Your first step is probably the most challenging. However, if you have your electricity bill for the last 3 months it will give us a good idea of how much energy is going to be viable. With on gird parallel hybrid inverters which are quickly becoming the most popular these days. It is not so important that your inverter match the size of your consumption as these inverters work with the load you already have. In other words no matter how large your load the inverter will work with it by either reducing the load by what it can provide or increasing it over and above present load. Budget becomes more important at this stage.
More importantly the amount of back-up power you will need and for how long. Most residential homes only need 3 to 5 KW inverter, the length you want your load to run without electricity will determine what kind of budget you are looking at. This is power you will need during load shedding for essential circuits.
Roof space is critical. The amount of energy is directly proportionate to the amount of harvestable roof space. If you are short on roof space which is not the norm. An alternative is spare ground space or a carport. Another option is to install higher wattage photovoltaic panels in the amount of square meters available. Technology is advancing every year and panels are providing more power than before.
Direction is not as critical as roof space but it does help. The ideal direction is obviously true north for the southern hemisphere, but if your roof is facing east and west harvesting is still possible. Some companies are now facing East and West to take advantage of morning and afternoon radiation for peak times. Electricity for these companies is at a premium early in the morning and later in the afternoon so it makes sense to make the most out of harvesting at these times. After installing two systems exactly the same one faced SE & NW, the other NNE. We found the the former did not produce as much at peak times but it produced more consistently over the course of the day. However, before we start installing panels all over your roof, we take radiation readings to ensure the best harvest.
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