1,085. Construction Labors on Chol Hamoed

Shvisas Yom Tov 8:12

When it comes to leveling the ground, if one’s intention is to make a place to store a mound of grain or to thresh, it is permitted. If his intention is to till the soil, it is prohibited. Similarly, if one gathers wood because he needs it, it is permitted, but if his intention is to clear his land, it is prohibited. If one opens a dam to let water into his garden, if his intention is to allow fish in, it is permitted but if it’s to irrigate the land, it is prohibited. Similarly, if one trims branches from a palm tree, if his intention is to use them as animal feed, it is permitted; if to prune the tree, it is prohibited. One’s intention becomes clear from his actions.

Shvisas Yom Tov 8:13

If an oven or a stove of clay can dry so that food can be baked in it on yom tov, then it may be made on chol hamoed, otherwise not. One may put a layer of mortar on top of an oven or stove regardless of whether it will dry before yom tov. One may likewise tie the cords of a bed (which were so suspended), clean a mill, open its hole, set it up and build a channel of water for it.