CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (Unaudited) (Parenthetical) (USD $) In Thousands, except Share data, unless otherwise specified	Mar. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011
Current assets:
Allowance for doubtful accounts	$ 1,711	$ 1,564
Mueller Industries, Inc. stockholders' equity:
Preferred stock, par value (in dollars per share)	$ 1.00	$ 1.00
Preferred stock, shares authorized (in shares)	5,000,000	5,000,000
Preferred stock, shares outstanding (in shares)	0	0
Common stock, par value (in dollars per share)	$ 0.01	$ 0.01
Common stock, shares authorized (in shares)	100,000,000	100,000,000
Common stock, shares issued (in shares)	40,091,502	40,091,502
Common stock, shares outstanding (in shares)	38,247,828	38,236,568