes it easy to grease the threads.  It's more expensive initially, but cheaper in the long term.

Will the next person passing please open the box!

[Ray T]

12 minutes ago, mross said:

Well, maybe they got tired of the first valve getting too stiff to operate?  A rising stem valve makes it easy to grease the threads.  It's more expensive initially, but cheaper in the long term.

Will the next person passing please open the box!

"Take the money."   

[bizzard]

[ditchcrawler]

Hopefully I have just asked a man who will know the answer, if I get a reply from him I will post it

[ditchcrawler]

Here is the definitive answer from CRT

 

" This is one of our Scada boxes. It houses level monitoring equipment for that pound.
 Other similar ones are dotted about on key pounds , reservoir's and lock flights. This particular box is one of the first generation of boxes. The small plastic bit on the top is an aerial for remote access to the information it is collecting.
 Newer boxes now have solar panels to recharge the unit and are much improved on the earlier type."

 

 

[mross]

I give way to the honourable DC.

[BruceinSanity]

5 hours ago, ditchcrawler said:

Here is the definitive answer from CRT

 

" This is one of our Scada boxes. It houses level monitoring equipment for that pound.
 Other similar ones are dotted about on key pounds , reservoir's and lock flights. This particular box is one of the first generation of boxes. The small plastic bit on the top is an aerial for remote access to the information it is collecting.
 Newer boxes now have solar panels to recharge the unit and are much improved on the earlier type."

 

 

Thank you, Brian! My faith in the power of CWDF is confirmed. I'd wondered about SCADA but it looked so clunky compared to the usual units. That's the sump pound for the W&N/W&B canals, of course.