Question:
Dear Rabbis,
When throwing away tin foil on Shabbat, is it permissible to crumple the tin foil into a ball before throwing it out or is this considered creating some kind of shape? Thank you.
Answer:
Hello,
It depends why you are rolling it up. If it is merely in order to save space, then it is permitted because you aren't interested in making it any specific shape. However if you want to actually throw it into the garbage can from far away, and want to make it specifically into the shape of a ball, (for your one-time basketball practice) then making it into a ball would be considered fashioning it into a special shape.
Best wishes
