Residential plumber vs water softener installer

The differences between residential plumbers and water softener installers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a residential plumber and a water softener installer. Additionally, a residential plumber has an average salary of $54,486, which is higher than the $38,293 average annual salary of a water softener installer.

The top three skills for a residential plumber include plumbing, water heaters and hand tools. The most important skills for a water softener installer are plumbing, customer service, and .

Residential plumber vs water softener installer overview

	Residential Plumber	Water Softener Installer
Yearly salary	$54,486	$38,293
Hourly rate	$26.20	$18.41
Growth rate	2%	2%
Number of jobs	18,520	19,150
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 54%	High School Diploma, 29%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	4	4

Residential plumber vs water softener installer salary

Residential plumbers and water softener installers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Residential Plumber	Water Softener Installer
Average salary	$54,486	$38,293
Salary range	Between $36,000 And $82,000	Between $22,000 And $64,000
Highest paying City	Framingham, MA	-
Highest paying state	Hawaii	-
Best paying company	Horizon Services	-
Best paying industry	Professional	-

Differences between residential plumber and water softener installer education

There are a few differences between a residential plumber and a water softener installer in terms of educational background:

	Residential Plumber	Water Softener Installer
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 54%	High School Diploma, 29%
Most common major	Business	Aviation
Most common college	-	-

Residential plumber vs water softener installer demographics

Here are the differences between residential plumbers' and water softener installers' demographics:

	Residential Plumber	Water Softener Installer
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 94.6% Female, 5.4%	Male, 97.4% Female, 2.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.9% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 19.2% Asian, 1.9% White, 64.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%	Black or African American, 5.0% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 19.4% Asian, 1.7% White, 68.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage	2%	2%

Differences between residential plumber and water softener installer duties and responsibilities

Residential plumber example responsibilities.

Train and manage less experience plumbers and achieve significant improvements in their productivity.
Install copper and PEX water supply.
Assist with HVAC, run water lines, install washer boxes etc
Learned skills such as welding, soldering, brazing, blueprint reading, schematic drawings, rigging, and crane signaling.
Assemble pipe sections, tubing, or fittings, using clamps, screws, or soldering, brazing or welding equipment.
Contract work-Sears-replacing dishwashers and water heaters.

Water softener installer example responsibilities.

Manage telecommunications, data and CCTV equipment.
Examine plumbing system to determine connections, pipes, and pipe fittings require.
Configure Cat6 cabling/wall jack terminations, testing voice/data line activity to confirm connections.
Manage telecommunications, data and CCTV equipment.

Residential plumber vs water softener installer skills

Common residential plumber skills

Plumbing, 32%
Water Heaters, 14%
Hand Tools, 7%
Troubleshoot, 5%
PVC, 4%
Caulking, 4%

Common water softener installer skills

Plumbing, 57%
Customer Service, 43%

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Residential Plumber vs Water Softener Installer

Updated January 8, 2025

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