Still Confused with Starter Feeding

Feeding by volume you are not getting the ratios you think you are getting.  Ratios are determined by weight, not volume.  1/4 cup of flour does not weigh the same as 1/4 cup of water and neither is the same weight as 1/4 cup of starter.  THAT's why Ed Wood suggests 1 cup of flour to only 1/2 cup of water. 

By feeding your starter with equal VOLUMES, you may not be giving your starter enough food.  1/4 cup of flour and water may not be enough to feed 1/4 cup of starter and make it vigorous for baking. 

If you have a scale that measures small amounts (kitchen scale or even a postal scale) you should weigh your starter and the ingredients that go into it.  That way, you will know that if your starter weighs X amount (say 2 ounces) you would add 2 ounces of flour and 2 ounces of water for the 1:1:1 ratio.  You can also safely feed it higher ratios, e.g. 1:3:3 or 1:5:5 or play with the hydration levels by changing the amount of water relative to the flour additions.

If you don't have a scale, I'd follow what Ed Wood suggest, water should be twice the flour volume, and those mixed together should be at least twice the same volume as the old starter you are mixing them with. 

If you don't have a scale, you should highly consider getting one.  An inexpensive scale is about $25 to $30 and it should be able to switch between pounds and ounces, ounces, and grams (Most people use grams as they are MUCH easier to handle).  You should look for a tare function that allows you to zero out the scale as you add each ingredient.  That feature truly is the best thing since sliced bread. 

Scales come in handy for bread baking in so many ways--you no longer need to dirty a host of measuring cups and spoons, simplifying kitchen clean up.  And you will get more consistent results with your bread baking so it's easier to analyze what tweaks, if any, are needed toward the perfect loaf. 

First, how much starter do you have?  The feeding (flour + water) should at least equal the weight of the starter so that it has adequate food. 

Secondly, maybe there is something else going on.  Is your air conditioning on keeping you nice and cool?  (I am totally jealous if the answer is yes--we have no AC and it was over 100 here in Northern Cal yesterday, keeping my kitchen in the high 80's. Can't bake until the fog comes back!). 

My starter was sluggish and just not moving when I started it this March until I realized that the ambient temperature in my kitchen during our unusually cool spring was running 65 degrees and below--too cool for the starter.  Once I caught on to that fact and kept my starter in a warmer place at night it took off and became a very good starter.  Last week, our kitchen was warm but not hot (mid 70's) and that temperature took my starter to a whole new level of activity.  I am constantly in awe of how sensitive my starter is to temperature.   

Or perhaps your kitchen is too warm, which would make your starter use up the available food more quickly than anticipated.  You should see an increase in volume and even bubbles if the temperature is too warm, especially if you are checking it every 4 hours.  But it can also deflate and start producing hooch when it runs out of food.  If you have it in a clear container, you'll be able to see the "high tide" mark if that's what's happening. 

So I'd look closely at temperature.  I think mid 70's is ideal--up in the 80's it is too warm and will require more frequent feedings.  That wouldn't work for me on weekdays when I'm out of the house for work 10 or more hours. 

Bubbles mean something is happening.  My starter also didn't start to double until it was good and strong and the temperature range was just right.  Keep feeding it. 

BTW, are you feeding your starter with tap water?  I've read differing opinions on whether chlorinated water can inhibit starter growth, but most sources say it can, especially when a starter is young and vulnerable.  I use bottled spring water, just to be on the safe side. 

Count me among the confused starter novices.  I mixed 1 c water with 1 c flour and a pinch of yeast per the directions I had.  I covered it with saran wrap and left it on the counter overnight.  It was nice and bubbly today.  I was gone all day and when I got home the bubbly starter was still bubbly, but had separated and was now liquid on the bottom and very soft solid on the top.  It seemed to have collapsed somewhat since morning.  It was cool in the house all day (about 70)

Having no idea what I'm doing, I scooped out 1/2 cup of the stuff after I stirred it all back together and then I added a mixture of 1/2 c flour and 1/2 cup water.  Stirred it in really well and then covered it again and put it back on the counter.

When can I use this mixture?  Do I have to wait for it to get bubbly again?  Should I be refrigerating it at this point?

If I want to use it - in the event I refrigerate it - do I have to warm it to room temp first?  Do I have to feed it again?

Now what?  I read somewhere on here that when making a bread, you should approximate the amount of starter ingredients in the recipe and deduct that from the final dough mixture.  In my case that would be to substract from my recipe -the 1 c. flour and 1 c water and about 1/8 - 1/4 tsp yeast,  I would make my final bread dough by adding all of the starter.

How do I know just how much yeast got thrown out when I "fed" the starter with the 1/2 cup water and flour?

Sorry for being so hard to teach.  I'm usually pretty good at directions.

Susie