diff --git a/core/archipelago/src/container/boot_reconciler.rs b/core/archipelago/src/container/boot_reconciler.rs
index d52bd3ed..a3e0f65a 100644
--- a/core/archipelago/src/container/boot_reconciler.rs
+++ b/core/archipelago/src/container/boot_reconciler.rs
@@ -96,6 +96,35 @@ impl BootReconciler {
             }
         }
 
+        // Companion self-heal runs on its OWN cadence, decoupled from the
+        // per-app reconcile pass. On a heavily loaded node `reconcile_existing`
+        // over dozens of apps can take well over a minute, which would delay a
+        // companion-unit repair (deleted/lost unit file) past any reasonable
+        // safety window. Detecting + rewriting a companion unit is cheap, so it
+        // gets a dedicated `interval` loop. The handle is aborted when the main
+        // loop exits (shutdown uses `notify_one`, so we must NOT add a second
+        // waiter on `self.shutdown` — it would steal the single wake permit).
+        let companion_handle = if self.companion_stage {
+            let orchestrator = self.orchestrator.clone();
+            let interval = self.interval;
+            Some(tokio::spawn(async move {
+                loop {
+                    let installed = orchestrator.manifest_ids().await;
+                    for (companion, err) in crate::container::companion::reconcile(&installed).await
+                    {
+                        tracing::warn!(
+                            companion = %companion,
+                            error = %err,
+                            "companion reconcile failed"
+                        );
+                    }
+                    time::sleep(interval).await;
+                }
+            }))
+        } else {
+            None
+        };
+
         // Initial pass: no delay.
         self.tick().await;
 
@@ -111,23 +140,15 @@ impl BootReconciler {
                 }
             }
         }
+
+        if let Some(handle) = companion_handle {
+            handle.abort();
+        }
     }
 
     async fn tick(&self) {
         let report = self.orchestrator.reconcile_existing().await;
         Self::log_report(&report);
-
-        if !self.companion_stage {
-            return;
-        }
-        let installed = self.orchestrator.manifest_ids().await;
-        for (companion, err) in crate::container::companion::reconcile(&installed).await {
-            tracing::warn!(
-                companion = %companion,
-                error = %err,
-                "companion reconcile failed"
-            );
-        }
     }
 
     fn log_report(report: &ReconcileReport) {