Hi Karen, if your starter never rose, the yeast may not have fully kicked in, which may be affecting how well your bread rises. I think I would address that issue before you move on to storing your starter in the refrigerator. First, I like to check what type of container you have your starter stored in, since it's more difficult to see the type of "doubling" in size we refer to if you have your starter in a wide bowl or Tupperware container. For our regular sourdough starter recipe a quart-sized wide mouth Mason jar works well for guaging rise. For our smaller starter recipe, an 8 ounce wide mouth canning jar works well. If you're worried about running out of flour, the smaller starter process is a good option, at least until you get your starter rising predictably. Since you're so far along in the process at this point, I would encourage you to continue with the twice a day feedings at room temperature recommended in our recipe. Patience almost always wins out when it comes to creating a sourdough starter, and you may be closer than you think. 

Once your starter is rising predictably you can further encourage yeast activity by timing your feedings to line up with when it's at its peak of rising, or just beginning to fall. Allowing the starter to fall significantly between feedings can result in more sluggish yeast behavior. If you find your starter collapses a great deal between feedings, consider trying a 1:2:2 or even 1:3:3 ratio of starter:water:flour, by weight. This will slow down fermentation, and should allow your twice a day feedings to occur closer to the peak. Keep in mind that room temperature also has a lot to do with the rate of fermentation, so if it's getting very warm where you live, using cooler water for feedings may also help to slow down fermentation. On the other hand, if it is very cool where you live and your starter lives in an environment that is constantly less than 70ºF, this may slowing it down.  The goal is to find a twice a day feeding routine at room temperature that works with your schedule and allows you to replenish your starter when it's at its peak, or just beginning to fall. 

Once your starter is rising predictably then you can consider it fully mature and ready for baking bread. When you're not baking it's fine to give your starter another feeding, let it sit out for 2-4 hours (a little longer for the smaller starter), and store it in the refrigerator for a week or even longer. Just keep in mind that the longer the starter has been stored in the refrigerator, the more twice a day room temperature feedings it will need after refrigeration to bring it back to full vitality in preparation for bread baking. 

I hope this helps! Let us know how it goes. 

Barb

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