What might this be?

Greetings,

We visited my sister last week and her husband, who passed away a few years ago, had the proverbial shop in the basement which has been pretty much cleared out but for a mysterious plastic cube thing hanging from the ceiling. Bob was quite handy (he built their house) so this could have been used in any number of trades. It’s helpfully labeled “Plast-I-Cube” but even Google is stumped.

Ideas what this might have been used for?

Where does the hose go? Could it be a gravity feed water source with a pressure gauge on it? Did he have water in the basement?

Coolant drip tank?…

I believe that’s an in line shut off valve and not a pressure gauge…

It looks like either a water or fuel canister. Given the DOT code, it was probably manufactured for transporting fuel or other potentially hazardous liquids. Doesn’t mean that’s what he used it for.