Yes, you can use a vacuum hose, but you need to do a couple of things to get it to work. First, there can't be any other skimmers or drains open. If you have additional skimmers or drains they need to be turned off or blocked. Second, you need to keep some water in the skimmer, so if there is an air leak it draws in water not air. I use a small cover pump to pump water into the skimmer the entire time. Third, you have to do the entire process in one go. If the pump is turned off or loses prime you won't be able to start it up again.