Active Grow did send me this LED to keep so I can continue to test it and I'm grateful.
But we'll take an honest look at this light so you can decide if it's right for you!
Active Grow hit my radar in 2017, with LEDs designed to replace T5 fluorescent bulbs.
I've tested a similar product.
These aren't for seed starting hobbyists, growing pepper seedlings, 2 months per year.
IP65 enclosures are dust tight and protected against water spray.
Looking at the form factor, the LowPro Max has four strips of diodes covering a broad
footprint.
More consistent coverage at tighter mounting heights than HIDs.
Kinda like a T5 fluorescent (but much less heat per watt).
And the open construction greatly improves air flow.
It also means less shade effect.
In a greenhouse setting, 60% of the footprint is open, allowing natural sunlight to reach
your plants.
So really, this single fixture, can replace two very different technologies!
Dimmed down to 50% you can start out with clones or seedlings, just like T5s.
But when plants mature and light requirements go up, no problem.
Just crank the output to 100% and you have HID light levels.
Whether you have a rack system or a "Sea of Green" application, these LEDs are an all-in-one
solution!
Alright, but how does the 320 LoPro stack up against an HID?
Many LED sellers falsely claim their light can replace super high watt HIDs.
Clearly the 320 LoPro Max can’t compete with 750 or 1000 watt HPS lights.
But the 640 LoPro would be a good replacement.
As for the 320 that LoPro Max would outperform a top of the line 400 watt HPS.
With LED vs HIDs something else to consider is: Directionality.
With LEDs, the diodes send photons downward.
They sent me a couple PPFD maps at both 12 and 24 inches from the canopy.
No light overlap, no side reflection.
How would side reflection impact those numbers?
I created a 48 by 28 inch growing space, similar to a 2 by 4 foot grow tent.
Looking at Active Grow's 12 inch light map we see how light levels are boosted with side
reflection over a more proportionate growing area.
Some pretty high light levels in a grow chamber.
Raising the light to 18 inches, the PPFD drops but the photons are distributed more evenly.
What if you dim it to 50%?
At half power, you have half of the light.
What about getting closer?
Here's a map at 6 inches.
It's twice as bright in the center.
Let's remove the side reflection.
On average 50% power translated into 54% of the light output.
But these standard PAR maps only tell part of the story.
In addition to their original readings, Active Grow also sent me these ones.
These PFD values were 7 percent higher on average.
Why's that?
Because these are PBAR readings.
No.
Just no.
700 nanometers to fuel photosynthesis.
But as it turns out plants respond to even more photons than that.
The PBAR spectral range spans from UV (at 280 nanometers) all the way to 800 nanometers
where we find: Far-Red Radiation.
The LoPro Max "Entourage Spectrum" has diodes devoted specifically to Far-Red.
Seven percent in fact.
When mixed with the white photons, plants experience a synergistic effect.
Known as the "Emerson Enhancement Effect", this results in even more growth than one
would expect for the number of photons emitted.
So back to the LoPro.
Add in the missing 7% Far-Reds and you hit 822.
That explains the boost in values shown in Active Gro's PBAR based light maps.
If you're interested in converting my standard PPFD maps into PBAR values, for this light:
just multiply by 1.07.
So what are my final thoughts on Active Gro's LoPro Max LED luminaire?
I really like it.
It's lightweight, with a fairly open construction.
It can be treated like a linear light source rather than a point source, meaning nice even
coverage at tight mounting heights.
The dimmer makes for a very flexible system.
It destroys High Output T5 Fluorescent lights with well over twice the efficacy.
But it also keeps up with high end HPS lights, requiring notably less power.
Active Grow has two models.
The 320 watt system is great for small scale, high end growers.
A perfect fit for 2 foot by 4 foot grow tents.
That's really where this LED shines.
It might be good for certain vertical racking systems too.
But if you're looking for larger, broader areas of coverage, then you need to scale
up.
The larger footprint prevents me from using it in my normal growing space, you know, a
shower stall.
So that's one mark against the LoPro.
But for most users that won't be an issue.
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And as always, I'd like to wish you some Happy Gardening!