I have some old fluorescent receptacles that I am trying to install. One doesn’t work at all and two other give a dim flickering light. Is it the ballast that needs to be replaced or is it the bulb?
On old flouresent fixtures they had a starter, which is what normaly needed replacing. It’s a small metal cylinder about 1 inch diameter by one and a half inches in length. The next thing to try is the light bulb. The ballast is the last thing likely to go with a flickering light.
First replace the lamps (and starter if there is one.) Then if still a no-go then replace the ballast.
This is based on time and parts costs.
I cannot find the starter. It ballast and lot of wiring. Is it possible that the fixture is not that old? I notice that one of the lamps has black at one of its ends. Is that a sign that it is bad?
BTW - How does a lamp wear out? There is no filament. It’s just a fluorescent gas.
The electrodes can fail through age. The phosphor layer has a half-life, and gradually grows dimmer as it ages. The mercury vapor can become absorbed by the phosphor, the glass and the electrodes and eventually fall below operating levels.
Wiki article on fluorescent lamps…the causes of operational failure are about 1/3 of the way down the page.