600 WATT HPS flickers, will not ignite

Hey people,

Let me give you some background. Here is my setup: Digital Electronic 600 watt HPS/Metal Halide Ballast Grow Light with a CoolTube 6 inch reflector. The bulb is a 600 watt HPS AgroMax

Now, the bulb is firmly screwed in and when I plug the ballast in, the lamp will flicker blue for a second and then it dies. It will not ignite.

I just got this bulb like 2 weeks ago. What the fuck!? Does anybody know what to do with this shit? Oh, and I can't send it back to HTGsupply because I don't have the box. Am I wearing lipstick here because it seems like I am indeed getting fucked!!! And not in the good way people, in the bad way. The very bad way.

Your input is appreciated!

sounds like your buld is going. do you have a nother bulb to see if that is the problem

IanCurtisWishlist said:

Hey people,

Let me give you some background. Here is my setup: Digital Electronic 600 watt HPS/Metal Halide Ballast Grow Light with a CoolTube 6 inch reflector. The bulb is a 600 watt HPS GroMax

Now, the bulb is firmly screwed in and when I plug the ballast in, the lamp will flicker blue for a second and then it dies. It will not ignite.

I just got this bulb like 2 weeks ago. What the fuck!? Does anybody know what to do with this shit? Oh, and I can't send it back to HTGsupply because I don't have the box. Am I wearing lipstick here because it seems like I am indeed getting fucked!!! And not in the good way people, in the bad way. The very bad way.

Your input is appreciated!

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I am assuming everything is relatively new...If so, call HTG Supply first thing in the morning and talk with Tony. Tell him your problrm and they will either send you a new bulb or ballast with a return postage lable. Just bax everything up in the new box...slap the lable on it and you are good to go. I promise...HTG Supply will make it right. I have no doubts. Good luck and call Tony @ HTG Supply.

Rocky Top High said:

I am assuming everything is relatively new...If so, call HTG Supply first thing in the morning and talk with Tony. Tell him your problrm and they will either send you a new bulb or ballast with a return postage lable. Just bax everything up in the new box...slap the lable on it and you are good to go. I promise...HTG Supply will make it right. I have no doubts. Good luck and call Tony @ HTG Supply.

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Well the thing is that I ordered the cheaper bulb from HTG first. I first ordered the GroBright 600 Watt HPS. They were out of these bulbs at the time they sent my order, so they just upgraded my bulb to the AgroMax. I found that to be good customer service; not many businesses would do something like that.

I will take your advice and call Tony @ HTG Supply tomorrow morning. Until I get this bulb, my babies will just have to suffer. I'm happy that they are only in vegitative growth at this point; if the plants were flowering, I'd be pulling my hair out and screaming

yea sounds like its in its last stage;.... orange glow then putt's out? if so go grab a hortilux

yea my 400 hps started doing the same thing and i just taped the bulb when it didnt fire up and it would fire right up with a lil tap it worked for me untill i got a new bulb it only did it every once in a while like the bulb was cold or something its almost like i gave it a jump start try taping it a lil when its flickering it might light hope that helps peace out .....widow

biz said:

yea sounds like its in its last stage;.... orange glow then putt's out? if so go grab a hortilux

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No no nooooo, it doesn't even get to the orange glowing part! I plug the ballast in, then it looks as if the bulb is igniting. it faintly flashes blue, and then it doesn't light at all. totally and utterly dead. meaning that this bulb won't grow shit!

IanCurtisWishlist said:

No no nooooo, it doesn't even get to the orange glowing part! I plug the ballast in, then it looks as if the bulb is igniting. it faintly flashes blue, and then it doesn't light at all. totally and utterly dead. meaning that this bulb won't grow shit!

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lawl; i dismantled my hps light fixture and rewired the mother fucker like 5x til i realized i had a bulb that was ending its life cycle

biz said:

lawl; i dismantled my hps light fixture and rewired the mother fucker like 5x til i realized i had a bulb that was ending its life cycle

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how did you know your hps light fixture fucked it's mother?

just kidding.

that sucks though! I've been taking mine apart too--not rewiring it, but unscrewing the bulb, then hoping it works, then screwing it back in to see what happens.

IanCurtisWishlist said:

Well the thing is that I ordered the cheaper bulb from HTG first. I first ordered the GroBright 600 Watt HPS. They were out of these bulbs at the time they sent my order, so they just upgraded my bulb to the AgroMax. I found that to be good customer service; not many businesses would do something like that.

I will take your advice and call Tony @ HTG Supply tomorrow morning. Until I get this bulb, my babies will just have to suffer. I'm happy that they are only in vegitative growth at this point; if the plants were flowering, I'd be pulling my hair out and screaming

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Ask Tony if he can upgrade you to a Sunmaster. I also have a agromax and I love it. However, I had several issues with Agromax when I first started up my new system. Since then, I have had smooth sailing. I would suggest a spare bulb as soon as your finances allow. Just get an el-cheapo bulb that can be used as an emergency backup. Luckly, I was just gifted a brand new Sunmaster 600 so I can sleep a bit better.

