Phal soggy roots. Leaves falling off
 

Hi, I got an orchid for a gift and it was love at first sight. after having a few months the leaves started falling off. I went to repot it and all the roots were soggy and brown. How can I save it?

You should be able to save it, though the roots are in rough shape. I would cut the dead roots off with a sterile pair of scissors (you can use rubbing alcohol to sterilize them) and nestle the plant in some decent quality moist sphagnum moss. Then cover the whole thing with an inverted ziplock bag to trap the humidity. This technique is commonly called the "sphag and bag" if you want more information, just google that or search this site for that term. Its generally used to aid in recovery of plants that experienced extensive root loss. Also, if you have it you could dust the bottom with root hormone as well before you put the plant in the moss. Im no expert so maybe others will chime in with suggestions as well.

It looks like a phalaenopsis. Healthy phal roots are thick and firm and have a greyish color when dry and are green when moist. You can find plenty of images for phal roots online. Cut off anything that doesnt look like the healthy roots in the pictures, as they will just rot and potentially spread the rot to other roots and even up the plant to the crown.

Phalaenopsis in trouble
 

I would remove it from any moisture and let it dry out for a couple of days before I do anything. It may be saved, but boy, it is in rough shape, I hate to say - :(.
RULE OF THUMB - Orchid + mushy roots (usually)= no orchid.
The stem will have to produce a new root with little intake of food or water ( due to the lack of other roots), so, once you pot it (after removing the root threads that are no longer active) I would be sure and dust it with cinnamon and maybe even a fungicide, as this little guy will probably have several openings for a pathogen to get in. Make sure your medium is sterile, dampen it and microwave it for about 3 minutes - make it steam good. And then, once repotted MIST your plant, don't water it for several weeks. It has had too much moisture at the roots and it needs to be forced into root production; a humid medium can do this; a wet medium will induce rot. A rooting hormone may be of assistance to you here as mentioned.
Best of luck - keep us updated.
Steve
:waving

I've heard a good medium to get plants to root is coconut husk chips (CHC). I have a Paph. gratrixianum seedling that had sparse but healthy roots and it loved the CHC and made lots of roots. Make sure you rinse the CHC really well before use.

Thanks everybody! I'll see what I can do for Ophelia (my orchid) and i'll try to post results...if there are any.