I used duct tape to fix this problem

I believe that it's part of the heating system. It's where the air goes in to be warmed. I noticed in the winter that the part was not fitting flush with the side of the truck where it was supposed to fit over.

I tried to push it on but it wasn't fitting on correctly. That coupled with the fact that the entire part itself was being held in place by wires led me to say screw it and just duct tape around the open parts of where the two parts were supposed to connect. So essentially I put duct tape over any open space that was around that area. I realize that I'm lacking proper terminology here. I was hoping the pictures would make it clear. I didn't take any pictures of the duct tape job. Basically it's all around the area with the duct tape creating a seal.

Will this work? I noticed last night that the heat was barely warm. That's what led me to figure out a solution today.

 

Can't duct it, fuck it.
I say go for it

 

air inlet tube for fresh air from outside to air filter to intake

Not going to fix your heat issue

 

Doesn't that mean it's where the air is fed to the air filter and then ultimately to be heated? So it could have an effect on the heat.

 

L...M...F...A...O!

 

No, that air is going directly into your engine to be burned. Not related to the heater.

The heater core is what creates hot air. It uses hot coolant, so it only puts out hot air after the coolant is hot. If your heat doesn't work, this is likely your cause.

 

no need for duct tape, just open the air filter box and wiggle the tube as you rotate it and slide it out a little to fit as it should.

its just a fresh air intake for the air filter to get cold air from the fender rather then draw warm air from under the hood. some people don't care if it gets warm air and take the hose off completely.

 

^^^I agree with isu2014. If you're not getting heat in the cab start with the thermostat.

 

Is there a way to check on the hot coolant in a 95 Taco?

 

First, make sure you have enough coolant in the radiator and puke tank. If all is good, next I would replace the thermostat since its a cheap part. If I'm pulling it out, might as well put a new one in. I would also make sure the climate control knob is moving all the way to hot, not stopping short. There's a coolant line on the firewall with a cable running to a valve that opens and closes when you move the climate control lever from cold to hot.

 

My heater core became clogged... don't ask me how I never used any "product" on her and had issues with my heater as a result.

 

Yea after doing some reading it looks like this will be my issue as well.

Did you do the flush with a garden hose?

 

This is a life lesson

 

I suspect mine is clogged also. Going to need to wash and run some compressed air thru it.

 

Do not use compressed air, unless you want to replace it. It isn't designed to handle that much pressure, disconnect the hoses and back flush with a garden hose, the opposite way it was designed to flow.

Start with little flow and fluctuate up and down, reverse the flow and continue until you get free flow.

 

Is there any other trick to cleaning these dang things out?? Seems like they should make a snake fur these things, like the ones for a toilet or sink... but a small one just fur heater cores. Right? Idk, maybe too many tight turns for it to work. Just seems like after all these years of people having heater core plugs that there would be something on the market for the problem.

 

It is basically a small radiator, fins and tubes. I have only had one stop up in nearly 40yrs of driving. If the system is maintained properly, there are no issues, it takes a bunch to stop it up.

Pop the hood, crank the truck, and turn on the heater. You should be able to feel the water flow thru the shutoff valve as it warms up, if it flows warm quickly, you have a door control problem, not a plugged heater core problem.