heater not working

if both hoses are hot at the heater core outside, I'd look at the actuator again... seen many of them where if not under a bind will turn but put a slight bind on them and they make a ratchiting sound and won't move... please give more info on temperature of hoses..

both hoses are hot at the heater core outside.

then I would look for an internal issue. As I stated about the blend door actuator motor, it will turn free, but put a slight bind and normally it won't turn, I change them a lot, but if both sides are hot at the heater core, I would recommend investigating inside issues such as the actuator, the door (which you replaced) or the control head

what is the function of the actuator? blend door appears to be opening fine. sometimes i do hear the ratching sound but not all the time. should i just go ahead and replace the heater core and the actuator?

i am getting only (72f) degress coming out of the vents. i am about to give up. what else should i do?

to be honest i believe the hoses are all about the same temperatures as other hoses outside. if i step on the gas temperature coming out of the vents goes up to 74f and drops back to 68f?

That's why I asked about the temperature of the hoses for.. if both going into the firewall with engine temperature at mid range should be too hot to handle on both hoses if the core is operating properly.

If you are hearing the ratchiting, it's probably the actuator. the actuator moves the blend door using a electrical motor. these things are known to strip out the plastic gear built into them and will ratchet and make noise or cause luke warm temperatures...

mjr346 is correct. If both hear core hoses are hot, the heater core has to be hot too. Thus, the only other thing left is the blend door actuator. As he mentioned, if you hear a ratcheting sound, something is slipping. Most likely the plastic gear that is built into them.