IP Rating Definition
Posted by Travis Gaerke on
IP RATINGS
Ingress Protection or International Protection Ratings (IP Ratings or IP Codes) are defined to the international standard of EN 60529 (British BS EN 60529:1992, European IEC 60509:1989). These standards are used to define the levels of sealing effectiveness of electrical enclosures against intrusion from foreign bodies such as dirt and water.
The rating consists of the letters IP followed by 2 digits; the first digit stands for the level of protection that the enclosure provides against solid bodies, the second digit describes the degree of protection of the equipment inside the enclosure against water.
| IP Rating | First Digit – SOLIDS | Second Digit – LIQUIDS |
| IP54 | Protected from limited dust ingress | Protected from water spray from any direction, limited ingress protection |
| IP55 | Protected from limited dust ingress | Protected from low pressure water jets from any direction, limited ingress protection |
| IP56 | Protected from limited dust ingress | Protected from high pressure water jets from any direction, limited ingress protection |
| IP57 | Protected from limited dust ingress | Protected from immersion between 15 centimetres and 1 metre in depth, limited ingress protection |
| IP58 | Protected from limited dust ingress | Protected from long term immersion up to a specified pressure, limited ingress protection |
| IP60 | Protected from total dust ingress | Not protected from liquids, limited ingress protection |
| IP61 | Protected from total dust ingress | Protected from condensation, limited ingress protection |
| IP62 | Protected from total dust ingress | Protected from water spray less than 15 degrees from vertical, limited ingress protection |
| IP63 | Protected from total dust ingress | Protected from water spray less than 60 degrees from vertical, limited ingress protection |
| IP64 | Protected from total dust ingress | Protected from water spray from any direction, limited ingress protection |
| IP65 | Protected from total dust ingress | Protected from low pressure water jets from any direction, limited ingress protection |
| IP66 | Protected from total dust ingress | Protected from high pressure water jets from any direction, limited ingress protection |
| IP67 | Protected from total dust ingress | Protected from immersion between 15 centimetres and 1 metre in depth, limited ingress protection |
| IP68 | Protected from total dust ingress | Protected from long term immersion up to a specified pressure, limited ingress protection |
| IP69K | Protected from total dust ingress | Protected from steam-jet cleaning, limited ingress protection |