Sourdough newbie questions.

I can only tell you what I do.

I feed mine before I return it to the refrigerator, and return it to that place immediately after feeding.  I did not begin refrigerating it until it was clearly working well at room temperature, which was a couple of weeks after starting it.  I keep the container in the door of the refrigerator, which is possibly the warmest location, but that is not very warm because our refrigerator tends to run at 35F.  While in the refrigerator, it is kept covered in a Tupperware container that hasn't been burped.  My goal is to allow it to blow off the lid if needed, but not to let the refrigerator suck out the water.

I make my bread dough in the mornings.  The night before I want to make bread, I take the starter out of the refrigerator and feed it the water and flour that it needs to supply me with what I need in the morning.  Then I cover it with a cotton handkerchief secured by a rubberband and leave it on the counter-top.  In the morning it is always bubbly and risen.

Doing this in two or three stages, using morning and evening feedings which add up to the correct total amount, would probably give it a different flavor.  I have not experimented with that.  I have focused on getting dependable rising, and I do.

When feeding the starter, I add the water first.  I stir it until it is uniform.  Then I add the flour.  The flour I use to feed it is ground coarsely, although I have sometimes forgotten to reset the mill and ended up grinding the flour for it more finely.  I have even occasionally been distracted and fed it with the wrong wheat variant.  It is very forgiving.