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Safe Passover

30 March 2025

Preparations for Passover include cleaning, koshering dishes, burning foods with leavening agents and barbeques in the park. Following the safety rules will help you joyously celebrate the festival of spring with no problems or damage.

Cleaning

  • Proper storage of cleaning agents and keeping them out of reach and locked away in a high location will prevent poisoning.
  • It is important to also avoid mixing cleaning agents and moving the content of cleaning agents from their original bottles into other bottles, for instance beverage bottles, as it may cause mistakes for and injury.
  • To prevent inhalation of toxic fumes, open the windows safely before cleaning and leave them slightly open after finishing to clean so that the fumes can be removed.
  • Cleaning should be carried out when children are not in the area but if you must clean in their presence, make sure that another adult supervises them. In any case, children under the age of 6 must be constantly supervised by a person who is at least 12 years of age old.
  • Do your children want to help you clean? If they are over the age of 5, they can help you clean but without the use of chemical cleaners. You can allow them to clean, for example, their toys or their desk with a cloth dampened only with water.

Koshering dishes for passover

If you plan to kosher your dishes for Passover, immerse and boil the dishes only at approved stations. Information on approved stations can be found on the local authority websites. Search for stations near your place of residence.

Cooking for the holiday

Before serving food to children, pay attention to the ingredients and avoid giving children under the age of 5 nuts, almonds and peanuts. Slightly dampen the matzas before serving them to young children.

Holiday trips

During Passover (Chol HaMoed), many families travel and barbeque in parks. Even when barbecuing on your balcony, it is important that your children are constantly supervised while the barbeque is on. Keep children away from the source of flame! Note that only adults light and handle the flame. Once the barbeque is over, make sure that you have completely turned off the source of flame and that no charcoal or cigarettes are burning.

Preparations for Passover include cleaning the house, preparing traditional holiday foods, koshering dishes, burning foods with leavening agents as well as trips and barbeques in the park. Children prepare to find the Afikomen and think what they will ask for after finding it. But just before, you should consider safety aspects of the holiday and adopt precautions to protect the children. How does one make sure that everything will be all right on the night of the Passover seder?

Cleaning agents are a hazard to children of any age. Following these rules will help you prevent poisoning:

  • Store cleaning materials out of the reach of children, for instance in a tall and locked cabinet, in their original packages and separate from food products.
  • To prevent the inhalation of toxic fumes, open the window safely before and during cleaning. Leave windows open for a short time after cleaning has been completed so that the fumes are removed.
  • Avoid mixing different cleaning agents: every cleaning product should have its own dedicated cloth. Avoid spraying various products on the same surface or mixing several products in the same vessel as this may cause burns and poisoning.
  • Store cleaning agents in their original packages to prevent poisoning among children and toddlers. Putting the cleaning agent in another vessel such as a bottle or can may be misleading and cause both children and adults to mistakenly think that the bottle contains food or a beverage.
  • Remove the residual cleaning agent left after cleaning from the room, including stairwells. Avoid leaving them outside the trash can – to prevent children’s access to them.
  • Cleaning should be performed preferably when the children are not in the area but if you must clean in their presence, make sure that they are supervised by a responsible adult or adults. Remember that children under the age of 6 must be under constant supervision by a person who is at least 12 years of age.
  • To protect children from drowning, keep children away from water buckets. Remember that infants can drown in buckets with water as low as 10cm. Always empty the bucket once you have finished using it.

Do your children want to help you clean? If they are over the age 5, they can help you clean but without the use of chemical agents. You can allow them to clean, for example, their toys or their desk with a cloth dampened only with water.

If you plan to kosher your dishes for Passover, immerse and boil the dishes only at approved stations. Information on approved stations can be found on the local authority websites. Search for stations near your place of residence.

  • Remember that only a licensed gas technician can disconnect the gas appliance.
  • Close the gas tap before you begin cleaning.
  • Clean only with a product suitable for that purpose.
  • Avoid moving or lifting the gas appliance since this action may disconnect the gas line from its place and cause a gas leak and possibly an explosion.

Ahead of the Passover seder, every family prepares special foods, some of which have been made for generations in the family and some in the spirit of the holiday. Before serving food to children, pay attention to the ingredients and avoid giving children under the age of 5 nuts, almonds and peanuts. Slightly dampen the matzas before serving them to young children.

Read more about safe feeding and preventing choking

During Passover (Chol HaMoed), many families travel and barbeque in parks. Even when you are barbecuing on your balcony, it is important that you follow several rules:

  • Supervise your children while the barbeque is on and keep them away from the source of flame.
  • Make sure that only adults light and handle the flame.
  • Operate the barbeque in a designated area, away from flora, electric wires and parked cars.
  • Once the barbeque is over, make sure that you have completely turned off the source of flame and that no charcoal or cigarettes are burning in the area.

Video: Safe Passover

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nqBm-wc_sPg

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