Heat waves this summer are reviving the perennial debate about how to use air conditioning without the bill spiraling out of control. And a respected voice in the sector has just articulated what he has been telling his clients for nearly two decades.
According to Clarín, drawing on the Sector Oficios podcast, José María Rey has spent 19 years in climate control as the manager and cofounder of Suro Clima Instalaciones in Badajoz. His diagnosis is as blunt as it is uncomfortable: the problem isn’t the equipment, it’s us.
The verdict: “The problem is that people don’t know how to use air conditioning units.” The recipe, in his own words: “They have the same energy consumption; what you need to do is set an ideal temperature and let it run.” In other words, stop playing with the on/off switch as if the unit were from the nineties, and let the home operate with inertia to sustain the savings.
Because today’s equipment, Rey explains, works opposite to what the average user imagines (a modern unit isn’t simply the old stove, beware). “People think they must switch them off, and these systems are aerothermal,” he repeats. And that’s where a large portion of real savings slips away: every time the unit starts from scratch it has to condition the entire house, not just maintain it.
The economic formula Rey proposes: “A very good option if you don’t want to spend a lot and you want both cooling and heating is a ducted machine.” One component, several rooms, winter and summer (and a single device for everything). Today, he notes, all modern units serve both air conditioning and heating at once.
The ideal combo, as Rey puts it, is: “Radiant underfloor cooling together with aerothermal energy works very well.” It’s the most efficient choice, though not the cheapest. Aerothermy carries a high upfront cost, but the IDAE classifies it as renewable thermal energy, so the investment pays off in the long run.
What exactly is it? A climate-control and hot-water production system that draws energy from the outside air through a heat pump. It provides cooling in summer, warmth in winter, and hot water all year round. For this reason, according to ATECYR, the demand for sustainable solutions continues to grow during this season.
There are other alternatives, though everything depends on how much you’re prepared to spend: the classic gas boiler remains a valid option when the leap to aerothermy feels daunting. The sector itself pools data: each year the AFEC association releases its annual report, outlining the keys to a market that tracks the temperature of the planet.
So the choice is simple: program a temperature and let the unit work, or keep turning the dial by hand (and keep one finger near the switch rather than the thermostat). The device, after all, won’t forgive stubbornness.
Photo: Suroclima Instalaciones
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