any homebrewers?

[gutter]

I am brewing my first batch of homebrew and looking for some help. I am doing an English Nut Brown Ale. I have been reading about secondary fermintation. Some are saying to leave it in the first bucket for up to 3 weeks, others are saying to rack it for the last two weeks in a glass carboy. Is there anything I need to know about syphoning it to the second container, some one told me to add a little water if necessary to have less of an air pocket at the top of the second container. Any help would be greatly appreciated.