We have used solar wind electron heat fluxes to determine the magnetic polarities of the interplanetary magnetic fields (IMF) during the ISEE-3 observations in 1978–1982. That period included 14 magnetic clouds (MCs) identified by Zhang and Burlaga. The MCs have been modeled as single magnetic flux ropes, and it is generally assumed that they are magnetically closed structures with each end of the flux rope connected to the Sun. The flux rope model is valid only if the magnetic polarity of each MC does not change during the passage of ISEE-3 through the MC. We test this model with the heat flux data, using the dominant heat flux in bidirectional electron heat fluxes to determine the MC polarities. The polarity changes within at least 2, and possibly 6, of the 14 MCs, meaning that those MCs can not fit the model of a single flux rope. ©1999 American Institute of Physics.