I just order online nb,rebel,midwest I prefer flat rate its what i would spend driving somewhere to find a place, I have never bothered to look hard enough.
I use a 1/4'' blow-off tube that i shove into the same rubber stopper i use for the airlocks. The first time i used the thing it popped off, but then i started to just tape it to the carboy(6 gallon BB). I didn't have any issues after that, i think the pressure building inside kind of pushes...
weldless fittings are easy enough to add if you drill a hole. make the immersion chiller itwill be cheaper, I use it with ten gallon batches and the temp drops very quickly. investing in the larger pot now will save down theroad if you expand.
As a sophomore in high school my father got me a starter kit with 3 extract kits for Christmas. I was pumped until he gave almost everything i brewed to his friends at work.