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Carpet Cleaner

Kaiwhakapai Whāriki

Carpet cleaners clean carpets, floors and upholstery, and may dry and clean carpets after floods.

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Secondary education

There are no specific secondary education requirements to become a carpet cleaner. However, English, maths, processing technologies, and construction and mechanical technologies are useful.

Study fields

Study levels

  • Up to NCEA Level 3

Useful experience

Useful experience for carpet cleaners includes:

  • cleaning work
  • customer service.

What you will do

Carpet cleaners may do some or all of the following:

  • discuss clients' requirements and assess what cleaning needs to be done
  • choose the best cleaning methods for the job
  • clean carpets, hard floors, chairs, sofas and curtains
  • remove or reduce stains
  • sell products for cleaning and protecting carpets and furniture
  • use sprays to control pests such as fleas, cockroaches and ants.

Flood restoration technicians also:

  • assess flood damage to floors and upholstery from water, mud, sewage and mould
  • use specialised drying equipment such as dehumidifiers and pumps
  • wash and sanitise carpets and upholstery.

Skills and knowledge

Carpet cleaners need to have knowledge of:

  • carpets and furniture fabrics
  • stain removers and other chemicals
  • how to use and care for their equipment.
Pay

Carpet cleaners usually earn

$23-$30

per hour

Job opportunities
Good
Chances of getting a job as a carpet cleaner are good due to a shortage of workers.
Length of training
<1
year of training usually required.

Industry

Cleaning and Gardening

Carpet cleaners clean carpets, floors and upholstery, and may dry and clean carpets after floods.

Similar jobs in this industry

Entry requirements

To become a carpet cleaner, you need a full driver's licence. You may also need to pass police and medical checks, security clearances, and drug and alcohol tests.

You gain skills on the job and may complete a qualification such as a:

  • Carpet Cleaning Technician Certificate from the Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC)
  • New Zealand Certificate in Cleaning (Level 3) Specialist Cleaning Strand from Careerforce.

Chances of getting a job

Increasing demand for carpet cleaners

Demand for carpet cleaners is strong, with job advertisements for window and carpet cleaners increasing by 15% in the year to October 2018.

Opportunities for carpet cleaners are good because:

  • employers find it hard to get carpet cleaners, and will take on inexperienced staff to train
  • clients want carpets cleaned during both boom times and economic downturns
  • the average age of carpet cleaners is 50 to 59, so the number of vacancies may increase as they near retirement.

According to the Census, 450 carpet cleaners worked in New Zealand in 2018.

Self-employment common among carpet cleaners

About half of carpet cleaners are self-employed.

Others work for cleaning agencies that contract to organisations such as hospitals or businesses.

Find out more about training

Careerforce/Te Toi Pūkenga
0800 277 486 - info@careerforce.org.nz - www.careerforce.org.nz
Carpet Cleaners Association of New Zealand
0800 422 269 - contact@carpetcleaners.org.nz - www.carpetcleaners.org.nz

Progression and specialisations

Carpet cleaners may progress to set up their own business, or move into managerial roles.

Carpet cleaners can specialise in a number of roles, including:

Floor Polisher
Floor polishers strip, clean and polish hard floors.
Flood Restoration Technician
Flood restoration technicians remove water from flooded carpets and upholstery, and clean and sanitise damage caused by sewage, mud and mould.

Working conditions

Carpet cleaners:

  • may work evenings, weekends and on call
  • work in homes, offices and public buildings
  • may work with chemicals. Flood restoration technicians work in conditions that can be dirty, wet and smelly, and need to use protective equipment such as suits and respirators
  • travel locally to their clients.

Physical Requirements

Carpet cleaners need to:

  • have a good level of health and fitness
  • be strong, as they lift heavy equipment
  • not be allergic to the chemicals they use.

Useful personal qualities

Carpet cleaners need to be:

  • able to follow instructions
  • honest and reliable
  • good at time management
  • good communicators
  • problem solvers
  • not squeamish, as they may have to clean trauma scenes or body fluids such as vomit.

Industry

Cleaning and Gardening

Carpet cleaners clean carpets, floors and upholstery, and may dry and clean carpets after floods.

Similar jobs in this industry

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