You absolutely positively cannot take this compound unless it is 100 % pure. So you can't just go on sigma chemicals and buy metheline blue, in other words, the methyline blue that's used out there for the purpose of dye dyes and coloursand thigs like that. You need farm a grate matle lo if you're ever going to take it. I don't find water only to be any harder, and i find the benefits so much greater. If it were ten per cent harder, but it was giving me twice benefit, it's just a no brainer.