I've never used a secondary. Too much risk of getting an infection. Of course, I only brew ales. If you are planning to do a lager, then that's another story.
If you have temperature control for your fermentations, you don't need a secondary fermenter at all. Just keep the fermenter cool during the clarifying period after fermentation and rack off the beer when reasonably clear. If you don't have temperature control or a cool place, then the need to get the beer off the yeast becomes a little more of a concern. But, all the bad things that can occur due to a transfer to secondary really have diminished the use of that step. Keep everything cool and there will be little problem with keeping the beer in the primary until it has cleared.
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