janarivera•2mo agoMost Upvoted

My sourdough starter went completely flat for a week straight

I feed it the same flour and water at the same time every day, but it just stopped rising. I thought my kitchen was too cold, so I moved it around for three days. Then I checked my tap water and realized the city changed the chlorine levels last month. Switching to filtered water fixed it, but I lost a full week of baking. Has anyone else had a sudden starter crash from water changes?

3 comments

3 Comments

ericj452mo ago

Check your water first, it's almost always the problem. I keep a gallon of plain bottled water just for my starter now. City water changes can really sneak up on you, especially in spring when they flush the lines. My starter once went totally lazy for five days before I figured it out. Letting it sit out overnight to let any chlorine evaporate can work in a pinch too.

the_emery2mo ago

Oh man, that explains my sad starter last month! I was blaming my flour like a total rookie.

emery_black2mo ago

Interesting take, but I've actually had the opposite experience. My starter seems to thrive on our tap water, even straight from the faucet. I wonder if it depends on your local water treatment. Maybe the microbes just get used to what you give them over time.