The term aerothermal energy is heard more and more frequently. These devices, which run on electricity and are available at any retailer or chain, are state-of-the-art heat pumps that provide heating in winter, cooling in summer and hot water all year round. The technology, which works by extracting the environmental energy contained in the air through a thermodynamic cycle, is considered the most efficient alternative for heating and cooling homes in the not too distant future thanks to its performance (400% more than all other thermal systems) play a key role in the decarbonization of the real estate portfolio.
A total of 70,300 multitasking heat pumps (aerothermal plus geothermal) were sold in 2022, an increase of 48% compared to the previous year. According to the Association of Heat Producers and Emitters Manufacturers (Fegeca), the marketing of heat pumps for hot water only reached 25,000 units (51.5% more).
Sales are increasing, but Spain remains the fifth European country with the lowest rate of device sales. Despite being three to five times more efficient than their fossil fuel competitors, these appliances are still far behind the share of gas boilers, which are found in 40% of homes. The price and size of these devices as well as their economic viability are some of the questions related to aerothermal energy. In new buildings it is easy to design a building taking into account renewable solutions like this, but in existing buildings it is more difficult to overcome the technical impossibility, especially in old buildings where the installation of heat pumps is not possible due to space problems. It is prohibited to place devices on the facades. “In new buildings, aerothermal energy is the most frequently chosen option for hot water heating and air conditioning. The situation changes during renovation when we have less space inside or the facade or roof are not available to place the outdoor units,” explains Sonia Pomar, General Director of Fegeca. “Noise regulations or the need for air supplied by the outdoor unit make it difficult to replace old gas boilers with heat pumps in apartment buildings,” he adds.
Soil properties
Inmaculada Peiró, general director of Agremia, the association of companies in the installation and energy sector, also points out the technical characteristics of the property where the devices will be installed: for a 70 square meter apartment, in a city and with B. a five-meter kitchen (it is estimated that 70% of the population lives like this), “replacing a boiler with an air source heat pump is complex, especially due to the space required by the hot water tank, because it is similar in size of a refrigerator.”
At this point, Ismael Morales, Head of Communications and Climate Policy at the Renovables Foundation, proposes the creation of a heating electrification plan for 2025-2030 that aims to replace fossil fuel systems with heat pumps. “One of the measures could be to maintain the heat distribution system and minimize the carrying out of works. This also includes the mandatory replacement of all boilers that are more than 10 years old or do not condense,” he suggests. . If this measure is carried out, we could achieve a significant stock of installed gas boilers, since there are currently nine million units in Spain. “It is estimated that 65% of them are very old and have lower efficiency than the devices currently on the market,” says Peiró.
There is one “but”: currently, aerothermal devices are significantly more expensive than a condensing boiler and are therefore not available to all citizens. According to OCU, the costs for aerothermal heat pumps are between 3,600 and 12,700 euros, plus installation costs between 2,000 and 8,000 euros plus VAT. However, the costs for a wall-mounted condensing gas boiler would be “around 1,500 and 2,000 euros plus VAT,” calculates Pomar.
However, if you take the long-term investment into account, the effort is worth it. Francisco Zuloaga, Ecodes consultant and renewable heat expert, says: “If we take into account the operating costs, the evolution of gas and electricity prices, housing prices and the cost of the heat pump itself, “this seems to be the most advantageous option,” says this organization's publication Cazamitos del Hidrogen. “There are also numerous subsidies for air heat pumps and almost no administration supports gas boilers anymore. In fact, the agreement on the Energy Efficiency of Buildings Directive provides for the end of support for this type of boiler on January 1, 2025,” he explains.
The study “The condensing boiler, a way to decarbonize homes without restrictions” by the Spanish Gas Association (Sedigas) finds that replacing the entire inefficient park of gas boilers with aerothermal equipment would cost 201,314 million euros, which is almost double of public spending on national health and 15 times more than replacing high-efficiency gas boilers.
However, Laureano Matas, secretary of the Supreme Council of Architectural Colleges of Spain (CSCAE), believes that simply intervening in the systems and replacing boilers with heat pumps, without first acting on the building envelope to reduce energy needs, will not do this just does not guarantee that European requirements are met, “but the obsolescence that this equipment brings will one day take us back to square one, and that is what we must avoid, namely the optimization of resources.”
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