Electronic MH ballast question

hello there. ive looked for this answer but coulnt find it.
I have just got from a friend of a friend (what i think is a pfo) dual 175 watt mh electronic ballast with 175 e39 bulbs(pulse start i think)(not sure of name bulb is blank)he says that this stuff is new-ish but does not remember when or where he got them(some help he was).oh im also using a hamilton 48" dual reflector.
ok now for the prob.evertime i plug it in and turn it on,all i get is a quick blink then nothing.even if you let it sit.if i turn it on and off a number of times(alot). some times I get them to light.does this sound like more of a bulb or ballast prob.also from what I have read electronic ballast can run pulse or prob start without a prob.sorry but not to sure of this as I have never used mh bfore.thanks for ant help...

 

my t5 are seperate bulbs and they both have started to do the same thing. So I am guessing the ballast. Sometimes they will just come on. But most times they flicker and drive me nuts.

 

e39 stands for edison mogul screw 39mm, whats the make of the bulb? electronic ballasts are not pulse, there are magnetic, electronic, pulse start ballasts which all fire differently, some bulbs require either a specific start or can be fired by any start.

 

sorry im not sure of the make as the bulbs have no words other than 175 watt e39 on them.he had said they were purchased off e-bay if that helps.so what bulbs should I look for. I would like somthing in the 14k range,I like that blue tint.

 

sps blue fires off of e-ballasts
14000K Metal Halide Bulb - Blue Life SPS (South Pacific Sunlight), Mogul Base

 

hey reef thanks.the bulbs I have look really really close to those.but it looks like I should get new ones.so to you it sounds as if its the bulbs that are not compatible with the e-ballast.

 

yuppers

 

Tanks alot hehe

 

first off. I have to thank you guys (reef guru). those blue sps bulbs look great.
ok wel its been almost 2 wks i got the bulbs they work great. now the question is, i was runing 4x65 watt pc's. now i would like to run 2x175 watt halides approx 12" from tank.how to go about the light acclimation( time on -vs- off) so no critters/live stock get to much of a tan...