Career profile for Carpet Installer

What does a Carpet Installer do?

Carpet Installers lay and install carpet from rolls or blocks on floors.

In addition, Carpet Installers install padding and trim flooring materials.

What kind of tasks does a Carpet Installer perform regularly?

Carpet Installers are often responsible for overseeing or executing some or all of the following tasks:

Inspect the surface to be covered to determine its condition, and correct any imperfections that might show through carpet or cause carpet to wear unevenly.
Roll out, measure, mark, and cut carpeting to size with a carpet knife, following floor sketches and allowing extra carpet for final fitting.
Join edges of carpet and seam edges where necessary, by sewing or by using tape with glue and heated carpet iron.
Cut and trim carpet to fit along wall edges, openings, and projections, finishing the edges with a wall trimmer.
Plan the layout of the carpet, allowing for expected traffic patterns and placing seams for best appearance and longest wear.
Stretch carpet to align with walls and ensure a smooth surface, and press carpet in place over tack strips or use staples, tape, tacks or glue to hold carpet in place.
Take measurements and study floor sketches to calculate the area to be carpeted and the amount of material needed.
Install carpet on some floors using adhesive, following prescribed method.
Clean up before and after installation, including vacuuming carpet and discarding remnant pieces.
Measure, cut and install tackless strips along the baseboard or wall.
Nail tack strips around area to be carpeted or use old strips to attach edges of new carpet.
Cut carpet padding to size and install padding, following prescribed method.
Fasten metal treads across door openings or where carpet meets flooring to hold carpet in place.
Draw building diagrams and record dimensions.
Move furniture from area to be carpeted and remove old carpet and padding.
Cut and bind material.

The above responsibilities are specific to Carpet Installers. More generally, Carpet Installers are involved in several broader types of activities:

Activities	Importance	Details
Performing General Physical Activities		Performing physical activities that require considerable use of your arms and legs and moving your whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling materials.
Handling and Moving Objects		Using hands and arms in handling, installing, positioning, and moving materials, and manipulating things.
Getting Information		Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials		Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects.
Making Decisions and Solving Problems		Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.

Performing General Physical Activities

Performing physical activities that require considerable use of your arms and legs and moving your whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling materials.

Handling and Moving Objects

Using hands and arms in handling, installing, positioning, and moving materials, and manipulating things.

Getting Information

Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.

Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials

Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects.

Making Decisions and Solving Problems

Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.

What is a Carpet Installer salary?

The median salary for a Carpet Installer is $41,480, and the average salary is $46,150. Both the median and average roughly describe the middle of the Carpet Installer salary range, but the average is more easily affected by extremely high or low salaries.

Many Carpet Installers earn significantly more or less than the average, due to several factors. About 10% of Carpet Installers earn less than $25,900 per year, 25% earn less than $31,940, 75% earn less than $55,540, and 90% earn less than $75,750.

Between the years of 2020 and 2030, the number of Carpet Installers is expected to change by -5.8%, and there should be roughly 2,500 open positions for Carpet Installers every year.

Median annual salary: $41,480
Typical salary range: $25,900 - $75,750
Projected growth (2020 - 2030): -5.8%

What personality traits are common among Carpet Installers?

Interests

Career interests describe a person's preferences for different types of working environments and activities. When a person's interest match the demands of an occupation, people are usually more engaged and satisfied in that role.

Compared to most occupations, those who work as a Carpet Installer are usually higher in their Realistic interests.

Carpet Installers typically have very strong Realistic interests. Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.

Values

People differ in their values, or what is most important to them for building job satisfaction and fulfillment.

Compared to most people, those working as a Carpet Installer tend to value Relationships, Support, and Independence.

Most importantly, Carpet Installers moderately value Relationships. Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to provide service to others and work with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment.

Second, Carpet Installers moderately value Support. Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees.

Lastly, Carpet Installers somewhat value Independence. Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions.

