What is this?

[Cooter143]

I found this laying in my yard next to the house and I can only guess that it came off of something I own. But, everything is running fine and I don't recognize it. Anybody know what it could have come from?

 

[Paul from MI]

It's an electrical surge arrestor. There's no way to tell from the picture if it's still good.

 

[JMOR]

telephone people been around lately?

 

[Steve@Advance]

Something to do with telephone or cable, surge protector.

 

[Cooter143]

Thanks for the replies. It is on the end of the house where the telephone comes in. We did have the internet people out a month or so ago, it must have been something they dropped. That would make sense, I just wanted to make sure it wasn't supposed to go
back on something I use. But then again if it was, I probably wouldn't have found it

 

[Texasmark1]

Nowadays you can take the numbers and letters off most anything and google an answer as to what it is and all. Might give that a try for more specific information.

 

[Billy Shafer]

Been a long time. But I remember seeing those on phone trucks.

 

[Elmo]

Telephone line surge protector! It has a gas inside that becomes a conductor when the line gets high voltage on it. There is a third connection on the front that connects to earth ground.
Elmo retired telephone guy

 

[westom]

(quoted from post at 14:24:09 05/09/17)
Telephone line surge protector!

A telco protector must have three conductors. Two for the phone lines. A third to connect to what actually does the protection - earth ground. These protectors (but only if properly earthed) are why surges are not 'incoming' on phone lines. And why telco appliances can be damaged. A surge (all but invited) inside a house finds a best connection to earth (outgoing) destructively via this protector.

Critical to making this protector effective for phones must be a third connection to earth. Maybe it is behind?

 

[westom]

A similar example:
http://www.comm-omni.com/tii/355_356.htm