Wire set in plaster ?

[mahutchinson]

I was chasing out a wall for a ring main socket and set in the plaster is a wire runnning vertically. It's a bare wound wire, best described as like a bike brake or gear wire and quite taut. The wall was originally an outside wall, with kitchen extension now added, with plaster about 20mm deep and the wire is above a current electric socket but I'm not sure that's relevant. I chased out the same wall on the other side of the room and didn't see anything similar although obviously I'm only exposing about the width of the socket box. Anyone have any idea why this would be there ?

 

[roughcaster]

Better getting a sparky to look at it/check it out,,,, could be old dead cable,,, or might still be live!!

Roughcaster.

 

[ColJack]

earth wire for overhead telephone wires? or an aerial?

 

[mahutchinson]

I can safely say it's not live. It certainly doesn't resemble any sort of electrical cable. Being at the back of the house it's unlikely to be connected to telephone lines or an aerial. It looks more mechanical but obviously could not be moved set in plaster. At the moment I am just moving the chasing to one side as I don't really want the metal switch box touching it when inserted whatever it is.

 

[noseall]

As ColJack says, it sounds like an earth wire.

 

[IJWS15]

May be a mains earth wire. They used to use twin rubber insulated cable to sockets with a separate, uninsulated, single strand, tinned copper earthwire about 3/32 inch in dia

 

[Nige F]

Cat`s whisker wireless ariel

 

[mahutchinson]

I suppose it could be earth to kitchen extension sockets taken back to a dining room socket but the kitchen is only about 18 years old and why do that instead of earthing the sockets in the kitchen themselves ? Would the wire be wound though if for electrical use ?