1. When should one begin building the Sukkah?
According to most opinions, one should begin on at the
departure of Yom Kippur in order to go immediately from
one mitzvah to another. If this is not possible, one
should begin the following morning. If this will not
leave him sufficient time to complete the Sukkah, one
may begin to build before Yom Kippur, but he should not
place the s'chach until after Yom Kippur. According to
some opinions, one should begin to build the Sukkah
before Yom Kippur, as an added merit.
2. When should one finish the construction?
Ideally, the Sukkah should be completed on the day after
Yom Kippur. However, if by doing so, the Sukkah will not
be built properly and sturdily, he should devote more
time to erect a better and more beautiful Sukkah.
3. May one build the Sukkah on erev Shabbat or erev Yom
Tov?
Yes, but one must stop building at halachic midday.
According to some opinions, one may continue to build
until mincha ketanah (two-and-a-half halachic hours
before sunset).
4. May one build a Sukkah on chol hamoed?
If a person did not build a Sukkah before Yom Tov, or if
he built one but it fell down, he may build one on chol
hamoed. If necessary, even skilled work (which is
usually forbidden on chol hamoed) is permitted in order
to fulfill the mitzvah, but if possible this type of
work should be avoided and the Sukkah should be a simple
construction.
5. Is anyone allowed to build a Sukkah?
Any person may build a Sukkah, including women and
children. However, it is a mitzvah for every man to
participate personally in the building, and whoever
toils and sweats with this task receives atonement for
serious sins. It is preferable not to ask a gentile to
build a Sukkah.
6. May one build a Sukkah anywhere?
A Sukkah must be built under the sky, with nothing
intervening between the s'chach and the sky. One must be
careful not to build a Sukkah under:
a roof
an overhanging balcony
a tree
protruding s'chach of another Sukkah
7. What if one part of the Sukkah is under the sky and
one part is not?
If the section under the sky has sufficient walls and
the minimum dimensions, the Sukkah is kosher.
Nevertheless, one may only eat in the part of the Sukkah
that is under the sky. Sometimes, the invalid section
may be included in calculating the size of the Sukkah
and a rabbi should be consulted.
8. May the Sukkah be built near a tree if the branches
sway over the s'chach in the wind?
Ideally, one should chop off these branches. If one did
not do so, the Sukkah is still kosher even when the
branches are swaying over the s'chach.
9. May one build a Sukkah underneath washing lines?
Yes. Since the lines are very narrow and there is space
between them, they do not invalidate the Sukkah. This is
true even when laundry is hanging from the lines.
However, if the laundry becomes entangled in the lines,
the area of the s'chach beneath is invalidated. In some
situations, this may invalidate the entire Sukkah.
10. May one build a Sukkah in a public area?
In Israel, this is allowed since permission is
automatically granted to use the street for this
purpose.
In the diaspora, one should ideally avoid doing this
unless specific permission is obtained from the
authorities. However, the custom is to be lenient in
this matter if no other area is available, especially if
the Sukkah is built close to the house.
11. May one build a Sukkah on soil or grass?
On soil is permitted, but it is forbidden to sweep the
floor on Shabbat and Yom Tov. It is therefore advisable
to cover the floor with some suitable flooring.
On grass is not advisable since it is difficult to avoid
spilling liquids on the grass on Shabbat and Yom Tov.
The grass should be covered with suitable flooring.
12. Does a Sukkah require a mezuzah?
Since a Sukkah is only a temporary dwelling, it does not
require a mezuzah.
13. What is the minimum size of a Sukkah?
The inside of the Sukkah must measure at least seven
tefachim long by seven tefachim wide. This is the
smallest area in which a person could reasonably be
expected to sit. (Even if the Sukkah is very long, it
must still measure at least seven tefachim wide.)
In practice, this means that the Sukkah should
preferably measure 70cm x 70cm. It is still kosher if it
measures only 56cm x 56cm.
The internal height should measure at least 1m, but it
is still kosher if it measures only 80cm.
