Siman 630 – Sukka Walls

וChelek 6

47. Walls can be made from any material even if they allow in a flood of sunlight. Still, l’chatchila don’t use material that has a bad odor or one that shrinks to less than the required size. (ShA 1)

48. A baal nefesh should be machmir not to support the schach directly upon walls that are not kasher schach material (deoraisa) – this is a fence so you don’t come to use them as schach itself. (BeH “kul”)

49. Don’t make a sukka near a garbage dump or an (unofficial) bathroom if you can smell or see it. If you have no other option, you can fulfil your mitzva of sukka but do not bentch there. (MB 4)

50. If you have two parallel walls, the third wall that runs perpendicular to them should be 7 tefachim long and no further tikkun is necessary. It is still noi to make a tzuras hapesach to connect it to the parallel walls. (Rama 3)

51. There is a leniency for a sukka with 4 walls to allow gaps of 3 tefachim (until 10 amos) for the majority of its circumference. The Mogen Avraham says that if you only have three walls, they must be solid and lovud doesn’t work.(ShA 5 – MB 22)

52. Do not make entrances in all of the corners of the sukka .At least two walls must connect. If they are within three tefachim they are considered connected through lavud.(Rama 5 – MB 25 – BeH “ki”)

53. The custom today is to make solid walls and not to rely upon halachic tricks. If you do not have enough material for 4 solid walls, rather make 3 solid walls then 4 incomplete walls. The only open space should be for the entrance. (Rama 5 – MB 28)

54. Mahara”sh would keep the order of the wooden sukka walls the same every single year. He would mark which one goes to the next, similar to the beams that made up the walls of the Mishkan.(BaH 6)

55. The walls do not have to reach vertically up to the schach. As long as the schach is directly above the wall, its kasher. You can even rely on lovud horizontally and place the schach within 3 tefachim away from over the wall. (ShA 9)

56. If the wall is suspended 3 tefachim or more above the ground, it is possul. (MB 45)

57. A wall that would blow back and forth with a common wind is not kasher even if the sukka stands in a courtyard that blocks all winds. (ShA 10 – MB 48)

58. It is not proper to make even one wall out of a curtain that is tightly tied down. We are concerned lest it becomes detached and therefore flappable in the wind without you noticing. The fourth wall is allowed to be a curtain with no concern. (ShA 10 – MB 50)

59. If you want to have curtains for walls, have a back-up plan: stick in 10-tefach poles around the perimeter of (at least 3 walls of ) the sukka within 3 tefachim of each other. The wind won’t blow them down. (ShA 10 – MB 51)

60. On Chol Hamoed you can use your friend as a wall to make the sukka kashera. On Yom Tov it is mutar to do this as long as you do not tell your friend why he needs to stand there.(ShA 12)

61. You aren’t allowed to make a sukka become kashera on Yom Tov. It is forbidden under the prohibition of making a temporary ohel. But to put a fourth wall into place is allowed. (MB 57 – ShaH 53)

62. The top of your bed does not need to be 10 tefachim below the schach. 10 tefachim is measured from the floor. (ShA 13)