Insulation Workers

Summary

Floor, ceiling, and wall insulators typically install rolled insulation.

Quick Facts: Insulation Workers
2010 Median Pay	$35,110 per year $16.88 per hour
Entry-Level Education	See How to Become One
Work Experience in a Related Occupation	None
On-the-job Training	See How to Become One
Number of Jobs, 2010	51,400
Job Outlook, 2010-20	28% (Faster than average)
Employment Change, 2010-20	14,400

What Insulation Workers Do

Insulation workers install and replace the materials used to insulate buildings and their mechanical systems to help control and maintain temperature.

Work Environment

Insulation workers generally work indoors in residential and industrial settings. They spend most of the workday standing, bending, or kneeling, often in confined spaces. Floor, ceiling, and wall insulators have a much higher rate of injury and illness than mechanical insulators.

How to Become an Insulation Worker

Most floor, ceiling, and wall insulation workers learn their trade informally on the job. Most mechanical insulators complete a formal apprenticeship program.

Pay

In May 2010, the median annual wage of floor, ceiling, and wall insulation workers was $31,830, and the median annual wage of mechanical insulation workers was $37,650.

Job Outlook

Employment of insulation workers is expected to grow 28 percent from 2010 to 2020, faster than the average for all occupations. Demand will come from improvements made to increase energy efficiency and the building of additional power plants. Floor, ceiling, and wall insulators will face competition for jobs. Mechanical insulators will have excellent job opportunities.

Similar Occupations

Compare the job duties, education, job growth, and pay of insulation workers with similar occupations.

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Contacts for More Information

Learn more about insulation workers by contacting these additional resources.

What Insulation Workers Do About this section

Mechanical insulators often insulate components.

Insulation workers install and replace the materials used to insulate buildings and their mechanical systems to help control and maintain temperature. Workers are often referred to as insulators.

Duties

Insulation workers typically do the following:

• Remove old insulation and dispose of it properly
• Read blueprints and specifications to determine job requirements
• Determine the amounts and types of insulation needed
• Measure and cut insulation to fit into walls and around pipes
• Fasten insulation in place with staples, tape, or screws
• Use compressors to spray insulation into some spaces
• Install plastic barriers to protect insulation from moisture
• Follow safety guidelines

Properly insulated buildings save energy by keeping heat in during the winter and out in the summer. Insulated vats, vessels, boilers, steam pipes, and hot-water pipes also prevent the wasteful loss of heat or cold and prevent burns. Insulation also helps reduce noise that passes through walls and ceilings.

When renovating old buildings, insulators often must remove the old insulation. In the past, asbestos—now known to cause cancer—was used extensively to insulate walls, ceilings, pipes, and industrial equipment. Because of this danger, specially trained workers are required to remove asbestos before insulation workers can install the new insulating materials. For more information, see the profile on hazardous materials removal workers.

Insulation workers use common hand tools, such as knives and scissors. They also may use a variety of power tools including power saws to cut insulating materials, welders to secure clamps, and staple guns to fasten insulation to walls. Some insulators use compressors to spray insulation onto walls.

Workers sometimes wrap a cover of aluminum, sheet metal, or vapor barrier (plastic sheeting) over the insulation. Doing so protects the insulation by keeping moisture out. 

The following are examples of insulation workers:

Floor, ceiling, and wall insulators install insulation in attics, floors, and behind walls in homes and other buildings. Most of these workers unroll, cut, fit, and staple batts of fiberglass insulation between wall studs and ceiling joists. Some workers, however, spray foam insulation with a compressor hose into the space being filled.

Mechanical insulators apply insulation to pipes or ductwork in businesses, factories, and many other types of buildings. When insulating a steam pipe, for example, the temperature, thickness, and diameter of the pipe are all factors that determine the type of insulation to be used.

Work Environment About this section

Insulators prepare to adhere foam insulation to the exterior of a building.

Insulators held about 51,400 jobs in 2010. Employment was about split between mechanical insulators and floor, ceiling, and wall insulators. Only 4 percent of all insulators were self-employed. Most floor, ceiling, and wall insulators were employed in the drywall and insulation contractors industry. Mechanical insulators were concentrated in the specialty trade contractor industry, as shown in the following table: 

Insulation workers generally work indoors in residential and industrial settings. They spend most of their workday standing, bending, or kneeling, often in confined spaces.

Those who insulate gas and oil pipelines may have to stop work due to rain or cold weather.

Injuries

Floor, ceiling, and wall insulators have one of the highest rates of injury and illness. In contrast, mechanical insulators have a very low rate of injury and illness. Falls from ladders and cuts from knives are common hazards. Also, small particles from insulation materials, especially when sprayed, can irritate the eyes, skin, and lungs. To protect themselves, they keep the work area well ventilated. They also wear protective suits, masks, and they may wear respirators.

