Modified IPX Testing and Waterproofness

The key difference between IPX8 and IP68 is that IPX8 focuses on water resistance, while IP68 indicates both dust and water resistance. Both IP68 and IPX8 are the highest in their "class", but what happens when your products out perform the industri standard tests? We called the smartest dudes we know and establish a new test standard. We call it the Halite IPX-Gen2
It´s a big difference between waterproof and submersible. It´s also a big difference in how submersible, submersible products are. It´s like a car. Most cars are able to take you from A to B, but how fast and safe depends on the quality, the engine, the build etc.  Both IP68 and IPX8 classified products should resist being fully submerged 1,5m for up to 30 min. After talking to our friend Øyvind, at Diversity Labs, we set up the following 3-stage test:
The Halite IPX-Gen2
Stage 1. Fully submerged in chamber. Test periode: 3 hours
Stage 2. Full submerged at 10 meter ( 1bar pressure ). Test periode: 3 hours
Stage 3.  Full submerged at 30 meter ( 3bar pressure ). Test periode: 3 hours
Chamber pressure test Bag in chamber
Test equipment: Pressure Vessel, rated to 30bar
Pressure gauge, Instrutek: Digital Pressure gauge Mano Test DMT-1
Certification of Calibration IKM 18/54570
Water pressure pump: Grundfos: CME Booster
Weigh Scale: Kern ITB 150K5IP Calibration no.NO616
Stage 1. Typical test for OTB use, use in boats or landing in water.
Stage 2. Dive test 10 meter. Test for "normal" diving depth.
Stage 3. Deep dive 30 meter. Test for special applications and mission
To be able to quantify the water ingress, the volume of the bags is filled with wood to simulate a solid core. And the surrounding exterior area with layers of absorbent textiles. The weight of the textile is measured prior to and after the test.
As we can not equalise the pressure inside the bag and outside the "airtightness" and waterproofness of the bag is mainly dependent on the performance of the zipper, fabric coating quality and thickness and construction. The weakest point will always be the zipper. We use a mix of TiZip MasterSeal #10 with 700mBar or 1Bar pressure rating, this is depending on the production year.
1bar
Our waterproof and submersible products are rated down to 7,5-10m for 3 hours without leaks. ( IPX-G2-Sierra )This is depending on zipper type and construction. All our different models will be independent certified with this new IPX-Gen2 standard.
Stage 1 Certification: IPX-G2-Omega
Stage 2 Certification: IPX-G2-Sierra
Stage 3 Certification: IPX-G2-Zulu