Volvo Repair: heater problems, not reaching windsheild, vacuum motors, vacuum motor

Question
hey Roger/whoever may be helping me

I got a 1986 240DL Volvo and earlier i had smoke coming out of my heater any time it was remotely turned on, suddenly stopped any ideas?

The real question is that my heater works fine now.. better then ever, although the heat/air never reaches the windshield.. its partially there but doesn't give through, my mechanic told me to check the hose, but im not sure where to go. I'd hate to rip apart my whole dash for this one but where exactly can i find the leak in the hose.
right front works better then left front. i guess theres a couple loose? any ideas
-Scott, MA

Answer
Scott,
Sorry, I am not familiar with the specifics of the heater system on this vehicle. However, most cars have several vacuum motors on the heater plenum just below the dash. You can actually manually move the arm that the vacuum motors are connected to while the heater and defrost is on. When you feel good flow at the defrost outlet, you have the right vacuum motor. With the engine running, pull the correct vacuum hose off, and you should feel a slight vacuum when you put your finger over the end of it. If no vacuum is present, trace the hose back to the engine, if necessary to go that far to see if there is a break in it. You may also have a clogged fitting where it connects to the engine. These vacuum motors are usually not hard to get to. They are shaped a little like a mushroom with a rubber hose connected to the center, and about 2 inches in diameter. I hope this is helpful.