never tried it and might not work around outside wallBest way to find a water leak? Bought a brand new place in 2024 and first noticed leak during rains in winter 2025, unfortunately it stopped raining hard by time guy said he ‘fixed’ it. Anyhow rained hard last night and clearly still have a leak, it’s around a ground floor sliding door to the backyard. Only seems to leak when there is a really hard rain. Need to get this sorted out. The contractor clearly doesn’t have a fucking clue
waterdamage.london

Room/floor looks renovated ( or extremely well kept for being that old) weird that if they renovated they didn't remove wtf ever that is. Let us know when you figure it out I've never seen anything like that in my life.Okay folks. What is this? It's in the basement of a 1950s home. It could be a valve for heating oil that's under the foundation. That's my initial thought. It does turn, nothing seems to happen. I haven't seen it in person yet, but the first thing I'll do is open the hole at the bottom and sniff to see if there is fuel down there. I think if there is we can just close the hole, remove the valve control rod, and cover it with hydraulic cement.
Other thoughts?
View attachment 609163

yeah add a sign that says 'gas chamber control' or something.Seems like the kind of thing that would add awesome character to the space if you could incorporate it into something decorative/functional beyond whatever the original purpose was.
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Material | Heavy cast iron (often gray iron), sometimes with a bituminous (black tar-like) coating for corrosion resistance. |
| Size | Usually 4" to 8" diameter (common for residential or small commercial laterals). |
| Shape | - Gate valve: Rectangular body with a round handwheel on top. - Plug valve: Cylindrical body with a lever handle or square wrench nut. - Flap/check valve: Inline cylindrical housing with a hinged flap inside, external cleanout cap or access plate. |
| Handwheel/Lever | - Cast iron handwheel (8–12 spokes, ~10–14" diameter) with a square nut in the center for a wrench. - Or a long T-handle lever (for plug valves). |
| Markings | Embossed foundry marks like: "MUELLER CO. DECATUR ILL.", "CRANE CO.", "LUDLOW", or "AMERICAN DARLING" + year (e.g., "1954"). |
| Bolts | Hex-head bolts (often rusted), sometimes with lead-wiped joints where the valve connects to clay or cast-iron pipe. |
| Finish | Rough, unpainted cast iron or black asphaltum dip; surface often pitted from decades in damp soil. |