Hi Deanna, any water that is safe for you to drink should be fine for your sourdough starter, but if you're having difficulty with your soft water, it is possible that it's not providing enough minerals. You could try adding a little whole wheat flour along with the Unbleached All-Purpose (to provide a mineral boost), or if you have a faucet that still delivers hard water, use that for your sourdough starter. I'm hesitant to recommend purchasing water just for your starter, but it might be worth an experiment to try another water source, like spring water, to see if you have more luck. 

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