Fireplace and stove installer helper job description
A fireplace and stove installer helper carries units and vent pipe into the home, protects floors, preps parts and cleans up while learning to install gas, wood and pellet units. Over time the helper takes on more of each job under the lead installer's eye.
By the HireBus team · Updated · Pay data: BLS, May 2025
Median pay, other building equipment contractors · BLS, May 2025
Supports experienced technicians in delivering high-quality fireplace and stove installations. Develops foundational skills in the home services industry through hands-on training. Plays a key role in maintaining safety and operational efficiency on job sites. Contributes to overall customer satisfaction by ensuring thorough preparation and cleanup.
2. Essential Duties and Responsibilities
Assist technicians during installations by preparing materials and tools.
Support the maintenance of organized job sites through diligent cleanup efforts.
Observe and learn industry best practices and technical standards.
Adhere to safety protocols and company policies at all times.
3. Key Tasks / Daily Activities
Accompany technicians on site visits and assist with material handling.
Prepare and organize installation supplies and equipment before scheduled work.
Perform basic cleanup and maintenance of work areas and equipment.
Engage in on-the-job training sessions to build technical proficiency and industry knowledge.
4. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Material preparation accuracy: 100% compliance with technician requirements.
Job site efficiency: Cleanup and material handling completed within scheduled time periods (aim for <10 minutes delay per site).
Training milestones: Complete 90% of assigned training modules within the designated timeframe.
Safety adherence: Zero safety violations or incidents per reporting period.
5. Required Qualifications and Skills
High school diploma or equivalent.
Basic mechanical aptitude and willingness to learn technical skills.
Strong attention to detail and commitment to safety.
Good communication skills and a proactive, team-oriented attitude.
6. Preferred Experience
Previous exposure to home services, construction, or related industries.
Familiarity with basic tools and installation techniques.
Experience working in a physically active, outdoor environment.
Demonstrated ability to follow directions and adapt to changing priorities.
7. Physical Requirements
Ability to lift up to 50 pounds safely and efficiently.
Capability to work in variable weather conditions during installations.
Endurance for standing, walking, and climbing for extended periods.
Sensitivity to confined spaces and fast-paced environments.
8. Work Environment and Schedule
Typically works full-time hours with potential for overtime during peak service seasons.
Engages in both indoor and outdoor work environments with varying conditions.
Occasional travel between client sites may be required.
On-call duty may be expected during emergency service calls.
9. Compensation and Benefits
Hourly rate range: $15 - $20 per hour based on experience.
Eligibility for performance bonuses based on training progress and job performance.
Comprehensive benefits package including Health, Dental, and Vision.
401(k) plan and additional fringe benefits available.
10. Company Culture and Overview
At [INSERT COMPANY NAME HERE], we foster a growth-oriented environment that values continuous learning and teamwork.
We empower our employees to achieve their full potential and provide opportunities for career advancement.
Our inclusive culture encourages innovation, accountability, and collaboration.
We are committed to excellence and customer satisfaction, making this an inspiring place to build your career.
11. How to Apply
If you meet the above criteria and want to be part of a growth-oriented company focused on customer satisfaction, please send your resume to [INSERT EMAIL HERE] or apply online at [INSERT WEBSITE LINK HERE].
Need help filling this role? HireBus posts the ad, Iris interviews every applicant by phone before you do, and you decide who to hire. Start hiring now
The helper's day starts before the truck leaves the shop and ends after the last ash is gone. In a finished living room, prep and cleanup are a big part of what the customer remembers.
Older homes call for lead-safe work
Cutting a vent hole through a painted wall or pulling an old mantel disturbs paint, and in pre-1978 homes that paint may hold lead. EPA's RRP rule requires the firm doing that paid work to be certified, and its workers to be certified renovators or trained on the job by one. The helper often sets up the plastic and does the cleanup, so train them first. EPA lets some states run their own program, Utah and Vermont among them. Source: EPA: Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting Program.
Ashes leave cold and in metal
Pulling an old wood stove or cleaning out a firebox before an insert goes in means ash, and it may still be hot. USFA tells homeowners to let ashes cool, put them in a tightly covered metal container kept at least 10 feet from the home and other buildings, and never empty them into a trash can. Make that the crew's rule too, with a lidded metal can on every tear-out. Source: U.S. Fire Administration: Discard ashes safely.
The house is protected before the unit comes in
Hearth jobs happen in living rooms, on hardwood and carpet, past painted door frames and up finished stairs. The helper lays floor runners and drop cloths, pads the door frames and covers furniture before the unit comes through the door, then takes it all up last. Soot from an old chimney spreads, so a vacuum with a fine filter goes on every job that opens one.
Vent parts are the first thing to learn
Before a helper works on gas or wiring, they can learn venting: how each maker's sections lock, which way the joints face, where firestops and thimbles go, and how the manual says to seal them. Have the helper lay out and pre-assemble the vent run on the ground for the installer to check. It teaches the system and speeds up the job.
How much fireplace and stove installer helpers make
The closest BLS group for fireplace and stove installer helpers is Helpers--Installation, maintenance, and repair workers. Helpers--Installation, maintenance, and repair workers who work for other building equipment contractors earned a median of $22.54 an hour ($46,880 a year) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s above the $39,630 median for Helpers--Installation, maintenance, and repair workers in all industries. About 970 of the 95,580 Helpers--Installation, maintenance, and repair workers in that survey work for other building equipment contractors.
