How Much Does Carpet Cleaning Cost?
This is always going to be the number one question for building owners and managers “what are average carpet cleaning prices”. How much will it cost to clean the carpet in my office space? It can be a pretty wide range from .10 cents a sqr foot up to .50 cents a square foot and everything inbetween.
Today we are going to share some of the variables carpet cleaners take in account when putting together a commercial price.
- Business objectives
- Frequency per year
- Last time cleaned
- Condition of carpet and carpet style
- Type of soiling
- Parking and access
- Scheduling
- Furniture moving
- Cubicles versus wide open areas
Business Objective
This may seem like a weird question to ask at first but managers buy carpet cleaning for all kinds of different reasons. VIP visits are a big one, regardless of the condition. Often a client, politician, or event is occurring and management wants the building to look its best regardless of condition.
We have this happen quite often, the carpet has been cleaned recently or is in really good shape in general but management wants to just freshen the building up a little. This would be a completely cost from a building that hasn’t been cleaned in 10 years.
Frequency of Cleaning Per Year
Generally, what happens is the more times a cleaner visit, the less time it takes. Often this is looked at as giving a “discount” but from a contractor’s viewpoint we should be able to reduce labor by at least 10% with repeated cleanings in a year.
Type of Carpeting
Nylon, polyester, nylon and especially wool carpeting all have different characteristics and can change the amount of time it takes to clean. Wool for example really absorbs water and can shrink if left wet for too long, this is one reason it prices are higher, it costs us more as we have to move slower when working and make sure to extract as much water as possible.
Furniture Moving and Cubicles
Furniture moving is another big variable, not as much moving furniture but putting back? If any legs are made of wood or metal, we have to place plastic tabs underneath or it will bleed a wood stain or rust. Which are very difficult to move?
Cubicle versus Wide Open areas
This is another labor related variable, cleaning in one area for 10 hours straight is extremely productive and lowers the cost while moving to 4 or 5 different areas would have the opposite effect.
Type of Soiling
Type of Soil and Condition
The type of soil can range from drink, coffee spills in a professional office with little foot traffic to a manufacturing setting with lots of oil and grease to remove. This has a big impact on labor.
Parking and Access
Can we park close to a door and reach the entire area from 1 spot. One of the biggest time wasters for a carpet cleaner is having to move from one part of the building to another. Not only the time but the physical exertion involved.