14. What is the maximum size of a Sukkah?
There is no limit to the size of a Sukkah. In terms of
height, however, the s'chach must not be higher than 20
amot from the floor of the Sukkah (approx. 10 meters).
This is rarely applicable.
15. How many walls should a Sukkah have?
Strictly speaking, a Sukkah may be kosher even if it has
less than three complete walls. However, the custom is
to build a Sukkah with four complete walls to avoid
complications. In order of preference, a Sukkah should
have:
4 complete walls
3 complete walls
4 incomplete walls
3incomplete walls
16. From which materials should the walls be made?
The walls may be made from any sturdy material.
The walls must be strong enough to remain in position
when the wind blows. Therefore, sheets that flap may not
be used. Ideally, one should not even use sheets that
are firmly tied down on all sides, in case they become
detached and this goes unnoticed. If three walls are
made from sturdy materials, one may use sheets for the
fourth wall.
17. May one use sheets in extenuating circumstances?
If no alternatives are available, one may use sheets
that are tied down on all sides. In this situation, it
is preferable to tie several horizontal strings around
the Sukkah. These strings should be tied at intervals of
less than 24cm, to a height of at least 80cm (preferably
to a height of 1m). This method invokes a halachic
principle that considers the strings to be united to
form a solid wall. With such strings, the Sukkah is
kosher according to all opinions.
18. How high must the walls be?
The walls must be at least 80cm high (preferably 1m) but
do not need to reach the s'chach. It is perfectly
acceptable to support the s'chach on wooden posts etc,
if the walls are the minimum height. The remaining
spaces may be left open or filled with sheets or any
other material. In this situation, the s'chach should
preferably reach the line directly above the wall.
The walls do not need to touch the ground, but they must
not be raised more than 24cm above it.
19. Which materials may be used for s'chach?
The Torah requires one to use a material that satisfies
these three conditions:
it is vegetation
it is detached from the ground
it is incapable of becoming tamei
According to one opinion, the best s'chach is cut
branches of trees. This is hinted by the numerical value
of the word Sukkah (91) which is identical to that of
the word tree ('ilan').
20. Are all branches suitable?
Most are kosher, but one should not use the following
types:
branches whose leaves tend to shrivel, since it is
difficult to estimate how much s'chach is required
branches whose leaves tend to fall off into the Sukkah
branches that have an unpleasant smell
branches that are liable to contain flies or bugs that
may fall into the Sukkah.
21. May one cut branches from trees in the street or
countryside?
It is forbidden to fulfill a mitzvah through stealing.
Therefore, permission must be obtained before cutting
any such trees, unless one is certain that they are
ownerless.
22. May one use planks of wood for s'chach?
It is forbidden to use wide planks for s'chach, since
the Sukkah would then appear like a house. Therefore,
one may not use planks that are wider than 8cm, and
preferably not wider than 5cm. Narrow planks may be
used, although they are disqualified by some opinions.
23. May one use matting, wickerwork etc.?
When pieces of s'chach are interwoven or connected to
each other, they may be disqualified since they now may
be capable of becoming tamei. Since these laws are
complex, one should not use such matting or wickerwork
unless it has a reliable rabbinic supervision.
24. How much s'chach must be used?
One must use sufficient s'chach to cover the majority of
the area of the roof. In other words, the total area of
the open spaces must be less than the area covered.
If the s'chach is dense in some areas but sparse in
others, then the Sukkah is kosher if the following two
conditions are fulfilled:
the total area covered by s'chach is the majority of the
Sukkah
the densely covered area exceeds the sparsely covered
area
25. May one sit under a sparsely covered area?
Yes, unless the area measures seven by seven tefachim.
It is advisable to spread the s'chach evenly, so that
every part of the Sukkah is covered sufficiently.
26. May one cover the Sukkah with very dense s'chach?
There are several levels of permissibility:
Ideally, there should be sufficient spaces in the
s'chach that one will be able to see some stars at
night.
