The posts and beams of a bioclimatic pergola are already aluminium. I design them so they also carry heat to a heat pump, and away from the house when it is hot.
Yes. Posts, beams and a few of the louvres become heat-active profiles. Together they harvest heat from air, wind and sun, and deliver it to a water-to-water heat pump.
They take the place of a ground loop or an outdoor air unit. A proof of principle as heat source has been built and measured.
In cooling mode the heat pump rejects heat through the same pergola. That works best at night, when the air is cooler than the house.
This has been calculated. It has not been measured yet, and I say that plainly.
In a growing number of Spanish and Italian towns, visible outdoor air-conditioning units are restricted by municipal rules, building rules and owners' associations. In 2026 many transition periods ended and enforcement started.
Homeowners still want cooling. A pergola that does the work of the outdoor unit gives them both.
Sources: idealista, rules for façade air conditioners in Spain · Spanish Property Insight, May 2026
Less than you would expect. The load-bearing parts stay aluminium extrusions, made by your own extrusion partner on your own dimensions.
What is added is a hydraulic connection at the base, and the rules for sizing and control. Those rules are part of the licence.
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