Homebrew: Part 1

I finally got around to starting my first batch of homebrew. I bought my Brewer's Best Kit from Eastern Shores Brewery in Port Huron Michigan, and my first brew was a Brewer's Best English Brown Ale Homebrew Beer Ingredient Kit The process went relatively smoothly, and it took about three hours. I already feel much more confident about brewing my second batch. The fermentation process has started. I haven't timed it, but it seems to be bubbling about once a minute. About a week from now, I'll take a hydrometer reading, to see how much alcohol my yeasts have created. Even though it went smoothly, there are a few things I'll be able to change for my next brew. First, I'll boil 3.5 gallons rather than 2.5. There was plenty of room in my Granite-Ware 21 quart canning pot for another gallon. Also, I'll have an extra gallon on hand. I bought 5 gallons of water, but I probably boiled about a gallon off the pot, so my beer is going to be a bit on the strong side. I poured the trub and everything into the fermenter (I didn't really want to, but it would have only been a little over 4 gallons if I didn't get that last inch of wort into the fermenter, and plenty of people said the trub won't hurt anything.), and added the 2.5 gallons of bottled water to the cooled wort, and the water level is just under 5 gallons. Also, I will get some cheap Vodka, to put in the airlock rather than water. This is supposed to help ensure a sanitary fermentation process. Also, I wish I had dipped the head of the spigot in sanitizer before I rinsed everything. Most people seem to think the beer will be fine, but it does increase my risk of contamination. Hopefully, I will have a batch of drinkable brew in about a month. If not, my first brewing experiment was an educational process, and I'm eager to start my second batch, with all the knowledge I've gained.