Losing Prime when vacuuming

[waste]

Welcome to the forum!

Check which end of your vac hose is on the vac head

Many hoses have a cuff on one end that will swivel and one that won't - put the end that swivels on the vac head. (I've seen this problem 100s of times, it's an easy mistake )

[Poconos]

That's a good one Ted. I notice air being sucked in when that part of the vac head is out of the water when I do my steps but never thought it's so easy to mix up the ends.
On the original problem you have to be sure there are no tiny cracks in the hose above the water line. It only takes a tiny, almost invisible crack to let enough air in to lose prime. If you find a crack then you can dry the hose and use cheap electrical tape wound tight to seal the leak. Also use a few layers of tape. Depending on the condition of the hose you may get a lot of additional life from it.
Al

[dbell525]

I ended up finding a hairline crack in the bottom of the skimmer housing. I kept noticing water dripping from it, but thought it was just splashing. Replaced that and now it runs like a champ. Thanks for the replies.