How To Tell If Recessed Lighting Is IC Rated?

When installing canned recessed lights in your home, or if you’ve just moved into a house with canned lighting and you’re checking it’s up to code, there’s a one really important thing you need to know.

Lights installed in a ceiling that has insulation must be IC-rated.

If they aren’t, your lights are a fire hazard, and leaving them on for any length of time could be extremely dangerous.

IC-rated lights are usually marked, but if not, you can usually spot them as they are generally silver and have no vents on the side. Non-IC cans are white and have vents that let the light through when the light is switched on.

To explain why this matters so much, let’s take a more detailed look at:

• The differences between IC and non-IC rated recessed lights
• How to tell if your lighting is IC-rated
• Whether IC-rated lights are the same as fire-rated lights

Difference Between IC And Non-IC Recessed Lights

The term ‘IC rating’ means Insulation Contact rating; from that, it’s easy to tell what it means.

Any lights that are IC-rated are rated as safe to be in physical contact with insulation.

Insulation is a flammable material when it reaches high temperatures.

It’s really useful since it helps to keep the heat within your rooms and stops it from escaping, but it can also be dangerous if not treated with care and respect.

This matters because recessed lights heat up like any other light fixture.

Even LED ones produce heat, although older cans with halogen bulbs will produce a lot more.

That heat has to go somewhere, and in non-IC rated lights, that somewhere is the ceiling gaps.

Vents allow the heat to escape into the ceiling so that the light stays cool and doesn’t burn out too quickly.

But if insulation is in the ceiling, you don’t want that – it’s a fire hazard. So instead, IC-rated lights have a sort of can-within-a-can design.

There’s the internal can and a separate sealed outer can.

Between them is a layer of air that acts as its own insulator, trapping the heat and stopping the outer can from getting hot.

IC-rated lights are the only lights you should be used in an insulated ceiling.

Technically, you’re permitted to use non-IC lights in an insulated ceiling, provided you leave a clearance of 3 inches between the fixture and any insulation.

But then what’s the point if the insulation has a gap which allows air to escape?

You’re defeating the whole purpose of having insulation at all. 

So it’s best to use IC-rated lights.

You’ll still get the full benefit of a properly insulated ceiling without any worries that it’s in contact with your light fixtures.

How Do I Know If My Recessed Lighting Is IC Rated?

Usually, your lights will be marked if they are IC rated, but there are some easier ways that you can identify them too.

Firstly, the color of the can. While it isn’t universal, in most cases, IC-rated canned lights are silver in color, while non-IC-rated lights are white.

If you have white canned lighting, it probably isn’t suitable for installation in an insulated ceiling.

But there’s a more definitive giveaway: whether or not the can is vented.

The point of IC-rated lights is that they are designed to prevent heat from being dispersed among the flammable insulation.

So they aren’t vented – instead, the heat is kept within the can.

But on non-IC-rated canned lights, that heat needs to go somewhere. So they definitely are vented.

They are designed to allow heat to escape so that the light fixture doesn’t become overheated.

So look for vents around the base of the can.

There may be a couple of small holes within an IC-rated light, but the vents will be larger slits.

Still not sure? Turn the light on. If you can see the light coming through the holes or vents in the side, it is 100% not IC-rated.

If you can only see the light coming out of the bottom of the can, it is sealed and IC-rated.

Also read: How To Convert Incandescent Recessed Fixture To LED?

Are IC Rated Lights The Same As Fire Rated Lights?

IC-rated lights and fire-rated lights are not the same. IC-rated lights are designed so that they don’t cause a fire.

Fire-rated lights are designed to reduce the spread of an existing fire.

It’s also worth noting that IC-rated lights can apply to any type of recessed light for the ceiling, while it is normally specifically downlights that are fire-rated.

There’s a reason why you’re told to close doors when you leave your home if you ever have to evacuate in a fire.

Fire can be fast-moving, but it slows down when there is an obstruction in its path.

The faster a fire spreads, the more dangerous it becomes and the harder it is to put out.

A ceiling can withstand fire for some time before it allows the flames to reach the joists, which will then quickly light and set the upper floors aflame.

But you weaken that ceiling every time you cut a hole into it to install a light.

Fire-rated lights are, therefore, special lights used in recessed and semi-recessed holes, which help to slow the spread of fire.

They’re equipped with an intumescent pad, which expands when it reaches a certain temperature, helping to completely block the hole and stop the fire from reaching the ceiling gap.

Fire-rated lights have different times for how long they can withstand flames, ranging from 30-90 minutes.

But they are all better than the few minutes you would get with lights that aren’t fire-rated while your ceiling comes down.

Since fire-rated lights are generally self-contained downlights that don’t use a can, it’s worth noting that a fire-rated light isn’t necessarily IC-rated, although some are.’

Also read: How To Measure Recessed Lighting Size?

Final Words

You must ensure your recessed lights are IC-rated if you have an insulated ceiling.

This isn’t something to take a risk with because any fire within the ceiling insulation will be catastrophic.

For the same reason, you should always make sure you buy fire-rated downlights if you’re adding downlights into your home.

You don’t want to cut corners since the holes you’re cutting for the lights add the risk element in the first place!

Have you had any issues installing canned lights in an insulated ceiling?

Or maybe you have a story about a house fire where your fire-rated lights bought you precious time?