5601Lisa
Good advice above. Lisa - the first plant is dead. Leaves are gone and the base looks horrible. There is no way to help it. When Phals have serious root problems, it can take as long as a year or more to get them to recover. Been there. Done that. If they have essentially no roots, it can take more than a year. There is nothing you as an amateur can do to get them to grow new leaves
Roots should never be brown, black or dried up. They should be white or green or in between and should be plump. If your plant has not been watered for a while, roots can take on different colors. Always check after watering before removing any.
If I succumb and pick up a "rescue" orchid at Lowes or whatever, as soon as I get it home, I repot it immediately in bark. I know a lot of advice says never do that with a blooming Phal. Well - if you leave it in the media it most likely is in - packed in moss that is soaking wet - your plant will go down hill until you get the moss OUT. I have seen that stuff packed so tightly inside the root zone - it is amazing. And if you leave that crud in there - the Phal will DIE.
If you must keep your plant mostly vertical, always ensure that the crown area is DRIED after you water it. Water collecting in the crown area (where the leaves join) will lead to Crown Rot and yer Phal will DIE. Been there - done that. Use a paper towel to soak up the excess water.
And regardless of how well you care for your Phals, some will die. You are not an orchid grower til you have killed several.
Don't let this set back get you upset. Happens to the best of us. In my first 5 or so Phals, I killed 3. Lessons learned. Now I have 19 Phals and another 9 Keiki babies. Have not lost a Phal in over a year.
Not mentioned above is the use of Physan or Consan. Once a year or so, I flush my Phals with a solution of those. When I repot, I clean out a pot with the solution and soak my bark in it. Good stuff and lasts a long time. When trimming roots, I dip my tools in alcohol and then the solution.
Good luck. Hope you come to enjoy them. Right now, I have ~ 13 flower spikes forming on mine and 2 are in bloom.
