Sourdough Tips: Help! My Starter is Sick!!

Monday, May 4, 2015


Our starters take a lot of work, and many have been with us for a while. They are living organisms, and after a while they start to feel like pets or part of the family. Many people even name theirs (mine is named Felix). So when your starter suddenly starts not performing well, we want to fix things as soon as we can!

Your starter isn't just a mixture of flour and water, but actually a rather complex and dynamic ecosystem of microorganisms. It doesn't take much to throw it out of balance. But thankfully, starters are also fairly resilient things, and it is fairly easy to revive them back to health. I am going to try and keep things as simple as I can here, without getting into the more technical and scientific explanations (although I am really itching to do a post on that!)


Your Starter has a Layer of Blackish Water on Top
This liquid layer is called hooch. This is a naturally occurring alcohol that is produced when your sourdough starter has run out of food and needs to be fed immediately! You can kind of think of this as a waste product, and you should pour it off before you feed your starter. If you are getting this liquid often, it means you really should feed your starter more often! This layer of hooch  actually causes the starter to drown, because the carbohydrates underneath can't get any air.

Your Starter Smells like Alcohol
When your starter isn't fed often enough, it is common for an alcohol smell to develop. This happens when the starter begins to consume discarded yeast as well as its own waste. Start feeding your starter more regularly, and your starter will return to its normal smell. If you need help remembering when to feed your starter, make a note on your calendar!

Your Starter Smells Like Vinegar
Guess, what? This is totally normal. The vinegar smells comes from the acetic acid in your starter. As the bacteria in your starter eat through the carbohydrates you have fed it, they produce the vinegar smell. This mostly happens when you change the type of flour you are feeding your starter. Continue feeding!

*Notes on smells. Different starters smell different, depending on the type and quality of flour that you are feeding it. Normal smells range anywhere from alcohol, vinegar, dirty socks, overripe fruit, beer, and sometimes even nail polish if it needs fed. It can be pungent and strong, it can burn your nose, and it can stink. But it should never smell like rotten cheese or moldy meat. 
As you feed and continue to use your starter, you should become familiar with how it smells. You should know how it smells when it needs feeding and after you have fed it. When you cook, you continually taste so that you can adjust the seasonings. Sourdough starters work similarly, you should be continually smelling your starter so that you can adjust feedings as necessary. One of the first clues that something is going wrong with your starter is how it smells, so be aware!

Your Starter is Crusty
If you keep your starter at a lower hydration rate, this problem can arise. This happens when it has been neglected and not fed.  Remove the crusty part and feed your starter.

Your Starter is Moldy or Discolored
This is fairly uncommon, but it occasionally happens, and is usually caused  by one of two things. Either your starter/container/utensil was contaminated with soap or food reside during a feeding, or your yeast has become weakened due to skipped or improper feedings. Some people feel comfortable pulling out a tablespoon or so of starter that isn't moldy and trying to save it. However, we feel its probably safest and healthiest to just throw it out (sorry!) and start over. This would be a good time to revive some dehydrated starter you have stored. When in doubt, Throw it out!

Your Starter is Sluggish
Generally speaking, this could be because of temperature. At colder temperatures, the microbes in your starter are sleepier. That is why we store in the fridge in between use. Because they tend to be sleepier, they take longer to activate. Reversely, if your starter is warm, it moves faster. The ideal temperature for your starter is 70 Degrees F.

Remedy Your Problems
Generally speaking, the best way to revive a sick starter is by feeding it.
  • Keep it Clean - Transfer your starter into a clean bowl or measuring cup so you can thoroughly wash the "home" container for your starter. Make sure you use very clean bowls, spoons, and measuring cups, and that you wash your hands well before each feeding. Just because starters are fermented items does not mean they can handle bacteria.
  • Check your Container - Make sure it is kept reasonably clean, remove any dried gunk from the lip of the container so you get a good seal with the lid. You also want to make sure that your container is twice the size of your starter, so that you have as much air in your container as you do starter. This will allow your starter to have enough oxygen to breathe. 
  • Feed it - Feed your starter as you normally would, using good quality flour and clean, cool water. Cover and allow to stay on the counter for several days. Continue feeding every 12 hours for several days, until your starter has returned to its normal, healthy, bubbly self. 
I hope you have found this post to be helpful!

