Larry L
Valuable Member
I've seen this brought up in other threads (about things like LEDs for DIY chaeto reactors), but for people who don't know:
Just because something is labeled "waterproof" does not necessarily mean it is submersible for long periods of time.
We all deal with electricity around water so it's important to understand what the various "waterproof" ratings mean. You'll often see stuff labeled with "IP codes", which stand for "International Protection codes" or "Intrusion Protection codes".
IP codes start with the letters "IP" followed by two digits. For an IP code like "IP68", the first digit (6) refers to how well something is sealed against incoming particles like dust (6 means dust-tight). The second digit is more important for aquarium applications, because that refers to how water-tight something is. Long story short: IP68 means submersible. Anything less might be waterproof to some degree, but not safe to submerse for long periods.
Technically anything from IP61 and up can be called "waterproof" to some extent, but IP61 only means that something can withstand 10 minutes of water dripping on it. IP62 through IP66 refer to increasing degrees of dripping or spraying water.
IP67 means safe for immersion up to 1 meter deep, for at least 30 minutes (but no guarantees after that).
IP68 means suitable for continuous immersion at depths of 1 meter or more.
Be safe! For more details, see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IP_Code
Just because something is labeled "waterproof" does not necessarily mean it is submersible for long periods of time.
We all deal with electricity around water so it's important to understand what the various "waterproof" ratings mean. You'll often see stuff labeled with "IP codes", which stand for "International Protection codes" or "Intrusion Protection codes".
IP codes start with the letters "IP" followed by two digits. For an IP code like "IP68", the first digit (6) refers to how well something is sealed against incoming particles like dust (6 means dust-tight). The second digit is more important for aquarium applications, because that refers to how water-tight something is. Long story short: IP68 means submersible. Anything less might be waterproof to some degree, but not safe to submerse for long periods.
Technically anything from IP61 and up can be called "waterproof" to some extent, but IP61 only means that something can withstand 10 minutes of water dripping on it. IP62 through IP66 refer to increasing degrees of dripping or spraying water.
IP67 means safe for immersion up to 1 meter deep, for at least 30 minutes (but no guarantees after that).
IP68 means suitable for continuous immersion at depths of 1 meter or more.
Be safe! For more details, see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IP_Code
