What exactly is an IP rating?
An IP Rating is a two digit number used to provide an "Ingress Protection" rating to either a piece of electronic equipment, or an enclosure for a piece of electronic equipment. It tells you whether or not your item is suitable for certain types of exposure to water or solid objects.
Ratings for KitchensIt's sensible to use a minimum of IP20 ratings in the kitchen to avoid steam generated moisture, condensation or water drips. If the fitting is going to be somewhere it will likely see heavier moisture exposure, IP44 or above may be more suitable. |
Ratings for BathroomsFor a bathroom, products need to be selected depending on their zone: For Zone 0, use IP67 For Zone 1, IP65 For Zone 2, IP44 |
Ratings for OutdoorsProducts for outdoor use must be IP rated. Ensure you have the correct rating by using: IP44 for most applications (unless it will be exposed to heavy rain) IP65+ for all outdoor use |
Your bathroom is split up into four different zones, with different ratings required for each one.
The interior of the bath tub, shower or basin.
Minimum IP rating: IPx7
Area immediately above the bath or shower tray.
Minimum IP rating: IPx5
Within 0.6m of the outside edge of the bath or shower.
Minimum IP rating: IPx5
Anywhere outside of zones 0, 1 and 2.
No specific IP rating, unless where water jets are likely to be used. In this case, IPx5 is required.
Wherever there is a risk from ingress of dust or water! You should always use IP rated products in kitchens, bathrooms and for all types of outdoor usage.
| First Digit | Second Digit | |
| No. | Protection against solids | Protection against water |
| 0 | No protection | No protection |
| 1 | Objects over 50mm in size | Falling drops of water |
| 2 | Objects over 12mm in size | Direct sprays of water with 15 degrees tilt |
| 3 | Objects over 2.5mm in size | Direct sprays of water with 60 degrees tilt |
| 4 | Objects over 1mm in size | Direct sprays of water from all directions |
| 5 | Limited protection against dust ingress | Low pressure washer jets from any direction |
| 6 | Totally protected against dust ingress | High pressure washer jets from any direction |
| 7 | N/A | Short periods of immersion in water |
| 8 | N/A | Long, durable periods of immersion in water |
Here at the Electrical Counter, we offer a huge selection of IP rated outdoor lighting from a whole host of leading manufacturers. Check out our top picks:
White IP54 2x20W Max LED GU10 Up-Down Wall Light More +
ELD Lighting GU10SPIKE Stainless Steel GU10 Garden Spike Light - Max 35W More +
We use cookies to improve your experience, to personalise content, to provide useful features, and to analyse our traffic and measure performance. By using this site, you agree to our use of cookies.
About Cookies and your Privacy
When you visit our website, we may store small data files known as cookies in your browser. The information stored in cookies might be about you and your browsing habits, or it can be used to allow our website to remember your actions or preferences over a period of time so you don't have to keep re-entering them when you come back to our site or browse between pages. The information does not usually directly identify you, but it can give you a more personalised and consistent web experience.
The cookies that we use are categorised under Essential and Non-Essential. Essential cookies are those that are required for our website to function correctly. Non-essential cookies include those from Google, Facebook and Bing amongst others to help us understand how our website is used. This information helps us to monitor performance and make improvements.
We respect your right to privacy, so you can choose not to allow certain non-essential cookies. Please be aware that blocking some types of cookies may impact your experience of the website and services that we offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings.
Essential Cookies
These cookies are essential for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems.
Essential cookies can keep track of information between page views like your privacy preferences, logging in or tracking a shopping basket.
You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work correctly. These cookies do not store any personally identifiable information.
The essential cookies we set are:
Non-Essential Cookies
Many of our non-essential cookies are analytical. These cookies provide us with information about how many people visit our website, how they found our website, and how they use our services. They help us to know which pages are most and least popular, as well as providing us information about how visitors move around our site. Some of the information that these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies, some features may not work and we will not know when you have visited our site.
To make sure this site works properly, we may place small data files called cookies on your device.
What are cookies?
A cookie is a small text file that a website saves on your computer or mobile device. Cookies enable the website to remember your actions and preferences over a period of time, so you don't have to keep re-entering them whenever you come back to the site or browse between pages.
How do you use cookies?
We use cookies on our website to provide you with some of the functionality of our services, analyse how you use our site and to distinguish you from other users. Generally speaking, we use two types of cookies; essential and non-essential.
Essential cookies help us to provide our services. For example, these cookies store any preferences you have set whenever you return to our services and by storing information that you have provided as you move between pages. For example, the contents of your basket are stored in this manner so you don't have to keep adding things all over again.
Non-essential cookies are primarily analytical. These allow us to review and analyse how you interact with our website in relation to the content we have and any advertising. These cookies provide us with the following information to help us understand and improve how our site behaves:
• The number of visitors that use our website
• How our users move around our website
• The content that our visitors view
• How long you use our site for
• How you came on to our site; for example, from Google, social media or a direct link
When do you issue cookies?
Unless you have made changes in your browser settings to limit the use of cookies, our website will issue cookies as soon as you visit. Our cookie management banner gives you the option to disable non-essential cookies, or you can manage this in your browser settings. If you disable some cookies either on site or in your browser, please be aware that some of our website's functions may not be available or work as expected.
Where can I find out more information about cookies?
To find out more about cookies, including how you can disable/enable them in your browser, visit www.aboutcookies.org. Please be aware that if you block all cookies (including essential cookies) you may experience reduced functionality when accessing some aspects of our website. Unless you adjust your browser to refuse cookies, or disable non-essential cookies through our management tool, our website will continue to issue cookies.
To find out more about what specific essential and non-essential cookies we use, click on the "Essential" and "Non-Essential" tabs.
Item Successfully Added
