How do I clean my Braces when Erev Pesach is on Shabbos?
Here are a few excerpts from our Halacha guide:
Thursday: Denture wearers who are scrupulous, should not eat or drink any warm or sharp chametz substance for a twenty-four hour period prior to kashering their teeth (which should be done on Friday).
Friday: Young people with non-removable braces, or those with bridgework or implants should avoid all hot and sharp chametz foods for twenty-four hours beginning this morning at 10:55 am. Prepare boiling water for Shabbos, which will be used after cleaning teeth well before the chametz end-time on Shabbos morning, and then “kashering” their braces or bridges by drinking water at the highest temperature that they can tolerate without harming themselves, G-d forbid. (If taking hot water from a pesachdik source, be sure to use a disposable cup for this process).
Friday night: Young people with braces, or those with bridgework should be careful to eat only the soft sections of bread and make sure the crumbs do not get stuck between the gaps in their dental work. In these cases, softening the bread in liquid may help. Once finished with chametz, those with any dental work (including dentures and fillings) should make sure their teeth are perfectly clean before eating anything hot or sharp (this refers to pesachdik food—for kashering purposes, no hot chametz may be eaten at this point).
Shabbos morning: After completing our meal, we must rinse our mouths well from any leftover crumbs. Toothpicks or flossers (or precut floss) may be used for to reach any holes or gaps, if doing so gently will not draw blood. Agitate your finger over your teeth to loosen any stuck particles. Rinse with mouthwash to render any remaining chametz inedible.
*You may not use toothpaste, but a dry toothbrush that is made for use on Shabbos is okay, if you are not prone to drawing blood when brushing.
*All this must be done before the end-time for eating chametz. The toothbrush may be rinsed after use to remove chametz crumbs and then it should be put away in the designated cabinet sold to a non-Jew.
*Denture wearers (who kashered their teeth yesterday, as mentioned), should rinse them well before the end-time for owning chametz. Hot water boiled before Shabbos for this purpose may be used to assist the cleaning. Those with permanent braces or bridgework should drink the hottest possible water (without burning themselves, G-d forbid) which was pre-boiled to kasher their dental work.
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