So i checked on the girls yesterday afternoon and everything was rosey, i unplugged the power to the ballast to kill the light for a minuite or two while i had the tent door open to prevent light escaping as i always do and pluggged everything back in once i was done, the hps didnt fire up straight away but it often doesnt, can take up to 30 seconds sometimes so i thought nothing of it and left the room. i poked my head in to check temperature a few hours later and still the hps light had not fired up 
so i changed the fuse in the plug the make sure it hadnt blown and still it wouldnt come on, ive tested it now in multiple power outlets and changed the fuse twice, ive inspected the bulb and it looks alright it does have some very small greyish marks either end but i think thats quite normal for a used hps bulb. whats worrying me is before the ballast made a low humming as it did its thing and it got quite hot however now if i plug it in i have to put my ear on the top of the ballast to hear anything coming from it and it stays stone cold and doesnt warm up. there is no flicker from the light what so ever and testing in a dark room shows no illumination of the tube at all, ive tried leaving it all plugged in for varied lengths of time too incase it needed a bit time to charge itself up or something and still nothing.
my question is and i have no idea which item it is but do you think its a bulb or ballast issue? if the bulb was blown would the ballast remain cold and not hum at all or does it sound like my ballast is fried?
i should add its a 600w high pressure sodium bulb and a 600w magnetic ballast(unbranded but CE approved)
i have a spare fixture which ive tested the bulb and ballast with too with no joy so i think we can rule out the light fixture itself.
Both the bulb and the ballast are under 6 weeks old.
any help would be awesome!
thanks
so i changed the fuse in the plug the make sure it hadnt blown and still it wouldnt come on, ive tested it now in multiple power outlets and changed the fuse twice, ive inspected the bulb and it looks alright it does have some very small greyish marks either end but i think thats quite normal for a used hps bulb. whats worrying me is before the ballast made a low humming as it did its thing and it got quite hot however now if i plug it in i have to put my ear on the top of the ballast to hear anything coming from it and it stays stone cold and doesnt warm up. there is no flicker from the light what so ever and testing in a dark room shows no illumination of the tube at all, ive tried leaving it all plugged in for varied lengths of time too incase it needed a bit time to charge itself up or something and still nothing.my question is and i have no idea which item it is but do you think its a bulb or ballast issue? if the bulb was blown would the ballast remain cold and not hum at all or does it sound like my ballast is fried?
i should add its a 600w high pressure sodium bulb and a 600w magnetic ballast(unbranded but CE approved)
i have a spare fixture which ive tested the bulb and ballast with too with no joy so i think we can rule out the light fixture itself.
Both the bulb and the ballast are under 6 weeks old.
any help would be awesome!
thanks
