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IP Ratings & Standards Explained

What is an IP Rating?
Ingress Protection

The IP rating or IP code classifies the degree of protection provided by an enclosure, for electrical equipment with a rated voltage not exceeding 72.5 kV.

IP ratings are defined by the international standard EN 60529 (British Standard BS EN 60529:1992)

This standard defines levels of sealing effectiveness against “ingress” i.e. intrusion from foreign bodies such as tools, dirt and liquid water.

Read our blog post about how to choose the best IP Rating for your enclosure.  Check out Rainford’s Vanguard range of IP Rated cabinets.

What do the two digits in an IP Rating mean?

The rating consists of the letters IP followed by two digits, the higher the number the better the protection.  Sometimes a number is replaced by X, which indicates that the enclosure is not rated for that specification.

IP65   =  First Digit – Solids

The first digit indicates the level of protection that the enclosure provides against the ingress of solid foreign objects, from tools or fingers that could be hazardous if they came into contact with electrical conductors or moving parts, to airborne dirt and dust that could damage circuitry.

IP65   =  Second Digit – Liquids

The second digit defines the protection of the equipment inside the enclosure against various forms of moisture (drips, sprays, submersion etc).

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Reference Chart

First Digit Intrusion ProtectionSecond DigitMoisture Protection
0No protection. 0No protection.
1Protected against solid objects over 50mm, e.g. accidental touch by hands.1Protected against vertically falling drops of water, e.g. condensation.
2Protected against solid objects over 12mm, e.g. fingers.2Protected against direct sprays of water up to 15 degrees from the vertical.
3Protected against solid objects over 2.5mm, e.g. tools & wires.3Protected against direct sprays of water up to 60 degrees from the vertical.
4Protected against solid objects over 1mm, e.g. wires & nails.4Protected against water splashed from all directions, limited ingress permitted.
5Protected against dust limited ingress, no harmful deposits.5Protected against low pressure jets of water from all directions, limited ingress permitted.
6Totally protected against dust.6Protected against strong jets of water, e.g. on ships deck, limited ingress permitted.
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    IP Rating Reference Chart