Psychological Demands

Each occupation brings its own set of psychological demands, which describe the characteristics necessary to perform the job well.

In order to perform their job successfully, people who work as Carpet Installers must consistently demonstrate qualities such as attention to detail, dependability, and integrity.

Below, you'll find a list of qualities typically required of Carpet Installers, ranked by importance:

Demands	Importance	Details
Attention to Detail		Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
Dependability		Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
Integrity		Job requires being honest and ethical.
Cooperation		Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
Independence		Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done.

Attention to Detail

Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.

Dependability

Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.

Integrity

Job requires being honest and ethical.

Cooperation

Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.

Independence

Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done.

What education and training do Carpet Installers need?

Working as a Carpet Installer usually requires a high school diploma.

Carpet Installers need anywhere from a few months to one year of working with experienced employees. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with this occupation.

Educational degrees among Carpet Installers

31.7% did not complete high school or secondary school
43.7% completed high school or secondary school
15.6% completed some college coursework
3.5% earned a Associate's degree
4.9% earned a Bachelor's degree
0.7% earned a Master's degree
0.1% earned a doctorate or professional degree

Knowledge and expertise required by Carpet Installers

Carpet Installers may benefit from understanding of specialized subject areas, such as customer and personal service, mathematics, or administration and management knowledge.

The list below shows several areas in which most Carpet Installers might want to build proficiency, ranked by importance.

Knowledge areas	Importance	Details
Customer and Personal Service		Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Mathematics		Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Administration and Management		Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Building and Construction		Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
Production and Processing		Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.

Customer and Personal Service

Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

Mathematics

Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.

Administration and Management

Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.

Building and Construction

Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.

Production and Processing

Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.

Important Abilities needed by Carpet Installers

Carpet Installers must develop a particular set of abilities to perform their job well. Abilities are individual capacities that influence a person's information processing, sensory perception, motor coordination, and physical strength or endurance. Individuals may naturally have certain abilities without explicit training, but most abilities can be sharpened somewhat through practice.

For example, Carpet Installers need abilities such as problem sensitivity, trunk strength, and extent flexibility in order to perform their job at a high level. The list below shows several important abilities for Carpet Installers, ranked by their relative importance.

Abilities	Importance	Details
Problem Sensitivity		The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.
Trunk Strength		The ability to use your abdominal and lower back muscles to support part of the body repeatedly or continuously over time without "giving out" or fatiguing.
Extent Flexibility		The ability to bend, stretch, twist, or reach with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Static Strength		The ability to exert maximum muscle force to lift, push, pull, or carry objects.
Near Vision		The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).

Problem Sensitivity

The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.

Trunk Strength

The ability to use your abdominal and lower back muscles to support part of the body repeatedly or continuously over time without "giving out" or fatiguing.

Extent Flexibility

The ability to bend, stretch, twist, or reach with your body, arms, and/or legs.

Static Strength

The ability to exert maximum muscle force to lift, push, pull, or carry objects.

Near Vision

The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).

Critical Skills needed by Carpet Installers

Skills are developed capacities that enable people to function effectively in real-world settings. Unlike abilities, skills are typically easier to build through practice and experience. Skills influence effectiveness in areas such as learning, working with others, design, troubleshooting, and more.

Carpet Installers frequently use skills like monitoring, coordination, and mathematics to perform their job effectively. The list below shows several critical skills for Carpet Installers, ranked by their relative importance.

Skills	Importance	Details
Monitoring		Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Coordination		Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
Mathematics		Using mathematics to solve problems.
Critical Thinking		Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
Quality Control Analysis		Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.

Monitoring

Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.

Coordination

Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.

Mathematics

Using mathematics to solve problems.

Critical Thinking

Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.

Quality Control Analysis

Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.

What is the source of this information?

The information provided on this page is adapted from data and descriptions published by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration under the CC BY 4.0 license. TraitLab has modified some information for ease of use and reading, and the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment, and Training Administration has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.

If you have any questions or suggestions about this information, please send a message.

Career profile Carpet Installer

Carpet Installer

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