Ask the Rov: I removed my mezuzos to check them. Do I make a bracha when reaffixing them?
By Rabbi Chaim Hillel Raskin – Rov of Anash in Petach Tikvah
The bracha upon affixing a mezuza is only recited if the doorway fulfills all the criteria for being obligated min hatorah, and it’s being reaffixed after hesech hadaas from its previous placement.
If a mezuza was found to be pasul and it is being replaced with a new one, a bracha is recited, since this mezuza is new.1 Likewise, if the mezuza falls off on its own, it is a hesech hadaas, since you didn’t have in mind to reaffix it the moment it came off (like a tallis that falls off your shoulders).
However, when you remove a mezuza to check it and put it back soon on the same doorpost, the requirement for a bracha depends on whether a hesech hadaas has occurred. The length of time that constitutes a hesech hadaas is subject to debate.
Some hold that a break of several hours constitutes hesech hadaas, like when removing a tallis. Others hold hesech hadaas only occurs when the mezuza is reaffixed the following day, since he removed his mind from it while sleeping, and this is the accepted practice.2 Some qualify that this time window applies only to a routine check where there is no serious concern that the mezuza isn’t kosher, but when such a concern does exist, the very removal to check with doubt in its kashrus is enough of a hesech hadaas.3
If you switch a mezuza to a different doorpost, it is questionable whether this itself requires a new bracha. Some poskim compare it to putting on a different pair of tzitzis after removing the first, which isn’t covered by the original bracha. Others compare it to switching a shofar during tekios, and it’s all one continuation of the same mitzva (unlike tzitzis where the new garment is a new chiyuv).4
Regardless, a mezuza should not be switched from a higher level of obligation to a lower one — such as from a doorway with a door to one without a door.5 For both reasons, it is proper to number the mezuzos to ensure each one is replaced in the doorway it was originally.
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From The Weekly Farbrengen by Merkaz Anash
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