Good questions all around, Martin! What you describe does sound quite normal to us. The starter usually starts producing more liquidy byproduct during day 3 to 5, which thins the starter as a result. "Bad" bacteria are often multi-colored; look out for spots of orange, pink, purple, blue, green, etc. We include photos of what this looks like in our blog called Sourdough starting troubleshooting. We also recommend checking out our full Sourdough Baking Guide, which has lots of visual examples of what a healthy starter should look like, as well as tips to get you there. Happy baking! Kye@KAF

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