I would also mention something that people don't often talk about.

Although hard stools are generally looked down upon, I would mention that there is an up-side in the context of mercury detox in that they contain (isolate and hold onto) the mercury they contain better helping to prevent reabsorption of the mercury, whereas, loose, watery stools will present more surface area to the colon lining and promote reabsorption.

I'm not saying that hard stools are good, but in the context of mercury detox, finding a balance may be a good thing, at least until a good portion of detox is complete.

Algin is unbelieveably absorbant, which is a good thing (it holds onto toxins, like mercury), but those who take it should drink a lot of water to compensate, but I would not drink a lot of water at the same time as taking the algin. Drink only the water necessary to get the algin down at the time you take it.

When you increase your water intake (at least 1 hour away from the times you take algin), this water will hydrate the lymphatic system and help promote detoxification (which may make you feel worse for a little while), but when the liver dumps the mercury into the intestines (the liver needs water to work), the algin needs to be available to absorb it. Then, if the algin dries up a little making stools a little harder, this may enable it to hold onto the mercury better.

I believe the game here is balance. With too little water, the frequency of movements decreases which will increase the chances that mercury gets reabsorbed. With too much water, stools are so soft that there is a much larger degree of surface area contact with the colon lining increasing reabsorbtion. So the ideal situation is to keep movement frequency up while keeping stools medium in dryness.

It's a little hard to explain so I hope this makes sense.