Blowing cold air...

[dugma78]

Hey folks,

I'm a newbie to the forum and car repairs. I recently diagnosed and replaced a bad alternator in my 96 ranger, so I was feeling emboldened and decide to tackle a problem I've put off for three years: my broken heat.

The heater blows cold air. I took it in to a shop once, they flushed the heater core, replaced the coolant, and nothing--still blows cold air. They said they would have to take off the instrument panel and do something with the vacuum hoses. Well, I've finally succeeded in removing the instrument panel as of this afternoon, but I can't figure out what exactly I'm looking for with the vacuum hoses. I see them, but I'm not sure how to determine what might be wrong with them. Before I started the disassembly, I plucked the vacuum hose from the heater control valve under the hood, and there was a sucking vacuum kind of release noise made. So there seems to be vacuum. And both hoses to the heater core were warm (I hadn't run the engine long enough for them to be too hot, though).

My thought is that I'll replace the heater core and the thermostat, just for good measure (the gauge does usually read cold only)--the parts aren't too expensive. But what might I look for and fix with the vacuum hoses? Anything? Or did the mechanic not know what he was talking about?

Thanks for any advice,

Doug Muller

 

[jamie18]

The vacum hoses probly work the door for cold air and its probly not pulling the door shut so only hot air blows in the cab. Their should be a valve the hoses go to mabey he's thinking that the valve is bad.

 

[MAKG]

Well, the FIRST thing to check is, is the radiator full?