Netilas Yadayim - Leaking Cup

QUESTION: I noticed that the handle of my netilas yadayim cup is not attached well. The handle is loose, and therefore the cup leaks water when it is filled too high. Is this a problem?

ANSWER: This is a serious issue. A cup that has a leak cannot be used for netilas yadayim until it is repaired. Even if one already used this cup to wash netilas yadayim, he has not fulfilled the mitzva and he must wash again with a beracha. Shulchan Aruch (159:1) writes that even if the leak is near the top and the cup can still hold a revi’is of water below, it still may not be used. This is because the area above the leak is as if it is no longer considered part of the cup. When you pour the water out the top of the cup, it is as though the water is not coming from the cup but from this area, which is not acceptable for netilas yadayim.

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The Gerald & Karin Feldhamer OU Kosher Halacha Yomis is dedicated to the memory of Rav Yisroel Belsky, zt"l, who served as halachic consultant for OU Kosher for more than 28 years; many of the responses in Halacha Yomis are based on the rulings of Rabbi Belsky. Subscribe to the Halacha Yomis daily email here.