If not, there should be a few spaces that will allow in
a little sunlight during the day.
Even if there are no spaces at all the Sukkah is still
kosher. One may be lenient to do this in cold or windy
places, where a person may be tempted to leave the
Sukkah if there is insufficient s'chach.
If the s'chach is so dense that even rain cannot
penetrate, the Sukkah is invalid according to some
opinions, since it resembles a house.
27. Must the s'chach extend horizontally up to the
walls?
No, but the s'chach must reach within 24cm of the walls.
Nevertheless, one must not sit next to the wall under
the empty space, unless it is less than 20cm.
If the space between the s'chach and the wall is more
than 24cm, then the wall next to the space is invalid
and cannot be used as one of the three minimum walls. If
the s'chach reaches the other three walls then the
Sukkah is kosher, but if two walls are invalidated then
the entire Sukkah is invalid.
To correct such a situation of large gaps (more than
24cm) between the s'chach and the walls, one should fill
them in. Sheets, metal, boards or anything else may be
used, although these items may not be used as s'chach.
This method invokes a halachic principle called dofen
akumah -- a bent wall. We imagine that the wall of the
Sukkah extends upwards and then bends in horizontally
until it reaches the kosher s'chach. One may not sit
under this area of the Sukkah, but only under the kosher
s'chach.
This method is permitted provided that the non-kosher
s'chach is less than 1.92m wide on at least three sides,
and the area of kosher s'chach is at least seven by
seven tefachim. This situation is common when making a
Sukkah indoors under a removable section of the ceiling.
28. May one place the s'chach on a metal frame?
This should be avoided. Just as the s'chach itself must
not be capable of becoming tamei, similarly the supports
of the s'chach should not be capable of becoming tamei.
Therefore, the s'chach should preferably be placed on
wooded beams. In extenuating circumstances, one may use
anything as supports for the s'chach. Similarly, if one
visits a Sukkah whose s'chach rests on a metal frame,
one may eat there and recite the b'racha for the Sukkah.
29. What if the wooden support beams rest on a metal
frame?
This is permitted since the metal frame is only a
secondary support to the primary wooden supports.
According to some opinions, this is true only if the
wooden beams are actually assisting in the support of
the s'chach (i.e. the removal of the wooden beams would
cause the s'chach to fall down). If after removing the
wooden beams the s'chach would still rest on the metal
frame, the metal frame is considered to be the primary
support according to this opinion.
30. May one tie or nail the s'chach to the wooden
supports?
One should avoid using string or nails to support the
s'chach. If a person is afraid that the s'chach may
slide off or be blown away in a normal wind, he should
not tie or nail it down since this is considered a
primary support. Rather, he should place heavy planks of
wood or branches over the s'chach, since they qualify as
kosher s'chach. The planks or branches may be tied or
nailed down since the string or nails would then be
considered a secondary support. Alternatively, he may
tie down the s'chach with vegetation, such as palm
leaves, twigs etc. If the s'chach would not be blown
away except in an unusually strong wind, it may be tied
down even with string. In extenuating circumstances, the
s'chach may be tied down with string, even if it may
blow away in a normal wind.
31. Must the walls be built before the s'chach?
Yes, the walls must be constructed before the s'chach is
put in place. If the s'chach is placed on a frame and
then the walls built, the Sukkah is invalid and the
s'chach should be raised and lowered. Similarly, if one
needs to use the 'bent wall' method, the 'bent wall'
must be constructed before the s'chach is placed.
Excerpted from "Guidelines - Succos" - 400 commonly
asked questions about Succos (Targum/Feldheim). |
|
Aharon's Jewish Books and Judaica
600 South Holly Street Suite 103
Denver, Colorado 80246
303-322-7345
800-830-8660
Map to Aharon's Jewish Books and Judaica
Store Hours
Monday through Thursday 9 AM to 6 PM
Friday 9 AM to 2 PM
Sunday 9 AM to 4 PM |
| |
|
|