PC Lighting help request

[slice]

**Today's Update**
Recap: 24W 4pin straight PC light, CPR fixture for refugium, less than 3 months old, now useless.....
The closest starters I could find was one at Lowe's, a Phillips FS-25, "For 22W Circline or 25W Linear" and at Petsmart, an Aqueon FS-22 "for 14W-20W". The Phillips does not list a voltage, but the Aqueon lists both 110V-120V and 220V-240V just as does the OEM starter.
Neither LFS could help without having see if they could order one.
Both the guy at Lowe's (an electrical engineer) and the guy at Petsmart (knowledgeable), when asked if they thought it would work said:

I tried both starters and all the bulb will do is flicker, just as it did to begin this quest.
And for giggles, I tried the old one again and nothing happens, no flicker, nothing, so there is some behavior difference between the new ones and the old one.
Does this mean I need a more compatible starter or does it mean something else???
Interesting that the package of the Phillips starter says:
Replace starter when the lamp lights only at the ends
Replace the lamp when the lamp blinks continuosly (I just did that a week-ish ago)
Replace ballast when the lamp is completely out and you know the bulb is good (this is what happened a week after replacing the bulb)
I'm an engineer; I solve puzzles for a living, but I cannot see how to connect these dots...
Tomorrow I will call CPR again, demand to speak with a decision maker and demand (nicely) a contact name who will be sending the tracking number of my replacement fixture shipment.
discontent morphs towards rage.....

 

[2quills]

Hmmm...well it definately sounds like the old starter is bad. Sorry, Slice I thought it would/could be a cheap fix for you. It's possible that the starters that you found don't have enough kick to get the bulb going. It could still very well be a bad ballast though. Excessive flickering can cause ballasts to overheat and permaturely fail. Most flourescent ballasts these days have something like a starter built in to them. The ones that still utilize starters are more or less considered the cheap stuff....go figure.
I would demand satisfaction from CPR.

 

[slice]

Finally!
3 emails and 3 phone calls later, CPR is sending via snailmail, a replacement light
no later than tomorrow.

 

[meowzer]

Glad to hear it.....that is what they should have told you from the beginning IMO......I suppose you will have to send the other one back? I would make sure you get it all put together like it was LOL

 

[slice]

Yeah, I have to send the old one back in the box they ship the replacement in.
As for saying this from the beginning, they are short staffed and did not have anyone watching the emails and phone messages going into the support dept. No excuse, but this is what happened.
I spent the first 2 weeks phoning and emailing a ghost, when I finally contacted a human, they responded fairly quickly.

 

[slice]

**Update (satisfaction)**
I received my replacement light in the mail Friday. It is a different version from the original; slight cosmetic changes in the plastic
endcaps, darker color, heavier duty switch, splash guard actually fits correctly. This light snaps on immediately and runs MUCH COOLER than the original.
7100K instead of 6500K bulb. It seems to be an overall better product.
That first one was made by a different supplier/poorer components/shoddy QC, something....
Glad to close this chapter, thanks for reading.