I have a sneeking suspicion that there is an issue with Digital greenhouse digital ballast and Agromax bulbs. Anyway, just let Tony take care of it and you will be up and running in a few moire days. Good luck

Rocky Top High said:

Ask Tony if he can upgrade you to a Sunmaster. I also have a agromax and I love it. However, I had several issues with Agromax when I first started up my new system. Since then, I have had smooth sailing. I would suggest a spare bulb as soon as your finances allow. Just get an el-cheapo bulb that can be used as an emergency backup. Luckly, I was just gifted a brand new Sunmaster 600 so I can sleep a bit better.

I have a sneeking suspicion that there is an issue with Digital greenhouse digital ballast and Agromax bulbs. Anyway, just let Tony take care of it and you will be up and running in a few moire days. Good luck

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I also have a feeling that it is not even the bulb that has the issue, but the bulb/ballast compatability. When I plug the ballast in, there is a faint blue flicker and then nothing, it's as cold and dead as blagojevich's political career.

I have heard that Sunmaster is fucking amazing. I wonder if, instead of sending me a new bulb for free, if HTG would let me pay a few extra dollars to upgrade to the Sunmaster and cover the difference.

I hope that Tony is as reasonable as you say he is If they help me now, I'll never ever shop at some expensive hydroponics store again.

And the cheap HPS bulb is a good idea. I definately should have a backup. I'll get on this as soon as I can. I get paid in 2 weeks....

NOTE: this is a response to an idiot who spammed the message board. The moderators have since deleted the spam message.

You pathetic motherfucking piece of shit how dare you spam rollitup.org with your crap. This is MY thread about a legitimate issue, and here you have hijacked it with spam. You seem like a Nigerian scammer, but in either case your lack of English skills really shows what a fucktard you are. Do you really think I am stupid? Do me a favor and have your bottom ribs removed so you can suck your own cock you cum-guzzling son of a bitch! I hear that medical procedure is fairly cheap if performed in China.

You are clearly a spammer, a scamer, and an idiot who cannot get a real job. Please injest some ethylene glycol.

I am personally offended that you think I would fall for such a blatant CON. I hate you, I hate you and your fucked up shit-eating human-rights-violating country. If I had my way, your country would have been bombed the fuck off this planet and renamed AMERICA #2 about 25 years ago. If I had my way, you would be locked away in a horrible Chinese prison, with only your own feces and urine to sustain your pitiful life.

I wish you were here with me personally, so I could cut your limbs off to ensure you will never, ever spam one of my threads again! You asshole!!!

I'll buy American, and I'll do anything I can to ruin fucked up China (if that is where you are really from).

You're a scammer, and I am your worst nightmare. You just wait and see, fucker!

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IanCurtisWishlist said:

I also have a feeling that it is not even the bulb that has the issue, but the bulb/ballast compatability. When I plug the ballast in, there is a faint blue flicker and then nothing, it's as cold and dead as blagojevich's political career.

I have heard that Sunmaster is fucking amazing. I wonder if, instead of sending me a new bulb for free, if HTG would let me pay a few extra dollars to upgrade to the Sunmaster and cover the difference.

I hope that Tony is as reasonable as you say he is If they help me now, I'll never ever shop at some expensive hydroponics store again.

And the cheap HPS bulb is a good idea. I definately should have a backup. I'll get on this as soon as I can. I get paid in 2 weeks....

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From my experience, the whole crew bends over backward to make you a satisfied customer. I am sure if you reason with Tony, he will send you a Sunmaster in place of your AgroMax...especially since you did not order that brand in the first place. I understand it was an upgrade but there is only like 10 bucks or less difference in the 2 bulbs. (Agromax vs Sunmaster)

I have ordered a bunch of stuff from HTG and they have ALWAYS bent over backwards to make things right. Explain to Tony about the campatability concerns you have. He is very reasonable and I feel sure you will get a good resolution.

I am not sold on the Digital Greenhouse ballast but I bought the "kit" and felt like it was a damn good deal...on paper. We will see but so far, I have had some issues that makes me a lil uneasy.

Good luck and let us know how things turned out.

Rocky Top High said:

From my experience, the whole crew bends over backward to make you a satisfied customer. I am sure if you reason with Tony, he will send you a Sunmaster in place of your AgroMax...especially since you did not order that brand in the first place. I understand it was an upgrade but there is only like 10 bucks or less difference in the 2 bulbs. (Agromax vs Sunmaster)

I have ordered a bunch of stuff from HTG and they have ALWAYS bent over backwards to make things right. Explain to Tony about the campatability concerns you have. He is very reasonable and I feel sure you will get a good resolution.

I am not sold on the Digital Greenhouse ballast but I bought the "kit" and felt like it was a damn good deal...on paper. We will see but so far, I have had some issues that makes me a lil uneasy.

