The bathroom does not need a doorway, as you correctly presume, and accordingly, the corridor leading into it does not require one either. It is considered "the corridor to the bathroom," and it is not associated with the living room.((Agur B'Ohalecha 19:12-14, based...
You are correct that camping tents are exempt from Mezuzah placement. This is because the Torah writes to place Mezuzot on the doorways of one’s “house.” As strong and well-furnished as your camping tent may be, and though you may live in it for a month at a time with...
You have asked a complicated question, and the answer is no less complicated.[1] It is questionable if an elevator requires a mezuzah at all, and opinion differ on the matter. The standard elevator is comprised of two parts: the moving compartment and the outer...
One of the Rambam’s Ten Principles of the Mezuzah is that the dwelling must be permanent in order to be obligated. The definition of a permanent dwelling as that it one lives within it for at least a month, while it is in the same location.[1] Caravans are not...
A stand-alone sukkah is exempt from mezuzah as it is a temporary dwelling.[1] The status of a room that one dwells in year-round and replaces its ceiling on Sukkot with schach is a matter of controversy. Some authorities write that during Sukkot it is deemed a...
A bedroom is a living area that serves a variety of dignified functions. It therefore requires a mezuzah even though people sometimes expose themselves while getting dressed in the room or a young child’s dirty diapers are changed there.[1] However, the mezuzah should...
In that case, even if the space between them is more than four tefachim, only one mezuzah is necessary. The inner door should get the mezuzah: Since it opens onto a large room, it has a clear Torah obligation, whereas the obligation of a small beit sha’ar may be...
If the space between the two doorframes is more than four tefachim, you would need two mezuzot: The area between the two doors has the special status of a beit sha’ar (gate-house) and thus needs a mezuzah even though it is not four by four amot sq. If the space is...
Yes. Since there is no division between the entrance and the living room, the whole area is considered one large room. The outer door, then, is the door for the whole area, and is fully qualified for a mezuzah with a berachah.[1] [1] Agur B’ohalecha 36:38.
Yes. The Gemara calls this area a beit sha’ar, literally a gate-house. Although it does not meet the minimum size of a living space, since it serves as a passage into a living area, it needs a mezuzah without a berachah.[1] Commonly, people like to put their...
In some small kitchens, fixtures such as washing machines, ovens, sinks and cupboards can diminish the size of the floor space to below the minimal area. However, according to most authorities, these items enhance the functionality of the room, and thus are not looked...
A walk-in closet that is four by four amot requires a mezuzah on the right side of one entering it.(()) If its area is sixteen amot sq., but it is long and narrow (e.g. two by eight amot), a mezuzah is placed there without a berachah. If a walk-in closet is less than...
The Sages determined that a room smaller than four by four amot does not meet the minimal criteria of a dwelling suitable for human habitation, and it is thus exempt from many halachic considerations including mezuzah obligation.[1] The room need not be a perfect...
The room does not serve a dignified purpose and is therefore exempt.[1] [1] Kuntres HaMezuzah 286:103; Sha’arei HaMezuzah 2:11.
The Gemara states that when one rents a dwelling, he only becomes obligated after thirty days.[1] The obligation in a rental is of rabbinical origin. [Note: This Gemara is referring to a dwelling outside Israel. In Israel, one is obligated even on the first day of...
The maid’s quarters you have seen probably are separate residences designated for workers as long as they are employed. That space is her personal dwelling, even though the employer might own all the furniture. As such, her doorways are exempt from mezuzah. However, a...
Indeed, many authorities exempt dorm rooms from mezuzah. They reason that a student is not considered the “renter” of his particular room since he is paying only for accommodation in general. In fact, the University could move students from room to room, if necessary....
Most authorities rule that contemporary laundry rooms require a mezuzah.[1] Firstly, most people no longer launder cloth diapers. Moreover, even if the children soil their clothing, the dirty laundry is only present in the room for a short time.[2] They also observe...
The Shulchan Aruch rules that a storage room requires a mezuzah, and this is accepted practice. In a normal case, the custom is even to make a berachah on the placement.[1] Even though the owner or renter does not “live” there, it is considered to be an extension of...
No. A bedroom is a multi-purpose room. The fact that people bathe and change in it does not turn it into a “bath-house,” and it is therefore obligated to have a mezuzah.[1] Likewise, even though the room contains a toilet, it also has many other uses and is therefore...
Yes. Even if the room was a mere cubicle, and none of its walls reached the ceiling, it would be obligated with a berachah, if the wall is at least ten tefachim high and the door itself has a lintel. This is common in home offices.[1] [1] Mezuzot Beitecha 286:14:54;...
Commonly, a company reserves the right to reallocate offices at its discretion. Unless you are renting the space, or you have been formally designated a permanent room, you are exempt from any obligation.[1] [1] Shulchan Aruch 286:1.
The status of an office in terms of mezuzah is a matter of halachic controversy. Indeed, many authorities rule that it only needs a mezuzah if the owner or renter lives in the office day and night.[1] It is also not a storage area because even if it has a desk, a...
Let me give you a little background. The Talmud says clearly that a store in a marketplace does not require a mezuzah. This is even codified by the Shulchan Aruch. However, the Acharonim point out that these “stores” were actually temporary booths set up in what we...
The Talmud writes that one who rents a property in the Diaspora is obligated to put up mezuzot after thirty days. Many authorities argue that a bungalow is no different than any other property rented for more than thirty days.((Agur B’ohalaecha 31:3; Sha’arei...
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