What on earth is this at the side of my house?

[Nat3kids]

We are all flummoxed! I’m paranoid that it is something to do with the electrics but there is no mention of it in the plans or survey. I’ve never seen this before

Looks like a water pipe, is it near the boiler as an outlet?

Looks like a garage door spring

Is it actually fixed to the house, or are the 'legs'just resting into the soil?

Have you just moved in? Or has the pipe just appeared (I assume you mean the pipe) are you on gas?

No idea but I'm curious.
Long shot but could it be some sort of old greenhouse heater type of thing?
Probably way off the mark though

Thanks both for these suggestions, we have no garage though and it’s the opposite side of the house from our boiler! It’s just really odd and I’m scared to touch it there is a phone socket on the other side but it’s a bit massive to just be housing a phone cable!

Is it an earth rod? Though they are usually vertical.

I should probably re-phase that, so do you have gas or oil or are you electric only? My guess would be a gas or oil pipe.

Hmm on closer inspection it looks like it's got a wire coming down from it in the second photo?

I think Susanna has got it with an Earth rod, although it's odd that it's not vertical.

Is it a lightning earth?

@offyougotwantychops

I thought they were earthing wires, but normally the copper pipe would be into the ground.

InTheLabyrinth - there are legs going into the soil. It seems to be resting on the wall rather than attached. I’m such a wimp and scared to touch it as it has little black wires at either end which I don’t think show up in the photo.

offyougotwantychops - we have been here 3 years and it has been there since we moved in but we are now planning to put new render on the house and I’m wondering if we can remove it. We are on gas but the boiler is at the opposite side of the house.

FindingMeno - that’s an interesting idea as I would love a greenhouse! But it is probably the shadiest bit of the whole garden so would be a strange place for anyone to have put it.

@Nat3kids

InTheLabyrinth - there are legs going into the soil. It seems to be resting on the wall rather than attached. I’m such a wimp and scared to touch it as it has little black wires at either end which I don’t think show up in the photo.

offyougotwantychops - we have been here 3 years and it has been there since we moved in but we are now planning to put new render on the house and I’m wondering if we can remove it. We are on gas but the boiler is at the opposite side of the house.

FindingMeno - that’s an interesting idea as I would love a greenhouse! But it is probably the shadiest bit of the whole garden so would be a strange place for anyone to have put it.

I'd say based on the photos, it looks like a roller for something id guess it may of had a cover wrapped around it at one point which would unroll to cover the plants in the garden from frost ect.

Thanks all for these ideas - I had to google earth rods! I’ll have to check again tomorrow to see if there is actually a wire going into the ground as well as the solid ‘legs’. The gas and electric supplies seem to be coming in via the other side of the house but I guess the earth rod doesn’t have to be right next to them? Wish I’d paid more attention in physics at school

Thanks Hawkins001 it’s just a weird place to do much planting - there is the house some gravel and then a big privet hedge separating us from neighbours. It is really shady and a bit of a dead zone in the garden apart from some very hardy weeds

Not an earth rod.

Was there ever a greenhouse or shed against the wall?

Take some photos of the end fittings and ?cables? Please

Hi op do you have a condensing boiler? If so it might be the condensing pipe (that's why it's insulated (at least it looks insulated) and earthed). It's odd though because it looks like it's not attached to anything going into the house? Any chance of close up photos of the end terminals?

DH thinks its the workings from an old garage door.

@Nat3kids

Thanks Hawkins001 it’s just a weird place to do much planting - there is the house some gravel and then a big privet hedge separating us from neighbours. It is really shady and a bit of a dead zone in the garden apart from some very hardy weeds

It could have other uses, but that's my first guess. All the best with it.

Bumping because I'm very curious

Is it rusty?