What does it take to maintain a kosher eruv?
Halachic Expertise + Specialized Technology + Comprehensive Checking
We’ve found that many communities lack the manpower, resources or know-how to keep their eruv kosher. And we’re on a mission to change that.
Why is there a need for an Eruv Network?
How did eruvin function before the Eruv Network was formed?
1960
Rav Moshe’s Crucial Stipulation
One of the first eruvin in the USA, the Kew Gardens Hills eruv was sanctioned by Rav Moshe Feinstein in the 1960s with an important stipulation: The eruv must be built in a way that would not require frequent repairs.
In those days, existing telephone wires would serve as the eruv string, with thin plastic moldings as the side-poles. It was a seemingly foolproof system as wires were carefully maintained by AT&T (the sole provider), and the moldings could be easily monitored.
Rav Moshe Heinemann and Rav Shimon Eider, were the primary eruvin experts at the time. With only a handful of eruvin across the country, they could easily keep up with the necessary professional inspections.
1990
The Federal Communication Act
In 1996, a new law required utility companies to share pole space with all telecommunication companies. The once-quiet poles became populated by new telephone, cable, internet, and 4-5G network wires competing for valuable pole space.
There is little oversight or accountability for what is attached to the poles. Wires can be altered, replaced, or moved, rendering the eruv pasul. These changes are often only detectable to a trained eye using specialized viewing equipment.
At the same time, the number of eruvin across America has increased to over 200. The number of eruvin professionals has not grown proportionately, and many eruvin are decades overdue for professional inspections.
2010
The Power of a Network
While we can’t control the telecommunications companies, we can prepare ourselves for these challenges.
This is the goal of the Eruv Network. We connect communities with reliable eruv maintenance and monitoring systems that function seamlessly.
With a network of eruv experts and volunteers across the country, we pool knowledge, experience and talent so that everyone can benefit. Ideas conceived on the East Coast, can transform eruvin on the West Coast.
We connect the dots so that every city has access to the most advanced checking systems, materials and resources.
That is the power of a network.
“Chazal were mevatel tkias shofar on Shabbos for all of Klal Yisroel so one yid shouldn’t inadvertently carry. When we check an eruv that thousands rely on every Shabbos, we must tremble even more so than by tkias shofar.”
Rabbi Shlomo Francis, Co-Author, The Laws of an Eruv
The Network Advantage
Sharing ideas from around the country, so that every eruv is optimized.
Baltimore
The top of every eruv conduit is marked, enabling checkers to notice tampering by utility workers.
West Rogers Park
Custom eruv brackets suspend the wires directly above light poles, allowing workers access without damaging the eruv.
Cincinnati
It was discovered that the pigment of an eruv string can increase its service life ten-fold.
Scottsdale
The eruv string maintained 90% of its original strength even after a decade of intense UV ray exposure.
Cincinnati
A comprehensive system includes in-depth quarterly checks to detect psulim that a standard check might miss.
Kew Gardens
The eruv uses string which is virtually invisible from ground-level.
Rockland County
A specialty bracket ensures the eruv pole always remains reliably below the eruv wire.
West Rogers Park
The eruv cable and brackets are so strong that a light pole remained upright and intact after being hit by a truck!
Rockland County
A trained team walks miles every day,checking the eruv from multiple angles to detect psulim that standard checks often miss.
Montreal
The eruv wires can traverse great expanses while withstanding severe ice storms.
Incorporating High-End Technology
The Eruv Network has developed unique tools and resources to monitor and maintain your eruv’s kashrus.
Eruvin can be viewed from all angles – even from above – with our telescopic cameras and mounts.
The incline of an eruv partition can be determined with our laser-based tel hamislaket (sloped hill) tool.
We can test gud asik (plumb) from any height – even in broad daylight – with our full suite of tools, including our own proprietary mechanisms.
We can document and project the vulnerability of any eruv with a template developed together with Chicago actuary Mendy Friedman.
We can guarantee strength and non-conductivity, by employing a plastic wire with 2,000 lbs. of tensile strength.