Chapter 4:

Bedikat Chametz (Checking for Chametz)

1. What is Bedikat Chametz?

To ensure that we do not violate the prohibition against possessing chametz on Pesach,¹ the sages instituted Bedikat Chametz, a rabbinical obligation to check for chametz on the eve of the 14^th of Nisan.

Distinction between Real Estate and Other Property

1. The verse says regarding removing chametz "תשביתו שאור מבתיכם" that the obligation is to “remove chametz from your houses” (Mibateichem.) Some halachic authorities explain that the verse teaches that the primary obligation to remove chametz from your possession pertains to real estate.² According to this understanding, the rabbinic obligation of checking for chametz on the 14^th of Nisan applies primarily regarding real estate that one owns or rents (including one’s home and other property such as an office that one owns.)³
2. It is therefore prudent to complete your check of other forms of property in advance (items such as your car, your clothing, and your workspace), and one should refrain from bringing additional chametz there between the time of checking and Pesach.

Multiple Properties

If you own multiple properties, there is an obligation of bedika on each property. If no one Jewish will be residing at the property during Pesach, sell the residence before the 14^th per the details above (Chapter 3:6.)

Checking in Advance of the 14^th

One may begin checking and clearing chametz out of a part of your owned/rented real estate in advance. However, to properly fulfill the rabbinical obligation to check the night before Pesach and be able to say the bracha on bedika, one should leave at least a significant part of the house (e.g., an entire room where chametz is normally brought during the year) unchecked until that night.⁴

Checking via an Agent

You may appoint a responsible Jewish agent to check on your behalf.⁵

Start of Bedika

1. On Pesach eve, one should stop engaging in other activities, including any cleaning for Pesach, at nightfall (Tzeit Hakochavim - 42 minutes after sunset in Philadelphia), recite the blessing on the bedika, and begin the ritual practice.⁶
2. To start the bedika, say the blessing,⁷ begin checking with a candle, and check and clean the entire house according to the guidelines detailed below (#7-11.)
3. While it is customary to begin the bedika with a candle, one should use the lights in their home and/or flashlights afterwards, because locating chametz with these lights is much more effective, and because a candle poses fire safety risks (such as in clothing closets.)⁸
4. It is inadvisable to put out 10 pieces of bread to check for chametz unless one has an established family custom to do so, because of the risk of losing a piece. This custom is unnecessary because the mitzvah is to check for chametz, not to find it.⁹ Additionally, as we will see in the next section, it is unnecessary to put a piece of chametz in an area where you do not typically bring chametz, since there is no obligation to check that type of area anyway.

Bedika Priorities: Introduction

1. In most cases, the bedika process can be completed in no more than one hour, so long as one prioritizes their time properly, as I will explain.¹⁰
2. One should focus one’s efforts on the areas which are necessary to check and the methods necessary to check according to halacha and not treat all areas with equal urgency. This is a prudent approach which speeds up the bedika procedure, so that one may focus on other important last-minute holiday and personal matters, including being well rested for the seder.¹¹ Therefore, it is judicious to prepare as much as possible prior to the night of the 14^th.
3. To make this process easier, if it is within one’s budget, it is acceptable, and even recommended, to use hired help to clean one’s home according to the guidelines below, under your specific direction, supervision, and/or inspection.
4. To facilitate efficient and effective checking, it is recommended to divide up the home into four categories, which correspond to the level of checking which is required.