**Note: I tried to simplify a lot of the science of sourdough starters, so you could understand how to care for a starter without necessarily understanding a lot of the technical science behind it. Are you interested in a more technical post that explains the science behind how a starter works? If so, please leave a comment and let me know! 




30 comments:

Mike said...

I can't guarantee I'd understand it, but I'd certainly be interested in a more scientific explanation of how a starter works, and why it sometimes doesn't.

Bread and Babka said...

It was very clear and helpful - and validated what I've been doing when I forget to feed ripe culture that is left on the counter. At least I will no longer secretly hope I'm not poisoning my family by trying to salvage my starter :)

Unknown said...

Great advice, more science please!

gramdyer said...

My first attempt at sourdough went great! Made a good loaf of bread. Starter went bad. Started over. This is my 4th attempt. Keep throwing it out because it doesn't smell right. I am taking your advice and feeding it again and again. I hope this works. We love sourdough everything.

Unknown said...

I don't know what is going on with my starter. It has recently been getting grey streaks in it even though I feed it every 12 - 24 hours when out. It is usually about 70 degrees where the starter is in my kitchen. The smell is fine. I "washed" the starter as recommended in the book "Classic Sourdough Revised" and it lost the grey streaks but then they came back again in just a couple of days. Any suggestions?

Unknown said...

my starter is more than a year old. the last few months it just smells like alcohol no matter how often I feed it, usually 4-6 hour during the day. what is wrong?

Unknown said...

Sounds like your starter is growing faster than you can feed it. Try reducing to 1/4 of the batch and place in a cooler place. This should help slow down the growth.

Egg said...

I would like to see the scientific explanations please!!!! Thanks Eleanor

Kevin said...

Really helpful, thank you.
p.s. mines called Bernard!!!

Tony and Frank bff's said...

Hi Frank makes the most perfect flavourful fluffy crusty pizza 8 month old and first time he has changed his odour and started smelling like alcohol ( think I miss timed a few feeds) followed your instructions and he is back to his happy bubbly yeasty self thanks for the guide πŸ‘πŸ‘πŸ‘ p.s first pizza since sickness was as awesome as ever😎

Unknown said...

Hey, thanks great advice, i was jst wondering what might happen if i kept mine in a place that is too hot, i live in astralia and its smmer so it gets pretty hot where i keep it, can this kill the starter?

Tony and Frank bff's said...

Hi if you are not keen on keeping in a fridge then try a shaded corner of the room out direct sunlight and place container in a bowl with water level higher than sourdough level to regulate the temperature of your sourdough you will probably have to feed more often like 2 times a day this option will be good if you use your starter a few times a week if not then best to hibernate in fridge and remove a few hours before feed and usage then back in fridge.iam no expert but these are things I have read online oven the months good luck hope it helps

Unknown said...

I only read this post after discovering a very vinegar smell and brackish liquid on my starter- I didn't drain off liquid but I did feed immediately! What should I do/be looking for next?

Unknown said...

Yes please. I have tried 3 times now to keep sourdough with a mixture of success. I made my own apple cider vinegar and I am trying to make a starter with it. Do you think it will work?

Unknown said...

Every time you feed, should you discard also?

Eric said...

So if it smells like regular cheese, not rotten cheese, we should still be good? I’m a little concerned for Doug...

Unknown said...

Mine had a purplish spot on the second day. Fed it anyway. Will discard it and restart something similar appears tomorrow. Or should I discard it and restart irrespective of how it looks tomorrow?

Nounou said...

my starter smell like rotten , I can see it is still alive but smell bad. is it dead or I still can fix it?

