Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment
Also called Automotive Detailer (Auto Detailer), Car Washer, Detailer, or Reconditioner
What Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment do
Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment wash or otherwise clean vehicles, machinery, and other equipment. Use such materials as water, cleaning agents, brushes, cloths, and hoses.
Who tends to enjoy it
Hands-on
People who like building, fixing, working with tools, machines, plants, or animals.
Organizing
People who like keeping things accurate, orderly, and running on schedule.
Curious
People who like figuring things out, research, science, and solving problems.
What you'd actually do
- Rinse objects and place them on drying racks or use cloth, squeegees, or air compressors to dry surfaces.
- Apply paints, dyes, polishes, reconditioners, waxes, or masking materials to vehicles to preserve, protect, or restore color or condition.
- Clean and polish vehicle windows.
- Drive vehicles to or from workshops or customers' workplaces or homes.
- Scrub, scrape, or spray machine parts, equipment, or vehicles, using scrapers, brushes, clothes, cleaners, disinfectants, insecticides, acid, abrasives, vacuums, or hoses.
- Inspect parts, equipment, or vehicles for cleanliness, damage, and compliance with standards or regulations.
- Mix cleaning solutions, abrasive compositions, or other compounds, according to formulas.
- Maintain inventories of supplies.
A typical day involves
Skills that matter most
- Operation and Control
- Quality Control Analysis
- Operations Monitoring
- Monitoring
- Time Management
- Speaking
What you'll need to know
- Customer and Personal Service
- English Language
- Transportation
- Administration and Management
- Public Safety and Security
Related careers
Production
Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers
Operate or tend washing or dry-cleaning machines to wash or dry-clean industrial or household articles, such as cloth garments, suede, leather, furs, blankets, draperies, linens, rugs, and carpets. Includes spotters and dyers of these articles.
Little to some preparation
Production
Cleaning, Washing, and Metal Pickling Equipment Operators and Tenders
Operate or tend machines to wash or clean products, such as barrels or kegs, glass items, tin plate, food, pulp, coal, plastic, or rubber, to remove impurities.
Little to some preparation
Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance
Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners
Keep buildings in clean and orderly condition. Perform heavy cleaning duties, such as cleaning floors, shampooing rugs, washing walls and glass, and removing rubbish. Duties may include tending furnace and boiler, performing routine maintenance activities, notifying management of need for repairs, and cleaning snow or debris from sidewalk.
Medium preparation
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair
Maintenance Workers, Machinery
Lubricate machinery, change parts, or perform other routine machinery maintenance.
Medium preparation
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Coating, Painting, and Spraying Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders
Set up, operate, or tend spraying or rolling machines to coat or paint any of a wide variety of products, including glassware, cloth, ceramics, metal, plastic, paper, or wood, with lacquer, silver, copper, rubber, varnish, glaze, enamel, oil, or rust-proofing materials. Includes painters of transportation vehicles such as painters in auto body repair facilities.
Little to some preparation
Transportation and Material Moving
Machine Feeders and Offbearers
Feed materials into or remove materials from machines or equipment that is automatic or tended by other workers.
Little to some preparation
Production
Separating, Filtering, Clarifying, Precipitating, and Still Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders
Set up, operate, or tend continuous flow or vat-type equipment; filter presses; shaker screens; centrifuges; condenser tubes; precipitating, fermenting, or evaporating tanks; scrubbing towers; or batch stills. These machines extract, sort, or separate liquids, gases, or solids from other materials to recover a refined product. Includes dairy processing equipment operators.
Little to some preparation
Production
Grinding and Polishing Workers, Hand
Grind, sand, or polish, using hand tools or hand-held power tools, a variety of metal, wood, stone, clay, plastic, or glass objects. Includes chippers, buffers, and finishers.
Little to some preparation
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database (USDOL/ETA), occupation 53-7061.00, used under CC BY 4.0 and modified by Whittle. Program links: NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. How we build these pages.