DailyHalacha.com for Mobile Devices Now Available

Click Here to Sponsor Daily Halacha
"Delivered to Over 6000 Registered Recipients Each Day"

      
(File size: 598 KB)
Performing Netilat Yadayim with Cloudy Water

Halacha requires that when one washes his hands before partaking of bread, he must use clear water (Orach Hayim, Siman 160:1). The question thus arises in situations where the water appears "cloudy" when it first comes from the tap, whether a person must wait for the water to clear before performing Netilat Yadayim.

Rabbi Yitzchak Weiss (Galicia-Israel, 1902-1989), in his work Minchat Yitzchak, in Helek 9 Siman 13, addresses this question. He rules that preferably one should wait a few minutes until the water clears up and then make Netilat Yadayim. He concedes, however, that if one used the water while it was cloudy, BeDiavad he doesn’t have to wash again. However, Hacham Ben Tzion Abba Shaul in Ir L’Tzion, Helek 2, Peek 11:7, rules leniently even Lechatchila. This leniency is also the ruling of Hacham Ovadia Yoseph in Halichot Olam, Helek 1, page 336.

As for the final Halacha, one may perform Netilat Yadayim with water that appears cloudy upon leaving the tap, and does not have to wait, but it is nevertheless preferable to wait a minute or so to allow the water to become clear before washing one's hands, in order to satisfy all opinions.

 


Recent Daily Halachot...
Koser – Detaching Vegetation on Shabbat
Shabbat – Wearing Fine Clothes; Greeting the Shabbat When Reciting “Bo’i Kalla”
Placing a Lemon in Hot Water on Shabbat
May a Hotel Guest Drink Coffee That Was Prepared on Shabbat?
If One Realizes There is Something in His Pocket While Walking Outside on Shabbat
Asking a Gentile to Turn Off an Alarm on Shabbat
"Amira Le'nochri" – Asking a Gentile to Perform Melacha on Shabbat
Looking in a Mirror on Shabbat
Hiring a Non-Jew for Agricultural Work on Shabbat
Borer – Pouring Out the Liquid From Yoghurt Container or a Can of Olives
Laws of Borer That Apply When Preparing and Eating a Vegetable Salad
Borer – How Long Before a Meal May One Separate Foods?
Borer- Peeling Onions, Garlic and Fruits on Shabbat
Is it Permissible to Remove the Bones While Eating Fish on Shabbat?
Peeling Fruits and Vegetables on Shabbat and Yom Tob
Page of 239
3585 Halachot found