CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME - USD ($) shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 26, 2020	Sep. 28, 2019	Sep. 26, 2020	Sep. 28, 2019
Income Statement [Abstract]
Net sales	$ 619,105	$ 608,602	$ 1,722,192	$ 1,886,777
Cost of goods sold	500,780	510,788	1,412,654	1,586,129
Depreciation and amortization	10,752	10,823	32,888	31,856
Selling, general, and administrative expense	38,346	40,739	114,714	121,838
Asset impairments	0	0	3,035	0
Litigation settlement, net	0	0	(21,933)	0
Operating income	69,227	46,252	180,834	146,954
Interest expense	(4,885)	(6,148)	(15,237)	(20,135)
Other income, net	522	533	3,634	823
Income before income taxes	64,864	40,637	169,231	127,642
Income tax expense	(15,450)	(7,665)	(42,623)	(27,643)
Loss from unconsolidated affiliates, net of foreign tax	(5,457)	(2,528)	(20,213)	(23,740)
Consolidated net income	43,957	30,444	106,395	76,259
Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests	(1,255)	(1,351)	(3,322)	(3,457)
Net income attributable to Mueller Industries, Inc.	$ 42,702	$ 29,093	$ 103,073	$ 72,802
Weighted average shares for basic earnings per share (in shares)	55,816	55,832	55,805	55,771
Effect of dilutive stock-based awards (in shares)	550	482	534	523
Adjusted weighted average shares for diluted earnings per share (in shares)	56,366	56,314	56,339	56,294
Basic earnings per share (in dollars per share)	$ 0.77	$ 0.52	$ 1.85	$ 1.31
Diluted earnings per share (in dollars per share)	0.76	0.52	1.83	1.29
Dividends per share (in dollars per share)	$ 0.10	$ 0.10	$ 0.30	$ 0.30