Currently I'm paid through early October with my current host. So my intention is to get my server up and start using it, with my current host as a backup. Co location if you will.... That makes them both redundant and I can set it up to replicate every ? however many minutes or even when something changes. That also gives me over 2 months to experiment with hosting at home to see if I even continue, upgrade my line, whatever...
As for an IP, I already have a static IP, so that won't change and I won't have to deal with dynamic ones. Also, FYI, there are companies out there that have a program that keeps 'talking' between your server and the DNS and when your server IP changes, it automatically fixes the DNS, without any down time. Not exactly sure how it works, I just know the BASIC basics of it. I believe it's called simple DNS.
As for email, I will also need to setup up a mail server along with the web server. I'm even thinking about doing my own DNS server, but that probably won't happen. There are too many companies out there that will do that for free now days.
As for maintaining it, it's software, nothing will go wrong unless something is changed. I'm not a 'tweaker', so I won't be the one to make it go down. Generally speaking. And *IF* I am changing something, I always make a backup of the entire site before I even start, so I can put it back if I screw it up. And yes, that is a voice of experience!
My website has been up since October. October through January I made a *LOT* of changes - completely new website, ecommerce, forum, picture gallery, etc. Over the past 6 months, I can't think of anything I have changed. I currently have it setup to make a back up of the entire site (root directories and etc) twice a day. I'm sure my hosting company loves the extra proccessor power I take for that!
And I keep it for a week. This backup is stored off site, just in case the hosting company goes belly up, fries, whatever, I have it here at my house on a RAID5. That includes all of my SQL databases as well.