Hourly, with overtime in the busy months and a bonus tied to training progress, as the template says. Every rate the template lists is below the BLS midpoint for installation and repair helpers in this contractor group, and its starting rate sits below the low end BLS lists, so expect to pay more where installers are scarce.
Other building equipment contractors
$46,880$46,880 median Middle half $40,000–$54,300 10th–90th $36,140–$60,260
All industries
$39,630$39,630 median Middle half $34,910–$46,890 10th–90th $29,310–$55,890
$20k$30k$40k$50k$60k$70k
10th–90th percentileMiddle halfMedianAnnual pay, May 2025. Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics.
Annual pay by percentile
Group
10th
25th
Median
75th
90th
Other building equipment contractors
$36,140
$40,000
$46,880
$54,300
$60,260
All industries
$29,310
$34,910
$39,630
$46,890
$55,890
BLS doesn’t publish pay for fireplace and stove installers on their own. These figures cover other building equipment contractors, which include them. Post a real range for your market in the ad.
The pay line in the template above is an example from our Role Blueprint. Set yours from these figures and what local companies pay.
Skills to hire for, and what you can teach
Hire for these
Careful handling of heavy, fragile units and finished surfaces
Following directions step by step and asking when unsure
Basic hand and power tool use
Keeping a work area clean as the job goes
Polite, quiet conduct in customers' homes
Teach these on the job
Each brand's vent system and how it goes together
Gas, wood and pellet unit basics
Lead-safe setup and cleanup
Ladder setup and fall protection gear
Reading a rating plate and the install manual
Helpers use drills, a reciprocating saw and other hand and power tools, along with appliance dollies, stair climbers, ladders and a vacuum with a fine filter. Say in the ad which tools you supply and which ones a helper should bring.
Fireplace and stove installer helper interview questions
Two of the 6 questions we'd ask, and what a strong answer sounds like. Ask every candidate the same questions, and rate each answer on your own before you compare notes.
Situational · Moving heavy units safely
You and an installer are carrying a stove up the front steps, and you feel your grip slipping. What do you do?
A strong answer: Calls it out right away so both set it down together under control, then resets the grip or gets a dolly or another person.
Behavioral · Following written instructions
Tell me about a time at work, school or volunteering when you used a manual to set up or fix something. What did you do when a step wasn't clear?
A strong answer: Read it through first, laid out the parts, followed the steps in order, stopped to reread or ask when a step wasn't clear, and checked the result against the manual.
The template's numbers are a sample, not a standard. Set each one with the lead installer once you see how quickly your new helpers learn.
Material preparation accuracy
Ask the lead installer at the end of each job whether anything the helper loaded was missing or wrong. Log each miss with the item, and review the log at check-ins.
Job site efficiency
Time from the installer's last step to the truck pulling away, from job notes. Compare similar jobs only, since a wood stove tear-out takes longer than a new insert.
Training milestones
Track each skill on a sign-off sheet, such as vent assembly, floor protection, ladder setup and lead-safe cleanup. The lead installer signs each one when the helper shows it on a real job.
Safety adherence
Count incident reports, near misses and safety rule breaks the lead installer logs for the helper. Discuss every entry with the helper within days, so it becomes a lesson.
Career path
Apprentice / helperPreps, carries, protects the house and cleans up while learning to install.
InstallerHandles full installs and service calls without a lead at hand.
What should a fireplace helper learn in the first few weeks?
Start with the jobs that protect people and the house: ladder setup, floor protection, safe carrying on a dolly or stair climber, and lead-safe cleanup if you work in older homes. Then vent assembly for your main brand, reading a rating plate and where each tool lives on the truck. Have the helper ride along on a gas insert, a wood stove and a pellet stove so they see each kind.
How much does a fireplace and stove installer helper make?
Helpers--Installation, maintenance, and repair workers who work for other building equipment contractors earned a median of $22.54 an hour ($46,880 a year) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The middle half earned between $40,000 and $54,300 a year. Pay also depends on your local market, experience and overtime.
When should a hearth company hire helpers?
Hire in spring or early summer, when the install calendar has room for teaching. A helper who starts then gets a few months of slower jobs, service work and showroom setups before the fall rush. Hiring in October puts a new person into the hardest weeks, when no one has time to train them.
What can a helper do in a customer's home without the installer?
Carry in tools and parts, lay floor protection, set up a work area and clean up once the installer says the work is done. Leave gas and electrical connections, cuts through walls or roofs, and the first fire to the installer. When a homeowner asks about their unit, the helper should say the installer will answer, so no one hears a wrong clearance or a wrong promise.
What do the helper template's lifting, weather and climbing lines mean on a hearth job?
Carrying vent cartons, stone pieces and parts up to 50 pounds, two-person moves of stoves and inserts on a stair climber, and climbing ladders to the roof for vent caps and chimney work. Standing and walking means a day of trips between the truck and the room. Weather means roof and yard work in cold, wind or sun. Confined spaces are attics, crawl spaces and the chases where vent pipe runs. Name those tasks in the ad.