Category One: Areas Which Are NOT Owned/Rented Real Estate

1. This category includes one’s car, clothing, and unowned or unrented workspace. The primary reason for checking these areas is not because of the obligation to check the night before Pesach (Bedikat chametz), which we have explained might only be for owned/rented real estate,¹² but rather to ensure you will not inadvertently eat chametz found there during Pesach.
2. As we stated earlier in this chapter, these areas should ideally be checked in advance, prior to the 14^th, if possible, to minimize your list of tasks as Pesach approaches.
3. In considering what chametz needs to be found and disposed of, it is helpful to be mindful about one’s personal habits regarding which foods are likely to be eaten. I usually give a Cheerio or a piece of a Twix or KitKat bar as examples of what some people might want to eat if it did not appear soiled.¹³ It is usually unnecessary to vacuum your car or undergo an expensive car cleaning to find and dispose of such items in your car.¹⁴
4. Once you check each area in advance, be certain not to bring chametz there anymore so that the area retains a similar status to “Makom she-ain machnisim bo chametz” (a place into which one does not bring chametz)¹⁵ at the time of bedikat chametz, an area one is not obligated to check, as per the next section.

Category Two: Areas in Owned/Rented Real Estate where you Rarely¹⁶ Bring Chametz, and There is no Reason to Believe Chametz Would be Found There. (Makom She-ain Machnisim Bo Chametz)

This depends on one’s habit, but some common examples of this kind of space in the home are the bathroom, attic, or basement. If you rarely bring chametz into these rooms, and you have no reason to believe edible chametz will be found there, you have no obligation to check these areas, and you can cross them off your list.¹⁷

Category Three: An Area Outside the Kitchen Where One Sometimes/Regularly Brings Chametz, and There is a Concern That Edible Chametz May Be Found in that Area.

1. A separate dining area (outside the kitchen) would clearly fall into this third category as would an area such as a bedroom if you like to eat in bed. However, note that you need not check an entire room if there is only one section where you typically bring the chametz. For example, if you do eat chametz in your bedroom but only in bed, you need not check the sock drawer at all. In this example, the sock drawer would be in the second category above, i.e., an area where you never bring chametz.¹⁸
2. In this third category, in most circumstances one only needs to check for pieces considered a “gluska yafeh” or larger (see above¹⁹ – approximately the size of a Cheerio and possibly edible.) You do not have to check for crumbs in these areas.
3. However, in a dining room, there is a realistic concern of mixing crumbs of chametz into your food, so one must be mindful to clean in a way that would prevent such mixing.²⁰ For example, in most circumstances one should store away any booklets (such as the “bentchers”) used regularly at the dining table because they usually cannot be adequately cleaned of chametz crumbs.²¹
4. All surfaces of areas where food is eaten regularly, such as a dining table, and all objects, such as a candelabra tray, should be inspected for obvious chametz crumbs and wiped clean with astringent cleansers (such as Fantastic, Formula 409, Windex, Seventh Generation, etc.)²² Similarly, one should wash and/or vacuum the floors to remove any edible pieces of chametz that fell on the floor.
5. In most cases, inspecting and cleaning the areas of your house outside the kitchen according to the guidelines above should not take more than a few minutes, no matter how large your home is.

Category Four: The Kitchen

1. This is the area which must be given the highest priority because it is where food is prepared.
2. Crumbs: As noted in the previous section, one must be very careful not to have even one crumb of edible chametz on surfaces where you eat or prepare food, for fear it might fall into food that you eat or prepare on Pesach, thereby making that food rabbinically prohibited.²³
3. Since one would not mindlessly eat crumbs which are behind, in-between, or under appliances, the obligation to check does not apply in such places.²⁴
4. In the kitchen, where chametz is used throughout, it is good practice to be careful not to have edible chametz crumbs in your cabinets, refrigerator, and other places where you store, prepare, or cook food. A legitimate approach to dealing with this issue would be to use an astringent cleanser that would render any crumbs inedible. Cleaning all your countertops, refrigerator(s), cabinets, and stovetop with such a cleanser would eliminate concern of crumbs falling into your food on Pesach.²⁵
5. It is best to put aside all chametz items that will be sold, and clearly label cabinets, closets etc., as such, or store it in labeled bags/containers in cabinets, refrigerator/freezer, etc., so that there will be no inadvertent use.²⁶
6. It is also advisable to sweep and/or wash all floor space in the kitchen.²⁷