diff --git a/core/archipelago/src/api/rpc/package/dependencies.rs b/core/archipelago/src/api/rpc/package/dependencies.rs
index f6f1a24f..fdb80014 100644
--- a/core/archipelago/src/api/rpc/package/dependencies.rs
+++ b/core/archipelago/src/api/rpc/package/dependencies.rs
@@ -206,19 +206,24 @@ pub(super) fn check_install_deps(package_id: &str, deps: &RunningDeps) -> Result
             "BTCPay Server requires a running Bitcoin node (Bitcoin Knots). \
              Please install and start Bitcoin Knots first."
         )),
-        "mempool" | "mempool-web" if !deps.has_bitcoin || !deps.has_electrumx => {
-            let mut missing = vec![];
-            if !deps.has_bitcoin {
-                missing.push("Bitcoin Knots");
-            }
-            if !deps.has_electrumx {
-                missing.push("ElectrumX");
-            }
-            Err(anyhow::anyhow!(
-                "Mempool requires {} to be running. Please install and start {} first.",
-                missing.join(" and "),
-                missing.join(" and ")
-            ))
+        "mempool" | "mempool-web" if !deps.has_bitcoin => Err(anyhow::anyhow!(
+            "Mempool requires Bitcoin Knots to be running. \
+             Please install and start Bitcoin Knots first."
+        )),
+        // ElectrumX is deliberately NOT a hard gate for mempool: mempool-api
+        // reconnects to electrum on its own (verified live — it retries
+        // ECONNREFUSED in a loop and comes good when electrum starts
+        // listening), and an ElectrumX mid-resync can be legitimately down
+        // for DAYS. The hard gate here blocked repeated mempool installs on
+        // .116 (2026-07-22) while electrumx was compacting. Block/fee views
+        // work from bitcoind immediately; address lookups light up when
+        // ElectrumX finishes.
+        "mempool" | "mempool-web" if !deps.has_electrumx => {
+            info!(
+                "Mempool installing while ElectrumX is not running — \
+                 mempool-api reconnects automatically once ElectrumX is up"
+            );
+            Ok(())
         }
         "fedimint" if !deps.has_bitcoin => {
             info!("Fedimint installing without local Bitcoin node — configure remote Bitcoin RPC in Fedimint guardian setup");
@@ -298,9 +303,10 @@ fn missing_install_deps(package_id: &str, deps: &RunningDeps) -> Vec<MissingDep>
             if !deps.has_bitcoin {
                 missing.push(BITCOIN);
             }
-            if !deps.has_electrumx {
-                missing.push(ELECTRUM);
-            }
+            // ElectrumX intentionally not required — see check_install_deps:
+            // mempool-api reconnects when electrum comes up, and a resyncing
+            // ElectrumX can be down for days (the 3-minute bounded wait here
+            // would still fail the install for no benefit).
         }
         // fedimint deliberately absent: check_install_deps allows it without
         // a local Bitcoin node (remote RPC configured in guardian setup).
@@ -1111,7 +1117,11 @@ mod tests {
         }
 
         #[tokio::test]
-        async fn mempool_waits_on_both_bitcoin_and_electrumx() {
+        async fn mempool_waits_on_bitcoin_only() {
+            // ElectrumX is deliberately NOT gated (2026-07-22): a resyncing
+            // ElectrumX can be down for days and mempool-api reconnects on
+            // its own, so the wait only covers Bitcoin — even when electrumx
+            // is installed and stopped.
             let calls = Arc::new(AtomicU32::new(0));
             let (labels, sink) = label_sink();
             let probe_calls = Arc::clone(&calls);
@@ -1119,8 +1129,8 @@ mod tests {
                 "mempool",
                 move || {
                     let n = probe_calls.fetch_add(1, Ordering::SeqCst);
-                    // Bitcoin comes up on probe 2, electrumx on probe 3.
-                    async move { Ok(probe(n >= 1, n >= 2, &["bitcoin-knots", "electrumx"])) }
+                    // Bitcoin comes up on probe 2; electrumx never does.
+                    async move { Ok(probe(n >= 1, false, &["bitcoin-knots", "electrumx"])) }
                 },
                 sink,
                 36,
@@ -1131,22 +1141,19 @@ mod tests {
             let labels = labels.lock().unwrap();
             assert_eq!(
                 labels.as_slice(),
-                &[
-                    "Waiting for Bitcoin and ElectrumX to start…".to_string(),
-                    "Waiting for ElectrumX to start…".to_string(),
-                ]
+                &["Waiting for Bitcoin to start…".to_string()]
             );
         }
 
         #[tokio::test]
-        async fn mempool_fails_fast_when_one_dep_is_not_installed() {
-            // Bitcoin is installed (waiting could help) but ElectrumX is not
-            // installed at all — waiting can never satisfy the gate, so fail
-            // fast with the canonical message.
+        async fn mempool_fails_fast_when_bitcoin_is_not_installed() {
+            // Bitcoin isn't installed at all — waiting can never satisfy the
+            // gate, so fail fast with the canonical message. (A missing
+            // ElectrumX no longer blocks anything.)
             let (labels, sink) = label_sink();
             let err = wait_for_install_deps(
                 "mempool",
-                || async { Ok(probe(false, false, &["bitcoin-knots"])) },
+                || async { Ok(probe(false, false, &["electrumx"])) },
                 sink,
                 36,
                 Duration::ZERO,
diff --git a/core/archipelago/src/api/rpc/package/stacks.rs b/core/archipelago/src/api/rpc/package/stacks.rs
index 14995069..8e0a7ed9 100644
--- a/core/archipelago/src/api/rpc/package/stacks.rs
+++ b/core/archipelago/src/api/rpc/package/stacks.rs
@@ -12,7 +12,11 @@ use tracing::info;
 
 use super::install::{install_log, patch_indeedhub_nostr_provider};
 
-const PODMAN_STACK_PROBE_TIMEOUT: Duration = Duration::from_secs(10);
+// 45s, not 10s: under heavy disk load (e.g. an ElectrumX resync/compaction
+// hammering the same SSD) a plain `podman ps` was observed taking >10s on
+// .116 (2026-07-22), failing a mempool install at the probe step for no real
+// reason. Podman being slow is not podman being dead.
+const PODMAN_STACK_PROBE_TIMEOUT: Duration = Duration::from_secs(45);
 const PODMAN_STACK_LOG_TIMEOUT: Duration = Duration::from_secs(15);
 const PODMAN_STACK_PULL_TIMEOUT: Duration = Duration::from_secs(600);
 const PODMAN_STACK_REMOVE_TIMEOUT: Duration = Duration::from_secs(90);