Rain or Shine, Your NEMA 4 RIB Will Work Fine!

It’s been raining here a lot recently in Indiana, and it’s got me thinking about outdoor use of our products. You can’t use most normal relays outside as they are only NEMA 1 rated. NEMA 1 is a rating defined by the National Electronics Manufacturers Association. In a nutshell (enclosure pun intended), NEMA 1 means that the device is protected from falling dirt and debris, and you are protected from the potentially harmful (voltage pun intended) electronics inside. However, NEMA 1 enclosures don’t have any protection against the weather. Water can usually get inside a NEMA 1 with ease. If it does, water will cause damage to the electronics inside and possibly even to devices connected to it.

Luckily there is another type NEMA enclosure we offer: NEMA 4/4X. Unlike NEMA 1 enclosures, NEMA 4/4X enclosures are rated for outdoor use. They offer protection against rain, snow, ice, corrosion, and have the same protection against dirt and fingers that NEMA 1 enclosures have. We have a large selection of products with NEMA 4/4X rated housings, including the classic RIBU1C in the form of model RIBU1C-N4. We also have other enclosures that are NEMA 4/4X rated, so you can protect whichever device you have. Just look for the “-N4” at the end of a product name.

If you want more information on our products with NEMA4/4X rated enclosures, be sure to call or email us.