Spring 2026

Boneh, the melacha of building, is not just for the lumberyard. It has many applications in the kitchen. Cheesemaking and churning butter are boneh.[1] Shaping egg salad and smoothing chopped liver can be boneh as well.[2] It can even apply to household appliances: according to some poskim, attaching a magnet to a refrigerator on Shabbos with the intention of leaving it there long-term is prohibited because of boneh.[3]

Recently, STAR-K certified a line of Gaggenau ovens without handles. Instead, they open electronically at the push of a button. In Sabbath Mode, this feature is deactivated and the door must be opened without mechanical assistance. The manufacturer offers a detachable handle to make opening the oven easier.

If these handles snap or suction into place, they should not be attached on Shabbos, as a semi-permanent attachment may violate the prohibition of boneh. (They should also […]