Mechanical insulators may get burns from the pipes they insulate.

How to Become an Insulation Worker About this section

Mechanical insulators must be able to explain the cost savings from improved insulation.

Most floor, ceiling, and wall insulation workers learn their trade informally on the job. Most mechanical insulators complete a formal apprenticeship program.

Apprenticeship

Most mechanical insulation workers learn their trade through a 4-year apprenticeship. Some apprenticeships may last up to 5 years, depending on the program. For each year of the program, apprentices must have at least 1,700 to 2,000 hours of paid on-the-job training and a minimum of 144 hours of related technical instruction. The technical portion includes learning about insulation and installation techniques as well as basic mathematics, how to read and draw blueprints, general construction techniques, safety practices, and first aid.

Unions and individual businesses offer apprenticeship programs. Although most workers enter apprenticeships directly, some start out as helpers first. The basic qualifications to enter an apprenticeship program are as follows:

• Being 18 years old
• High school diploma or equivalent
• Physically able to do the work

Education

There are no formal education requirements for floor, ceiling, and wall insulation workers. Mechanical insulation workers should have a high school diploma.  High school courses in English, math, woodworking, mechanical drawing, algebra, and general science are considered helpful for all insulation workers.

Certification

Insulation workers who remove and handle asbestos must be certified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Insulation contractor organizations offer voluntary certification to help workers prove their skills and knowledge of residential and industrial insulation.

The National Insulation Association also offers a certification for mechanical insulators in doing an energy appraisal to determine if and how insulation can benefit industrial customers.

Important Qualities

Dexterity. Insulation workers must be able to work in confined spaces while maintaining coordination and control of tools and materials. Also, insulators often must reach above their heads to fit and fasten insulation into place.

Mechanical skills. Insulation workers use a variety of hand and power tools to install insulation. Those who apply foam insulation, for example, must be able to operate a compressor and sprayer to spread the foam onto walls or across attics.

Stamina. Because insulators spend most of the day standing, stretching, and bending, workers should be able to stay physically active without getting tired.

Pay About this section

The median annual wage of insulation workers was $35,110 in May 2010. The median wage is the wage at which half the workers in an occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $22,390, and the top 10 percent earned more than $67,360.

The median annual wage of floor, ceiling, and wall insulation workers was $31,830 in May 2010. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $20,360, and the top 10 percent earned more than $60,990.

The median annual wage of mechanical insulation workers was $37,650 in May 2010. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $25,030, and the top 10 percent earned more than $70,470.

The starting pay for apprentices is usually between 30 percent and 50 percent of what fully trained insulators make. They get pay increases as they gain more skills.

Mechanical insulation workers are more likely to be union members. The International Association of Heat and Frost Insulators and Allied Workers is the largest organizer of mechanical insulation workers.

Job Outlook About this section

Overall employment of insulation workers is expected to grow 28 percent from 2010 to 2020, faster than the average for all occupations. Growth rates, however, will vary by occupational specialty.

Employment of floor, ceiling, and wall insulators is expected to grow 23 percent from 2010 to 2020, faster than the average for all occupations. Modest increases in home building will spur employment growth over the coming decade. Insulation will continue to be added into existing buildings to save energy.

Employment of mechanical insulation workers is expected to grow 32 percent from 2010 to 2020, much faster than the average for all occupations, spurred by the need to make existing buildings more energy efficient. In the past, mechanical insulation has been reduced or cut from building plans as a cost-saving method, but energy analyses show that improved insulation provides a greater return on investment. The anticipated construction of new powerplants, big users of insulated pipes and equipment, should also result in greater employment demand.  

Job Prospects

Floor, ceiling, and wall insulators are expected to face competition for openings as they often compete for jobs with other construction workers. Openings will, nonetheless, continue to arise because the irritating nature of many insulation materials, combined with the often difficult working conditions, causes many residential insulation workers to leave the occupation each year.

Mechanical insulation workers with formal training should have the best job opportunities.

Insulation workers in the construction industry may experience periods of unemployment because of the short duration of many construction projects and the cyclical nature of construction activity. Workers employed to do industrial plant maintenance generally have more stable employment because maintenance and repair must be done continually.

Contacts for More Information About this section

For details about apprenticeships or other opportunities for insulation workers, contact the offices of the state employment service, the state apprenticeship agency, local insulation contractors or firms that employ insulators, or local union-management apprenticeship committees. Apprenticeship information is available from the U.S. Department of Labor's toll free help line, 1 (877) 872-5627, or Employment and Training Administration.

For more information about apprenticeship or training for insulation workers, visit

National Insulation Association

International Association of Heat and Frost Insulators and Allied Workers