Spent 3 hours trying to get my starter to double in size

I've been baking bread for about 8 years now and my sourdough starter was always super reliable. Then last month after we moved to a new apartment, it just stopped rising all the way no matter what I did. Tried changing flours, feeding it twice a day, keeping it on top of the fridge for warmth. Turns out our new place's tap water has more chlorine than the old house did and it was killing the yeast slowly. Now I leave a jug of water out overnight before feeding and it's back to normal, but man that was a wasted Saturday. Anybody else run into weird water issues after moving?

2 comments

2 Comments

betty_barnes13d ago

35 years of baking here and I gotta say @gibson.seth, I think you're wrong on this one. Chlorine really does mess with starters, especially if you move from well water to city water or a different treatment plant. I had a friend in Chicago lose her starter completely until she switched to bottled water. Not saying it's always the answer, but leaving water out overnight is a common trick bakers use and it works for a reason. Temperature and wild yeast could be part of it too, but I'd bet the water was a bigger factor than you're giving it credit for.

gibson.seth14d ago

Doubt it was the chlorine tbh. City water has been treated the same way for decades and bakers have been using it fine. More likely you just picked up some wild yeast or bacteria in the new place that threw off your starter's balance. Or maybe the temp is different in your new kitchen and it needed time to adjust. I've moved three times with my starter and never had water be the issue. Sounds like a classic case of overthinking it after a minor setback. Just feed it consistently and it'll bounce back on its own without all the fancy jug tricks.