My rental property was being renovated for the year and was not rented. how do i answer the question as to whether it was rented or not?

Enter zero's for days rented and personal days. Do not mark box that you did not rent, nor attempt to rent. Expenses and repairs are allowed to be taken on a property in between rental contracts.

If you select the option for "I did not rent or attempt to rent this property in 2023" then the program will "INCORRECTLY" delete the SCH E and all history including the depreciation history from your tax return. If you intended to rent the property out again once all work is complete, DO NOT under any circumstances select that option. If you already did that and deleted the SCH E, the only way to get it all back is to clear your return and start over from the beginning.
Also, I "think" it deletes the SCH E if you select zero days rented. So you may have to enter that it was rented for at least 1 day. The fact you have no rental income to report in 2023 for that day does not matter. You'll enter 1 day rented, and zero days of personal use if you did not live in the property for one single day as your primary residence, 2nd home, vacation home or any other personal use during that time.