Metal sensor/wire poking out of wall?

[matt_diy]

Hi,

My first post, so nice to meet you all!

Decorating our upstairs landing and this is sticking out of the wall...

What is it? Is it an old temperature sensor? If we dont need it anymore can I just snip it off and fill the hole?

Cheers
Matt

 

[mattylad]

is it high up? Looks like the end of a catenery wire to me.
will it pull out? could just be shoved in a hole.

 

[matt_diy]

is it high up? Looks like the end of a catenery wire to me.
will it pull out? could just be shoved in a hole.

Hi,

Its 4 feet of the ground. Its attached to a long metal wire that disappears into the floor behind the wall.

What's a catenery wire?

 

[mattylad]

4 foot off the ground does not sound right for what I was thinking then.
A catenery wire is used to suspend stuff, usually low voltage lighting, often from ikea

It would not be put so low so I doubt it's that.
Is there a screw head on the other side of the metal bit (the side we cannot see from the photo) ? whats in the hole in the end of the metal bit?
what happens if you pull it?

 

[RandomGrinch]

Definitely looks to me as if it's an external TRV sensor:

It could just be snipped, but it really depends if it's still in use without your knowledge!

 

[matt_diy]

4 foot off the ground does not sound right for what I was thinking then.
A catenery wire is used to suspend stuff, usually low voltage lighting, often from ikea

It would not be put so low so I doubt it's that.
Is there a screw head on the other side of the metal bit (the side we cannot see from the photo) ? whats in the hole in the end of the metal bit?
what happens if you pull it?

On the inside of the wall looks like this

It has a plastic mount to hold it on the wall

 

[matt_diy]

Definitely looks to me as if it's an external TRV sensor:
View attachment 285558
It could just be snipped, but it really depends if it's still in use without your knowledge!

Many thanks! Yeah, got to be this (surely?)...

I might just push it back through and leave it (rather than cut it).

 

[bernardgreen]

Look at the valves on the radiators in the room. If there is a thin pipe going into one of the valves ( as well as the water pipe ) then as robin grinch suggests the mystery object is a remote sensor for the control of water flow through the radiator.

 

[opps]

Definitely looks to me as if it's an external TRV sensor:
View attachment 285558
It could just be snipped, but it really depends if it's still in use without your knowledge!

Good call. I have never seen those before, but what is the point of them? By that I mean, why have a TRV that monitors the room below?

 

[RandomGrinch]

Good call. I have never seen those before, but what is the point of them? By that I mean, why have a TRV that monitors the room below?

I can't comment on the OP's situation, but we have something similar in my workplace.
Our radiators have a frame built in front of them, boarded up and supporting a large trunking system with power and coms cables (...and a grill above the radiator to allow convection).
In this situation, the temperature of the TRV behind the boarding wouldn't be an accurate representation of the room temperature, so the external sensors are placed in a more appropriate position.

 

[mattylad]

Me too - never seen one of those but it does look like one.

Time to investigate the other side of the wall..