When to replace a magnetic ballast?

[flimflam007]

Hey all,
new member here with a question I need some help with. I have an Advance 400 watt hps ballast that is over 5 years old. It still seems to be working well but I have been reading in other places that after a few years magnetic ballasts start to loose their efficiency and your lamp will put out less lumens. Is this true and if so how can you tell that any or all of the parts should be replaced? Thanks for any help!

 

[Jalisco Kid]

I have some old transformers I just replace the igniters and capacitors. JK

 

[johnnyballbag]

What JK said. I've never personally heard of a transformer going out. When in doubt, an igniter and/or capacitor don't cost very much to buy, and are simple to replace.

If the cap is going bad, they'll start to bulge. When the igniter starts to fail, usually your bulb won't fire all the way and will flicker.