Anyone know anything about magnetic ballasts?

[texmex]

I have a dual magnetic ballast that I got friend that is not working. When I plug them in they make noise but only put just a tiny bit of light. The only way the even see the light is in the dark. Looks like a little blue light. I am testing them out on the same socket due to I only have one rite now. Is it possible that both capacitors have gone out? And would they make noise if they were out? I really dont know much about these but any info would be great. Thanks

[texmex]

TTT

[ErikH]

what is the ballast rating/wattage? Are you using the right sized bulbs? Have you tried known working bulbs on them? I haven't seen the inside of a magnetic ballast, but if it does have caps, they are a common failure point in most electronics. The good thing is that they are inexpensive and easy to fix. You can google the temp and voltages of the capacitors and find them fairly easily. I prefer to order them online, as running all over town can most often turn out uneventful. You could try radioshack locally, but check their online store first. IIRC they don't carry any caps that require higher temp ratings than 110 Celsius.

[texmex]

They are 175 watt and I have three bulbs and I know that they all work.