A lead restoration technician runs the crew on flooded, burned and moldy buildings. They size up each loss, set up drying and containment, teach newer techs while they work, and keep the readings and photos that show the insurer what was done and why.
By the HireBus team · Updated · Pay data: BLS, May 2025
Restoration Contractors - Lead Technician / Specialist
Company Name:
[INSERT COMPANY NAME HERE]
Department:
Operations
Reports to:
[Field Supervisor or Production Manager]
Location:
[INSERT LOCATION HERE]
1. Position Summary
Serves as a subject matter expert in advanced fire, flood, and mold remediation projects. Leads and mentors restoration teams to ensure consistent, high-quality execution of remediation services. Plays a critical role in maintaining safety standards and enhancing customer satisfaction through technical expertise.
2. Essential Duties and Responsibilities
Coordinate and supervise advanced remediation projects with a focus on fire, flood, and mold damage.
Mentor and train staff to build technical skillsets and ensure adherence to safety protocols.
Conduct thorough inspections and implement remediation techniques that meet industry standards.
Ensure timely completion of projects with an emphasis on quality, efficiency, and customer satisfaction.
3. Key Tasks / Daily Activities
Lead daily operations on remediation sites while providing on-the-spot guidance and technical support.
Interact with clients to assess damage, explain remediation processes, and provide expert recommendations.
Review work performed by team members to ensure compliance with established procedures and standards.
Troubleshoot and resolve any technical issues that arise during remediation projects.
4. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Project Completion Rate: 95% of projects completed on schedule.
Customer Satisfaction Rating: Achieve >4.8 stars per project.
Safety Compliance: Maintain <2 safety incident reports per quarter.
Team Productivity: Increase efficiency by 10% quarter-over-quarter.
5. Required Qualifications and Skills
High school diploma or equivalent; technical certifications in remediation or related fields preferred.
Minimum of 3 years’ experience in remediation or restoration services.
Strong technical knowledge of fire, flood, and mold remediation practices.
Excellent leadership, communication, and problem-solving skills.
6. Preferred Experience
Prior experience working in the restoration or home services industry.
Experience in mentoring and training staff within a technical field.
Familiarity with state and federal safety and remediation regulations.
Proven track record of managing restoration projects from start to finish.
7. Physical Requirements
Must be able to lift up to 50 lbs.
Ability to work in environments that may include exposure to extreme temperatures, wet conditions, and confined spaces.
Requires frequent standing, bending, and walking during project site evaluations.
Personal protective equipment may be required in hazardous conditions.
8. Work Environment and Schedule
Typical work hours: Monday to Friday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM.
Occasional weekend or extended hours may be required based on project demands.
On-call duties for emergency remediation services as needed.
Some travel to various job sites within the service area is expected.
9. Compensation and Benefits
Hourly rate: $35 - $45 per hour, commensurate with experience and expertise.
Performance-based bonuses tied to project efficiency and customer satisfaction metrics.
Health, Dental, and Vision insurance.
401k plan with company matching funds.
Additional fringe benefits including paid time off and professional development opportunities.
10. Company Culture and Overview
At [INSERT COMPANY NAME HERE], we foster a collaborative, growth-oriented environment where innovation and dedication drive success.
We are committed to personal and professional development, empowering our employees to excel while providing exceptional service to the community.
Our culture is built on trust, safety, and a customer-first mentality, ensuring every team member feels valued and inspired to contribute.
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].
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In any trade, a lead keeps a crew working and teaches as they go. In restoration the lead also judges how dirty the water is, what can be saved, and when outside help is needed.
Knowing when to call in an outside expert
IICRC's water damage standard, an industry standard rather than a law, says many water jobs don't need an indoor environmental professional. It says to bring one in when the inspection turns up higher risk. Examples are high-risk occupants, a child care or elder care building, contamination that may have gone airborne, or a need to prove the water is contaminated at all. The lead is usually first to see these signs and flags them to the project manager before tear-out starts. Source: IICRC S500 Consensus Body: Category of water damage and weather-related events (2026).
In some states the mold card is personal
EPA has set no federal limits for mold, but some states license the work. Texas offers a mold remediation worker registration, and the state says the registration belongs to the worker, not the company. A licensed remediation contractor there follows a work plan built on a licensed assessment consultant's protocol. A lead hired from another state may need new paperwork before running a mold job. Source: Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation: Mold assessors and remediators FAQ.
Ozone is for empty buildings
Ozone machines are one way crews treat smoke odor after a fire. EPA says high ozone levels are sometimes used to treat odors in an unoccupied space, as in fire restoration, but only when conditions keep any person or pet from being exposed. It adds that ozone can damage plants and materials. The lead clears the building, posts the doors, and airs it out before anyone goes back in. Source: U.S. EPA: Ozone generators that are sold as air cleaners.
Fire jobs start with what can be saved
After a fire, the lead and the project manager decide which surfaces and belongings get cleaned and which get thrown out. That means checking whether the soot is dry or greasy, testing a cleaning method on a small spot first, and noting each choice in the file. IICRC's fire and smoke course covers scoping, cleaning, deodorizing and the paperwork behind those calls. Source: IICRC: Fire and Smoke Restoration Technician (FSRT).
