1. The temperature in my house is around 16degC (and I don't have an airing cupboard). Can I get anywhere by leaving a developing starter for longer than a day between feedings to compensate for not being 20degC?
2. I am using 100ml of water & 100g of flour for every feed and this seems a bit wasteful. Can't I achieve the same effect with (say) 75ml of water and 75g of flour?
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Yes, play with the time between feedings as well as the hydration and the temp of the h2o.
I maintain my starter by feeding it more or less daily with 10g flour and maybe 8g h20...much less waste, and just enough to seed my levain for a batch of dough, though you might want a little more in your cooler environment.
I live in western canada, and it is not warm in my house , what with zero humidity and high altitude
I have found success with my starter by following the equal starter to equal filtered water(lower , for me than room temp for others as it is cool here) to equal flour ( i use unbleached wheat flour. i.e like all purpose, with "no bran" i refuse to use Bran due to the phytates in it)
after many experiments and loads of flour(but the all purpose , even at a health food store is pennies)
I need that quantity to get a rigorous starter....it does help when you have cool temps....I even can put my starter in the fridge and take it out next morning and it still has loads of bubbles!
when I bake my bread, i always cover with plastic and stick it in my bathroom (it is tiled allover including the roof with no windows)....(of course i have a sign that "no one can use it in my family" as i have 3 other bathrooms) and when the furnace does not kick in (when it is warm) I sometimes put a heater in the bathroom....this gives me a fabulous rise, than the cold kitchen or oven or microwave....like i said I have tried many experiments!)
so listen to Wadada and use more starter....cool temps need help!
when I feed and want to use it let it sit outside, if not (i might get tired) and not feel like putting the bread together especially when it is like 10pm...i just stick it in the fridge.
Incidentally, I always do my 1st fermentation in the fridge (with high altitude, i need to slow down the process or my bread will overproof!
hope that helps.