I'm following the manual.. and to my knowledge, this model of Rug Renovator has no suds shutoff switch like the later ones. You just have to use all the suds, or stop, empty the container and then continue.
Before the Rug Renovator was invented, Kirby recommended using the Suds-o-Gun, putting suds where desired, and either hand-scrubbing them, or using the miracle head (or whatever they used to call it) to brush the suds into the carpet... this makes sense.
What does not make much sense is the fact that the rug renovator works on the "back stroke". The hole that spits out suds is about 3 inches in front of the brush roller. You're going backwards, and so a given piece of carpet first gets brushed by the brush roller, mostly dry, and then gets doused with suds. If the whole point is for the brush roller to scrub suds into the carpet, shouldn't the suds go first, and then be followed by the brush roller? I know there's a little bit of suction happening from the motor pulling dispensed suds "back" into the brush but it seems to me that it would be more "effective" for the rug renovator to move forwards, putting down suds and then scrubbing them in in that order.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not operating it forwards, I'm only using back strokes as I'm supposed to. Once the suds are all gone I then go over, and over the treated areas scrubbing the suds in even more, again on a back stroke. (This part of the technique makes sense..)
I am filling the tank with 2/3 a cap full of shampoo. I was told by Kirby that the older Rug Renovators have a smaller tank, and that the correct amount of shampoo (with the modern formulation) is 2/3 a cap, using the brown Rug Renovator tank cap. That does make an adequately insane amount of suds, so I don't think I have a lack of shampoo in the mix...
Anyhow, I'm about to move to a new house, and this house will have short berber carpet. It ought to be easier to keep clean.