    IP RatingFirst Digit - SOLIDSSecond Digit - LIQUIDS
    IP00Not protected from solids. Not protected from liquids.
    IP01Not protected from solids. Protected from condensation.
    IP02Not protected from solids. Protected from water spray less than 15 degrees from vertical.
    IP03Not protected from solids. Protected from water spray less than 60 degrees from vertical.
    IP04Not protected from solids. Protected from water spray from any direction.
    IP05Not protected from solids. Protected from low pressure water jets from any direction.
    IP06Not protected from solids. Protected from high pressure water jets from any direction.
    IP07Not protected from solids. Protected from immersion between 15 centimetres and 1 metre in depth.
    IP08Not protected from solids. Protected from long term immersion up to a specified pressure.
    IP10Protected from touch by hands greater than 50 millimetres. Not protected from liquids.
    IP11Protected from touch by hands greater than 50 millimetres. Protected from condensation.
    IP12Protected from touch by hands greater than 50 millimetres. Protected from water spray less than 15 degrees from vertical.
    IP13Protected from touch by hands greater than 50 millimetres. Protected from water spray less than 60 degrees from vertical.
    IP14Protected from touch by hands greater than 50 millimetres. Protected from water spray from any direction.
    IP15Protected from touch by hands greater than 50 millimetres. Protected from low pressure water jets from any direction.
    IP16Protected from touch by hands greater than 50 millimetres. Protected from high pressure water jets from any direction.
    IP17Protected from touch by hands greater than 50 millimetres. Protected from immersion between 15 centimetres and 1 metre in depth.
    IP18Protected from touch by hands greater than 50 millimetres. Protected from long trem immersion up to a specified pressure.
    IP20Protected from touch by fingers and objects greater than 12 millimetres.Not protected from liquids.
    IP21Protected from touch by fingers and objects greater than 12 millimetres.Protected from condensation.
    IP22Protected from touch by fingers and objects greater than 12 millimetres.Protected from water spray less than 15 degrees from vertical.
    IP23Protected from touch by fingers and objects greater than 12 millimetres. Protected from water spray less than 60 degrees from vertical.
    IP24Protected from touch by fingers and objects greater than 12 millimetres.Protected from water spray from any direction.
    IP25Protected from touch by fingers and objects greater than 12 millimetres.Protected from low pressure water jets from any direction.
    IP26Protected from touch by fingers and objects greater than 12 millimetres.Protected from high pressure water jets from any direction.
    IP27Protected from touch by fingers and objects greater than 12 millimetres.Protected from immersion between 15 centimetres and 1 metre in depth.
    IP28Protected from touch by fingers and objects greater than 12 millimetres.Protected from long term immersion up to a specified pressure.
    IP30Protected from tools and wires greater than 2.5 millimetres. Not protected from liquids.
    IP31Protected from tools and wires greater than 2.5 millimetres. Protected from condensation.
    IP32Protected from tools and wires greater than 2.5 millimetres. Protected from water spray less than 15 degrees from vertical.
    IP33Protected from tools and wires greater than 2.5 millimetres. Protected from water spray less than 60 degrees from vertical.
    IP34Protected from tools and wires greater than 2.5 millimetres.Protected from water spray from any direction.
    IP35Protected from tools and wires greater than 2.5 millimetres.Protected from low pressure water jets from any direction.
    IP36Protected from tools and wires greater than 2.5 millimetres.Protected from high pressure water jets from any direction.
    IP37Protected from tools and wires greater than 2.5 millimetres.Protected from immersion between 15 centimetres and 1 metre in depth.
    IP38Protected from tools and wires greater than 2.5 millimetres.Protected from long term immersion up to a specified pressure.
    IP40Protected from tools and small wires greater than 1 millimetre. Not protected from liquids.
    IP41Protected from tools and small wires greater than 1 millimetre. Protected from condensation.
    IP42Protected from tools and small wires greater than 1 millimetre. Protected from water spray less than 15 degrees from vertical.
    IP43Protected from tools and small wires greater than 1 millimetre. Protected from water spray less than 60 degrees from vertical.
    IP44Protected from tools and small wires greater than 1 millimetre. Protected from water spray from any direction.
    IP45Protected from tools and small wires greater than 1 millimetre. Protected from low pressure water jets in any direction.
    IP46Protected from tools and small wires greater than 1 millimetre. Protected from high pressure water jets from any direction.
    IP47Protected from tools and small wires greater than 1 millimetre. Protected from immersion between 15 centimetres and 1 metre in depth.
    IP48Protected from tools and small wires greater than 1 millimetre. Protected from long term immersion up to a specified pressure.
    IP50Protected from limited dust ingress.Not protected from liquids.
    IP51Protected from limited dust ingress.Protected from condensation.
    IP52Protected from limited dust ingress.Protected from water spray less than 15 degrees from vertical.
    IP53Protected from limited dust ingress.Protected from water spray less than 60 degrees from vertical.
    IP54Protected from limited dust ingress.Protected from water spray from any direction.
    IP55Protected from limited dust ingress.Protected from low pressure water jets from any direction.
    IP56Protected from limited dust ingress.Protected from high pressure water jets from any direction.
    IP57Protected from limited dust ingress.Protected from immersion between 15 centimetres and 1 metre in depth.
    IP58Protected from limited dust ingress.Protected from long term immersion up to a specified pressure.
    IP60Protected from total dust ingress.Not protected from liquids.
    IP61Protected from total dust ingress.Protected from condensation.
    IP62Protected from total dust ingress.Protected from water spray less than 15 degrees from vertical.
    IP63Protected from total dust ingress.Protected from water spray less than 60 degrees from vertical.
    IP64Protected from total dust ingress.Protected from water spray from any direction.
    IP65Protected from total dust ingress.Protected from low pressure water jets from any direction.
    IP66Protected from total dust ingress.Protected from high pressure water jets from any direction.
    IP67Protected from total dust ingress.Protected from immersion between 15 centimetres and 1 metre in depth.
    IP68Protected from total dust ingress.Protected from long term immersion up to a specified pressure.
    IP69KProtected from total dust ingress.Protected from steam-jet cleaning.
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