Phal Orchid Watering Problems?

[Laura Bean]

Help! I am new to growing orchids, and I'm stumped as to what I am doing wrong. Every time I water my Orchids, one or more flowers start to wilt within hours and fall off within a couple days. I've slowed down my frequency of thorough watering to about once a week (I mist the roots every couple of days), but it still happens. In the meantime, my roots look awful, shriveled and dried up. The leaves are all still fine though, so I'm thoroughly confused. Any suggestions would be much appreciated, because at this point I'm feeling like a very slow orchid serial killer. I've attached a picture of my terrible roots. Thanks in advance!

[jennyki]

for me the best way to check when to water an orchid is to use a pencil and stick it into the mix for 5 minutes and if the pencil is moist i would leave it a few more days but if it appear dry, i would water it.. btw is this a new orchid u bought? if it is.. flower wilting it kinda normal since it could be possible that the bloom is there for quite a while..

[Laura Bean]

I've had two of the orchids for about three months and the other one I've had for one month. My other orchids aren't acting this way. I will try that tip with the pencil, thank you.
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---------- Post added at 07:26 AM ---------- Previous post was at 07:23 AM ----------

Oh I should add that even though all of my orchids start new little buds, not a single one has flowered. They either just stop or wither and fall off.
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[Brutal_Dreamer]

I've had two of the orchids for about three months and the other one I've had for one month. My other orchids aren't acting this way. I will try that tip with the pencil, thank you.
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---------- Post added at 07:26 AM ---------- Previous post was at 07:23 AM ----------

Oh I should add that even though all of my orchids start new little buds, not a single one has flowered. They either just stop or wither and fall off.
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could be a temperature issue causing bud drop.
cheers,
BD

[cindiras]

Could be tap water. Hah! (I use tap water on my phals). I water about once every 7 to 10 days. The pot goes into a bucket of water and sits 10 to 30 minutes, then gets pulled out to drain for 30 minutes, then popped back into its place near the window. I don't mist so the air roots will dry out. One of my phals has been blooming sequentially since lat June, and is still going.