Question:
If my family will be checking into an air bnb for the last days of pesach what are the cleaning/covering/Kashering requirements? I will not have access to the apartment until chol hamoed . It will be clean but not kashered when I arrive. I plan to bring my own cooked food and hot plate but will need to use their fridge. Thank you!
Answer:
Thank you for your question.
There are a number of things that you should do.
- Before entering the room, make a statement that any chametz that is in the room is not your and you do not want to acquire it in any way, even though you are renting the room.
- After entering the room, you have to check the whole area for chametz. This is because any place that a person will be during Pesach needs to be checked for chametz. Even if the chametz isn’t yours, it is still possible that it might get eaten by mistake. Therefore, as soon as you get to the hotel, check your room, the fridge, etc. for chametz. This is even if you arrive there during the daytime, since it is already during the time that we may not benefit or eat chametz.
- The fridge should be wiped out to make sure that there aren’t any crumbs on the shelves, walls. Any areas where food will be put down, in the fridge, counters, table, should be covered, so that the food doesn’t come in contact with the chometz surface.
- Koshering at this point isn’t really a practical option in your situation. Therefore, utensils should not be placed in the sink, and make sure surfaces that will come in contact with food are covered with a liquid proof cover so that no liquid from the chometz counter etc., can come in contact with food or any liquid that may spill on the counter etc.
Have a happy and kosher Passover
