HI Gina, are you making our recipe for sourdough starter? Are you measuring by cups or by weight? For this starter routine a typical feeding looks like this: 1/2 cup (113g) starter + 1/2 cup (113g) water + 1 scant cup (113g) unbleached all-purpose flour. The consistency right after a feeding should be thick and pasty, but still fairly easy to stir. As it ferments it should thin out in texture, and as it begins to rise it will become more airy and take on the consistency of a thick and bubbly pancake batter. It does sound like your starter may be a bit thinner than this, which could be contributing to the separation you're seeing. Unfortunately it's not uncommon for starters to hit a lull in rising that can go on for several days (or even weeks in some cases). The good news is that patience almost always wins out when it comes to sourdough starters, but it's possible that altering your feeding routine may speed things up a bit. Try putting your starter in a slightly warmer location (75-80F) if your home is cool, and consider adopting this feeding routine:

1. Feed only once a day.

2. Feed with whole-grain flour (whole wheat or whole rye) rather than all-purpose

3. Feed with a ratio of 2:1:1 (starter:water:flour, by weight). For example, for our starter recipe this adjusted feeding routine would look like this: 1/2 cup (113g) starter + 1/4 cup (57g) water + 1/2 cup (57g) whole-grain flour. 

This modified recipe is meant to increase the acidity of your starter, which may help encourage the wild yeast to join the party. Once the starter begins rising predictably (twice), then you'll want to resume twice a day feedings (which will further promote yeast activity) and gradually transition back to feeding with all-purpose flour over the course of several feedings. You can also up your feeding amounts at this point to line up closer with the 1:1:1 (starter:water:flour, by weight) we recommend in our original recipe. 

Since there are so many unknown variable with your particular starter, it's hard to know if this is the right solution for you, so if you're able to give our Baker's Hotline a call at 855-371-2253, we can troubleshoot a bit more precisely. We're here M-F from 9am-9pm EST, and Saturday and Sunday from 9am-5pm EST. 

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