questions about boiling grains and secondary ferm

OK so i just picked up a glass carboy from the shop as well as a brewers best recipe kit. I thought the kit came with the bag to soak the hops in the water. but it didn't, so i am wondering if i can just toss them in the pot and then strain it before i mix in the rest of the ingredients.

Second question is concerning primary and secondary fermentation and which container to use. The man at the store said i should use the bucket for the primary and the carboy for secondary, but i seem to recall reading on her to do it the other way around. Any imput? thanks guys

First question, yep, you'll be fine straining it out. It just makes things a little harder to handle, but it's not big deal.

Second, do your primary in the bucket and your secondary in the carboy. The bucket will be exposed to more air, so during primary fermentation when your yeast is producing a lot of CO2, it keeps exposure to a minimum. When your brew slows down and less CO2 is produced, you'll want to transfer it to the glass carboy with an airlock to prevent any air getting in.

great. thanks for the fast reply.

Just a concern about the title of your post.

I'm not sure if you were planning it but do not boil your grains. (Tannins)

haha yeah i noticed that in the main body and changed it to not say boil...guess i forgot to change it in the subject head