Rise, Fall and Float Questions
Hello,
I have about a week old starter that is rising and falling predictably I would say and I feed it one a day.
Yesterday I wanted to test when it would pass the float test so I took a scoop from it every two hours but even after 12 hours it wasn't floating, which surprised me. (room temp is about 23 degrees celsius)
I am wondering how long it takes for your starters to pass the float test, if mine is perhaps just not completely ready, too young? Also, I'm thinking if I feed it more often during the day, will it become more likely to float?
Another thing, how does your starter smell when it floats, sweet or sour? Is it possible to have a sweet smelling starter, maybe two hours after feeding, floating in water?
Thanks for any answers you can help me with!
Theodor.
Hi Theodor, I have to say that I’ve never tried a float test on my starter. Whether a starter can pass a float test will partially depend on the hydration of the starter. I more liquid starter like the one I keep at 100% hydration may not pass the float test even though it is quite active and able to raise bread.
You may want to get your starter more active. Watch its rise and fall. If possible feed it when it has crested and just started to fall, that is when the starter is telling you that it is running out of food.
There are others here far more experienced than I am so I will let them chime in, but I wouldn’t necessarily worry about a float test.
Benny
Its just mentioned in the book I'm using , Tartine Bread, its one indicator that the levine is ready but it also mentions if I remember correctly that the starter/levine should smell sweet.
Details on feeding and when does it peak?
Feeding should be soon after it peaks.
I fed it at 10:45 this morning and it peaked at about 20:30-20:45. What more do you want to know? I fed it just now, about an hour and half after it peaked, going to see how it looks in the morning, after 10 hours.
When you say "week old" do you mean:
This article, http://www.thefreshloaf.com/10901/pineapple-juice-solution-part-2
has good information, towards the bottom, about how to judge when a starter is mature enough to begin building a levain. It's quite a bit more detailed than what's in the Tartine book, describing the four stages that a built-from-scratch starter has to go through.
It has been 10 days since I first mixed flour and water. it bubbled on the third day when I started feeding it and is now almost doubling, not quite though. It takes about 10 hours to double for it at the moment. I will check this article out, thank you!