Cameron, I went nuts and rescued another big Phal from Lowe's death rack this afternoon.
Thought you'd be interested to see the rescue/repotting. It was completely crackling dry on the top of the moss that was packed in the pot. It also had a plastic pot inside the nice clay pot you see in the picture. First I carefully removed the plastic pot. Some of the roots were stuck to it, and I did break one off removing the pot, but there are lots more.
Let me say up front that I grabbed this plant because despite the obvious problems, it has pretty nice healthy looking leaves, and a lot of new roots coming out of the moss at the top of the pot, reaching for the air! See the shiny roots with the brownish tips in the pictures? This is a good sign that the plant is fighting for life. Btw, I cut the holes in the side of the pot with a little wheel on the Dremel tool. Can't have too much air flow to the roots!
I pulled handful after handful of moss out, and it got wetter and wetter towards the middle of the lump. Last picture shows the 2 gallons of sphag that was stuffed in the pot. I soaked it to get the last dry bits off the top, then took the naked plant out and hosed it off gently with water that had sat in the hose all day - warmish. Also washed out the nice clay pot, and then brought it in and scrubbed it with soap and a little bleach, just in case of fungal infection. Dusted the damp roots with cinnamon, cut off a few brown ones, and now it's ready to put back into the pot with the crown on a slant, and nice new bark mix to let it's roots breathe. It's dark now, but in the morning I'll take a couple more pics. Nice big healthy plant for less than $4. Can't beat it.
This plant has had a good soaking tonight, so for a week to 10 days all it will get is a light misting of the leaves and aerial roots. Need to let the lower roots dry out and heal up.
