So you want to seriously look at solar electricity for your home/boat/holiday house/etc..
Where do you need to start?
Well you must look at what you actually want to achieve and this will vary for many reasons
Objective:
Reduce your energy costs
Become independent from the electricity grid
Provide an emergency back-up power supply
Becoming "green"
Things which may alter or restrict your objectives may include
Finances:
Return on investment - how soon do you want this system to pay for itself? Initial outlay - How much can you afford to spend up front for a good system?
Incentives offered by government - many governments offer incentives for alternative or renewable energy projects that will help offset the initial cost of a system
Location:
Limited space
Restrictions on where and how you system can be installed
Limited peak sunlight
Once you know what you want to achieve and know your restrictions you can start working on what you need, keep in you mind as you work through working these things out some of your original intentions may change.
Other things that must be considered before starting on this path, is you home energy efficient enough? To make any alternative energy system viable, especially a solar system you should ensure your home is as energy efficient as possible and conserve as much of it as you can. For example turn off any appliances that are not in use, many appliances especially entertainment equipment, computers microwaves, etc. draw a certain amount of energy even when in the 'standby' mode. If you can turn these devices off when not in use (yes I know you have to reset the clock each time you switch it back on again). You can choose to leave these on but it will create a constant draw on you solar electric system.
Other things to do:
Get an energy efficient refrigerator!!
Change your lighting to energy efficient fluorescent globes (yes once again I know they don't put out the most pleasant light but they draw 25% less power than the equivalent incandescent lamps)
The basic options can be broken in to a couple of categories
With/Without storage (batteries)
Isolated/Connected to grid power - which will allow/stop to ability to
do Net metering - sending excess power back out to the grid
Other supplementary/backup supplies
(generator/wind/micro-hydroelec/etc.)
