Automatic Shut-Off

[drstawl]

I'm in the market for a heavy-duty wet-dry shop vac.

Perusing the specifications for various RIDGID models I haven't found any verification of which models, if any (or all :D) have an automatic shut-off triggered by the drum being full.

[BadgerDave]

Seems to me that a loss of suckage would be a good indicator that the drum is full.

[drstawl]

Sure. That would indicate it.

My question is more directed at whether waiting for that particular indicator would damage the unit.

Other vacuums incorporate a float ball that activates an electrical shut-off of the motor.

Still others use a float ball to block the vacuum inlet, protecting the motor/pump from liquid entry.
The motor then gets much louder, alerting the operator to empty the drum.

[drstawl]

Found the answer in the .pdf of the owner's manual on pages 2 and 11.

They use a float blocking the inlet manually to protect the motor/pump.