Helena Israel said...

my starter is bubbling and has a creamy texture, but it doesn't smell much of anything, the temperature outside is 30C or 89F. Should it smell? the starter is 7 days old and

Helena Israel said...

I would welcome any hints re my previous post

Unknown said...

I had 4 starts that smelled like brewing yeast with beer after it is spent(puke), and all 4 had blackish water on top. I saved 3 tablespoons per and added 2 cups flour and 2 water, fingers crossed.

Jena said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Jena said...

I have made starters a few times, you never know what you get. The one I made maybe a month ago.. it's settling in, kept in the fridge and all. It's the oddest thing though. It's so sweet smelling (not the acetone smell, unless I am slagging off with the feeding). It makes the bread smell like a put a bunch of sugar in it, almost like I am baking cake of sorts. It was made with a mix of wheat and rye. The sad part is it has little to no fart production. It doesn't make things rise very well. But I had to add baker's yeast to my doughs after I get the starter to take hold and the good news is that all the flavour of the starter remains and isn't overpowered by the damn baker's yeast. I'm just curious about what the hell I managed to catch that acts like that. lol I am gonna guess it's mainly bacteria, but I haven't added any yoghurt or anything like that. If I were to split the starter and experiment on one part to see if I can get it to rise on it's own, what would you suggest to try and add?

Tony and Frank bff's said...

Hi Jena your friend is perfectly fine no need to panic he/she is going through a secondary fermentation process and becoming more lavin,and developing its own personality(panic over,this can be controlled),
I would say that perhaps you are taking straight from fridge feeding then placing back in the fridge,when in the fridge the fermentation process is very slow,this tip will help get you more yeasty...
take from fridge pop lid cover with damp cloth have a coffee then do your feeding process(cold water)cover with damp cloth wait about half hour to an hour(carefull he/she might get excited with the room temperature and jump from jar πŸ˜„) place back in the fridge,I don't know your feeding habits but do this 1 time each day and after 2/3 feeds your breads will have all the goodness you are looking for from your little buddy and you will see more activity and smell changes

Jena said...

Thanks for the reply! But don't get me wrong, I'm not worried. It's in the fridge with cloth over it not a solid lid. I am not interested in growing anaerobic beasties. I'm also not afraid of bacteria in my sour dough. The nose is a wonderful tool to tell you if you got a bad bacteria or not. lol Ideally I want both yeasts and bacteria. I usually bake every time I feed it so I take a big portion off and use that and feed what's in the jar and put it back in the fridge. That portion taken off though I feed heavily too and leave for like 24hrs on my worktop (my kitchen is cool right now mind you). But I did as you said about the remaining starter and left that out too. It's certainly active, it's certainly eating it's lunch. It just doesn't rise, there are a few bubbles sure, it changes from smelling of wet flour (as it does when you just feed) to a sweetness I can best describe as the sweet smell of sour cream. I have not put sour cream in it or had utensils near it that could have leftover sour cream on it. It adds loads of flavour to the bread. It's just an odd one, and a bit limp. lol I suppose I can leave it out permanently and see how that goes, but I'll have to feed it all the time then. Anyway, thanks again for the reply.

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Unknown said...

Are you sure you’re not confusing it with lactic acid?

If you’re sure however you’re smelling vinegar; that must be acetic acid. The yeast in sourdough will produce some alcohol together with CO2; and that alcohol might ferment into acetic acid by some other fermentation process which is active in vinegar making, but not desired in sourdough fermentation.

In that case, you should start from scratch and prevent the surface of the dough from flies (lay a cheesecloth etc on the fermenation bowl, so it can still breath). As some flies are known to carry the bacteria for acetic acid fermentation, which is a nightmare for brewers.

psychonaut said...

you are probably tossing it unnecessarily. it should smell sour and funky only thing you don't want is mold, scoop it off if you get it and wait a few days with regular feeding make sure it doesn't come back

psychonaut said...

are you sure it's not just yeast you are seeing? also a brettanomyces or kahm yeast pellicle is ok also

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