What is an Ingress Protection Rating for Electric Motors?

An Ingress Protection rating is a code that classifies and rates the degree of protection provided by an electric motor casing or enclosure against outside contaminants or “intrusion” that is published by the International Electrotechnical Commission.

 

The IP code is a two or three-digit code that identifies the level of solid particle protection, liquid ingress protection and also any special circumstances about the motor such as oil resistance, weatherproof, etc. This is important information to know if you are getting an industrial motor repair or purchasing a new electric motor.

Solid Particle Protection

The first digit in an IP code indicates the level of protection the case or enclosure provides against solid objects such as hands, fingers, tools or dust.

• 0 – Means there is no protection against contact with any objects
• 1 – Protects against large objects such as the width of a body part, such as a leg or arm, but you still could reach inside the enclosure if you wanted to.
• 2 – Protects the motor from objects larger than a finger
• 3 – Protects the motor from small objects such as tools or vermin such as rats or large snakes
• 4 – Protects the motor from most regular wires, machine screws and large insects
• 5 – The enclosure provides some protection against dust, but not entirely. Enclosures with a 5 IP rating are considered to be dust protected.
• 6 – These are dustproof or dust-tight enclosures which prevents any dust from reaching the motor or the mechanical workings within.

Liquid Ingress Protection

The second digit identifies the level of protection the enclosure provides against the “harmful ingress of water.”

• 0 – No protection against water
• 1 – Protects the motor against lightly dripping water
• 2 – Protects the motor against regular dripping water
• 3 – Protects the motor against a spray of water
• 4 – Protects the motor against splashes of water
• 5 – Protects the motor against water jets from a water nozzle
• 6 – Protects the motor against powerful jets of water
• 6K – Protects the motor against pressurized jets of water
• 7 – Protects the motor against immersion in water up to 1 meter in depth
• 8 – Protects the motor against immersion in water up the 3 meters in depth
• 9K – Protects the motor against high pressure, high-temperature jets of water

Many of the standard NEMA enclosures have specific IP Code ratings that can be assessed when selecting a NEMA motor.

Tekwell Services Sells and Repairs Electric Motors

We sell electric motors from SEW Eurodrive, WEG, and TECO Westinghouse, as well as provide a complete suite of NEMA electrical motor repair services. Give us a call (toll-free) at 1-888-984-4668 or fill out our quick solution form at the bottom of our Contact page, to learn more about the options available for you.