I,m a newbie as well & i did find the right watering really confusing(especially with Phals).I decided that i would water twice a week , once thouroughly on a Sunday & just a quick splash & dash on a Wednesday.This worked well for my Phals(my mums & aunties were fine as well) but i still didn,t really know if they needed watering.This is the main reason why i changed to s/h with clear pots.
My Mums & Aunties are still in med bark & are doing fine.They have just followed the regime i started.I don,t know if it,s anything to do with climate in the UK but Phals seem a lot easier to keep here