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c/bakersriver952river95216d agoProlific Poster

Just realized my sourdough starter hates my tap water

Had a starter in my Chicago apartment for a month that was always sluggish. Switched to bottled spring water for feeding it last Tuesday, and it doubled in size in 4 hours. Anyone else's local water mess with their ferments?
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kim.nina
kim.nina15d ago
Yeah, I read somewhere that chlorine in city water can really slow things down. My friend in Phoenix had the same problem with her kombucha. She started leaving a jug of tap water out overnight so the chlorine evaporates, and now it works fine. Makes sense that spring water would fix it since it doesn't have those additives.
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gavin228
gavin22815d ago
Wait, does leaving water out actually work for everyone? @kim.nina, your friend might have gotten lucky because Phoenix uses chlorine gas, which does evaporate. A lot of cities now use chloramine instead, and that stuff doesn't leave the water no matter how long it sits. It's added specifically so it won't evaporate in the pipes. So spring water or a campden tablet are the only sure fixes if your city uses chloramine.
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park.miles
park.miles15d ago
But it's just water, how bad can it really be?
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