Solar in Maine starts with the roof, the wind, and the snow, not with a promise about the meter. Coastal roofs from the south shore through the midcoast take uplift and salt that eat hardware. Inland roofs take a snow load that sits and then slides. Shade from spruce is common on the south side, which is the side people hope is clear. A soft deck, worn shingles, or a slate roof should be dealt with before anything is fastened down. Say the town and the exposure.
A chimney, a dormer, or a tree you will not cut can erase the useful part of a short winter day. That is siting. It is not a forecast of output, and nobody should dress it up as one. Metal roofs shed snow onto walks and lower roofs in a sheet. Mounts have to live with that and with an onshore gale. Fog does not change the need for a sound deck. Island and peninsula access changes when the work can happen. Mention it.
Electrical service in older capes is often full, small, or in a damp granite cellar. Ask about structure and about flashing that will see wind-driven rain, not only a calm afternoon. A roof near the end of its life comes first. Drilling slate or disturbing a sound wood-shingle roof is a serious alteration. Historic village streets may care what the ridge looks like from the road. Long driveways matter after storms.
Snow guards, stove pipes, and where people walk belong in the layout. Shade you refuse to remove belongs in the first call. So does a connected barn that looks easy and is the wrong structure. Do not expect equipment to make a tired coastal roof stronger. It will not. The roof has to be ready for the next storm before it carries anything else.
Call with the town, coast or inland, the material, and what shades the slope. Mention salt air, snow slide, or a remote road. Ask how the equipment stays on in a gale. Do not expect a production promise. Call the number on this page.