Questions on my Second Brew

I am avid reader of HBT and this is my first post. I decided to get in to home brewing at the end of last year. I bought some books and read about it in the books as well on HBT and finally decided to buy my equipment at the beginning of April. When I bought my equipment I also bought 2 extract kits that were put together by my LHS, an IPA and a Summer Ale. I am currently bottle conditioning my IPA, but the more recipes I look at the more disappointed I am with what came in these overpriced kits. I bought these kits mainly because my books stated that using a kit is the best way to learn the brewing process. I don't believe I will be buying anymore Kits.
My first quest is about fermentation Temps. I live in the south and since I just start brewing I do not have a fermenting cabinet yet, hopefully this will be a summer project for me, and I am brewing in large closet we have. I keep a thermometer in the closet and it stays at about 68-70 degrees, I know that 65 is the optimum primary temp but is this an acceptable Temp. My first batch did not get down to the gravity i was looking for, but it was also my first run.
Second, I will be starting my summer ale in a weeks. My first brew I only used a primary. This brew I plan to use a secondary as well. The kit came with orange peels and seeds of paradise. Since the kits are very basic the instruction that come with them do not go into the secondary stage. I have read many witbier and summer ale recipes and some say to put them in at the 10-15 min mark of the boil and some in the secondary and some do both. I would like to know what your opinions are these techniques since I plan to use a secondary.

IMO: The seeds of paradise should be crushed and added during the last 5 minutes of the boil or flame out to retain the most flavor and aroma, I believe if they were to be added in the secondary they would just settle out. I have added orange peels during the last 5 minutes to flame out as well as the secondary. For my Holiday ale I preferred them in the boil but for my summer wheat I preferred them in the secondary and left them there for 10 days.

Their use comes down to personal taste and experimentation. However you choose to use them take notes when you taste as well as brew day notes. This enables you to brew the beer again and try something different to compare back to.

Just a note, do not rack your beer to the secondary until you have determined fermentation to be complete by taking a gravity reading and receiving a stable reading over a couple days. In addition you mentioned fermentation temperatures, have you tried a swamp cooler (A large tub full of water and ice bottles) to help maintain lower temperatures? Do a search on this forum and you will find a lot of information on using one.

Welcome to the hobby!

Thanks for you response Dub. I have considered a swamp cooler, at the current moment I am learning the brewing process. I am also slowly adding elements to the process as I go to minimize the impact on SWMBO. At the current moment with everything else I have going on in my brew closet it is not the right time to introduce one of these contraptions. I am still interested to know how primary fermenting at 68-70 will effect my brew. I have a thermometer that records the high and low temp of the day so i know that is never goes over 70.
I also am trying to absorb as much information about what all effects the brewing process.

As you learn you will find that fermentation temperatures are everything to the finished product. It is also important to note that while your ambient temperature may be in the proper range the actual fermentation temperature in the vessel could be 5-10 degrees higher.

Every yeast variety will have a specific ideal range of temperature and the highs and lows will produce different flavors, some desirable, some not.

Most yeast suppliers will list all their products attributes on their websites so that is a good place to start. On this forum under yeast and fermentation you can search varieties and read about other's experiences using them as well

IMO the use of your yeast is one of the more important things to get a good handle on. As you read these forums you will see a lot of posts referencing off flavors that can be directly attributed to the yeast and the fermentation temperatures used.

If your SWMBO is into beer and can understand your goal, a $6.00 tub from Walmart full of water shouldn't be much of an issue, it really doesn't take up any more space than the bucket of beer. In addition it use is not necessary for the whole time, usually only the first. 2 weeks for the really active fermentation.

I live in Mississippi and trust me it gets HOT. I can only rely on ambient temps, sometimes 75 sometimes 85, although i agree with duboman on getting a handle on your yeast, dont worry to much on a 68 to 70 fermentation I get great results as long as I dont use california common yeast or lager yeast. rdwhahb

I goofed up fermentation with high temps (78f-ish) on my first and third brews. They needed a much longer aging buy the off flavors faded away and the beers were great, ymmv.

I am much happier fermenting in the mid sixties as the beer us ready a lot sooner. You could brew some saisons or other beers that are meant to be brewed at high temps.