Containment that actually holds
EPA's mold guide for schools and commercial buildings suggests limited containment for roughly 10 to 100 square feet of mold, and full containment, with double plastic walls and an airlock, above that. Either way the space is kept under negative pressure. EPA's quick check: plastic that billows inward means it's working, and plastic that flutters outward means containment is lost. The lead builds it and checks it at every visit. Source: U.S. EPA: Mold Remediation in Schools and Commercial Buildings, Chapter 3.
How much lead restoration technicians make
The closest BLS group for lead restoration technicians is hazardous materials removal workers. Hazardous materials removal workers who work for remediation companies earned a median of $23.51 an hour ($48,900 a year) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s about the same as the $49,450 median for hazardous materials removal workers in all industries. About 32,210 of the 51,710 hazardous materials removal workers in that survey work for remediation companies.
Hourly pay in the template means overtime applies, plus bonuses for efficiency and customer satisfaction. BLS has no code just for restoration technicians. The closest, hazardous materials removal workers, also counts asbestos and lead abatement crews.
Remediation companies
$48,900$48,900 median Middle half $44,530–$60,680 10th–90th $38,480–$79,720
All industries
$49,450$49,450 median Middle half $44,720–$61,530 10th–90th $38,460–$82,410
$30k$40k$50k$60k$70k$80k$90k
10th–90th percentileMiddle halfMedianAnnual pay, May 2025. Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics.
Annual pay by percentile
Group
10th
25th
Median
75th
90th
Remediation companies
$38,480
$44,530
$48,900
$60,680
$79,720
All industries
$38,460
$44,720
$49,450
$61,530
$82,410
BLS doesn’t publish pay for restoration contractors on their own. These figures cover remediation and other waste management services, 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
Has dried water losses start to finish on their own
Builds containment and sets up negative air on mold jobs right the first time
Explains the drying plan to a worried owner in plain words
Keeps a full log of readings, photos and equipment at every visit
Calls the project manager before guessing on scope, category or hidden damage
Teach these on the job
IICRC drying, mold or fire courses beyond WRT
Your carrier programs' photo and reading rules
Contents pack-out and inventory
Your job app and moisture-mapping tool
Odor work with hydroxyl or ozone machines
A lead's kit: pin and pinless moisture meters, a thermohygrometer, a thermal camera, portable or truck-mount extractors, LGR and desiccant dehumidifiers, air movers and HEPA air scrubbers. List ASD or AMRT either as a must or as classes you'll pay for, so certified and uncertified candidates both know where they stand.
Lead restoration technician interview questions
They have their own page: 7 questions that test this job, what strong and weak answers sound like, and a work exercise to run with your finalists.
These targets come from the template. Look at a few months of a lead's jobs before holding them to the numbers, so the goals fit your mix of water, fire and mold work.
Project Completion Rate
Share of the lead's jobs where drying gear came off by the day planned at the first visit. Pull dates from your job app, and set aside jobs held up by an adjuster or the owner.
Customer Satisfaction Rating
Score only jobs where the lead ran the crew, using the survey sent at close. Set aside low scores that trace to the adjuster or the insurance payment before judging the lead.
Safety Compliance
Count injury and near-miss reports from the lead's crew each quarter, along with site checks that found missing PPE, broken containment or cords lying in water.
Team Productivity
Compare crew labor hours on each job with the hours the approved estimate allows. Watch the trend across quarters rather than single weeks, since storms and big losses skew it.
Is IICRC certification a legal requirement for restoration work?
No. IICRC is an industry body, and its certificates aren't government licenses, though some states license mold work on their own. Water Damage Restoration Technician (WRT) is the usual starting point. Applied Structural Drying (ASD), for drying, and Applied Microbial Remediation Technician (AMRT), for mold and sewage, both require WRT first. Fire and Smoke Restoration Technician (FSRT) has no prerequisite. The template lists certifications as preferred, not required, so WRT plus one of the others is a sensible thing to favor in a lead.
How much does a lead restoration technician make?
Hazardous materials removal workers who work for remediation companies earned a median of $23.51 an hour ($48,900 a year) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The middle half earned between $44,530 and $60,680 a year. Pay also depends on your local market, experience and overtime.
How can you tell a strong lead restoration technician candidate?
Hand them a real drying log with a few problems in it and have them mark what they'd change. Ask how they'd contain mold behind a kitchen sink, what they'd do first in a crawl space with sewage in it, and what they'd tell the owner about how long drying will take. Strong leads answer with details from actual jobs, not lines from a class.
What should a lead technician handle on a new water loss?
Make the site safe, confirm where the water came from, trace where it went, decide the category, and record any damage that was there before. IICRC's water standard lists these steps for the first visit, along with setting the dry standard and drying goals. Get the work authorization signed before tear-out, and send the project manager the photos that night.
Should a lead restoration technician be on call?
Usually, on a rotation. A night loss needs someone who can judge the water, start extraction and set equipment without help. Tell candidates how often their turn comes, how fast you expect them to respond, and how that time is paid. Sharing the rotation among enough leads keeps one person from carrying every freeze alone.