Good luck and let us know how things turned out.

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I have e-mailed the staff at HTG supply in regards to this problem. I'll let you guys know what happens when I talk to them personally tomorrow morning.

Update: I e-mailed HTG and tried to call them this morning. They haven't answered the phone and they didn't respond to my e-mail. They probably will be impossible to get a hold of all weekend. Fuuuuuckin shit.

IanCurtisWishlist said:

Update: I e-mailed HTG and tried to call them this morning. They haven't answered the phone and they didn't respond to my e-mail. They probably will be impossible to get a hold of all weekend. Fuuuuuckin shit.

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That sucks...I have had some issues getting in touch with them but they have always responded. I know they are closed on sat and sun. Their actual store is open but I don't think anyone is manning the phones or e-mails. One of the drawbacks of ordering online is "returns". Sometimes it takes a week where as if you purchased locally, it would be a matter of a couple of hours.

I do purchse some items from my local Hydro store and have a pretty good relationship with the owner but I still find it hard to pay $500 dollars locally for something that I can get for $300 online. He and I have had this conversation and I will more than likely buy my next setup from him. I am also a bit paranoid in buying "equipment" locally. I knoe a guy who was growing commercially and was busted right after making a large equipment purchse from this same shop. Not pointing fingers, I am just sayin...

Good luck and let us know how it gets resolved.

Rocky Top High said:

That sucks...I have had some issues getting in touch with them but they have always responded. I know they are closed on sat and sun. Their actual store is open but I don't think anyone is manning the phones or e-mails. One of the drawbacks of ordering online is "returns". Sometimes it takes a week where as if you purchased locally, it would be a matter of a couple of hours.

I do purchse some items from my local Hydro store and have a pretty good relationship with the owner but I still find it hard to pay $500 dollars locally for something that I can get for $300 online. He and I have had this conversation and I will more than likely buy my next setup from him. I am also a bit paranoid in buying "equipment" locally. I knoe a guy who was growing commercially and was busted right after making a large equipment purchse from this same shop. Not pointing fingers, I am just sayin...

Good luck and let us know how it gets resolved.

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I understand that exactly. If you purchase locally, a cop can just go inside a store and pressure the owner to give up receipts, etc, without a subpoena even. The owner most likely wouldn't want trouble from the cops. I hope I can get in touch with HTG supply on monday. Until I get my new bulb, I'll be using 2 CFLs.

IanCurtisWishlist said:

I understand that exactly. If you purchase locally, a cop can just go inside a store and pressure the owner to give up receipts, etc, without a subpoena even. The owner most likely wouldn't want trouble from the cops. I hope I can get in touch with HTG supply on monday. Until I get my new bulb, I'll be using 2 CFLs.

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Just a suggestion...If possible, try calling them @ 9AM sharp EST. I have found that to be the best time to get a live voice on the other end. Anyway, just look at this as "growing pains" pun intended. I still say you will get a resolution that makes you happy...maybe a few days later than you would of liked.

Rocky Top High said:

Just a suggestion...If possible, try calling them @ 9AM sharp EST. I have found that to be the best time to get a live voice on the other end. Anyway, just look at this as "growing pains" pun intended. I still say you will get a resolution that makes you happy...maybe a few days later than you would of liked.

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Business day 2 of trying to get a hold of HTG Supply: This is actually day # 4 of waiting for a response from these people. They didn't answer their phones again and they didn't reply to my e-mail. I'll never use them for anything again god damnit I would rather just go to the hydro store and pay 30 percent more. I thought these people were great with their customer service, but I assume that this is only when you can get a hold of somebody. It seems rather avoidant of them; if they weren't around to answer my call, then certainly they have logged into their business e-mail account to see what's going on. I guess it is just too hard and too much work to keep your customers happy

IanCurtisWishlist said:

Business day 2 of trying to get a hold of HTG Supply: This is actually day # 4 of waiting for a response from these people. They didn't answer their phones again and they didn't reply to my e-mail. I'll never use them for anything again god damnit I would rather just go to the hydro store and pay 30 percent more. I thought these people were great with their customer service, but I assume that this is only when you can get a hold of somebody. It seems rather avoidant of them; if they weren't around to answer my call, then certainly they have logged into their business e-mail account to see what's going on. I guess it is just too hard and too much work to keep your customers happy

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Man, I hate to hear that. I have always had very good customer service from them other than one day it took me like 3 hours to get a live voice on the phone. They more than made up for the extra time I spent but I know, this doesn't help your cause at all. I appreciate you keeping us informed through this thread.

I guess the lesson to be learned is not to order important equipment from them or most any store over the internet. When it is as "time sensitive" as a light or ballast, you are better off going locally, just for the convience factor.

Well, at least you will have plenty of ammo to hit Tony or whoever you get to talk to and maybe be
'compensated" for your troubles.

Good luck and keep us posted.