I opened the box, took one look at this kiln, and wanted to send it back. I noticed two things simultaneously. The first one was I'd ordered chrome but got black. That wasn't a big deal, especially since the black ones are more expensive, but the size was a big deal. The work area was not as large as the measurements listed in the description. Because of where the thermocouple is, a good half inch is lost on the width of the work area. The heat coils have to be taken into consideration, too, especially the one on the right. After taking the obstacles into consideration, I measured and realized I had 4.5 inches in width for my kiln furniture. Some of that lost space could be reclaimed if the manufacturer's adjusted the shape of their shelf with a narrow back to avoid the thermocouple, but then angle out and grow wider as the shelf clears the thermocouple. Despite the claimed width of the manufacturer, they only send out a shelf that is 4 by 6. So they must consider that the actual work area of their kiln.In terms of depth, there is 6 inches. The height is six inches, but common sense says not to load to the top of the kiln. (I don't go higher than 4.5 inches.)Because I considered the actual measurements to be substantially less than advertised, I planned to send this back as quickly as possible. However, the paperwork that comes with the unit says the company does not give cash refunds. That was a problem, especially since it doesn't mention that in their Amazon product description. I never like doing business with any company that doesn't give back a cash refund. I don't trust companies that have that policy. It tells me they don't have much confidence in their product. Either that or they don't trust customers to be fair or honest. But more on that later.At first, I didn't think this kiln would serve my needs because I wanted to fire bronze and copper clay as well as silver, but I am not aware of any stainless steel trays that are small enough to fit in this particular kiln. Fortunately, Cool Tools sells no flake firing foil. I follow the instructional video under the product page at Cool Tools, and the box fits my kiln perfectly, so that solved that problem.I initiated a return within ten minutes of opening the box. The next day I received a call from Tabletop Furnace. By that point, I had decided to cancel the return request because of the no flake firing foil.I spoke with Dave, and he was very helpful and wanted to assist in any way he could. When he didn't have the answer to my technical questions, he got the answers from the guys in the shop and called me back. That said, I did ask one question through their online form, and never received an answer, so I didn't like that. But at least Dave could be reached, and I did get the answer through him.As for using the unit, the first thing you have to do is the burn off procedure. There are instructions from both Tabletop Furnace and Auberins for that. There was one sentence in my Tabletop Furnace instructions that said to open the kiln when it reached 1700 degrees and let the smoke escape. I wasn't comfortable with that, so I asked Dave, and he said that was for an earlier unit. I didn't need to do that with my unit. I was glad I asked because I really didn't want to open a burning hot kiln pouring out smelly smoke. I did the burn off procedure outside, and I'm glad I did because it would have been difficult to get the smell of that smoke out of the fabric in my work shop. (Of course, there is only smoke this one time on the burn-off procedure. Your kiln should not smoke after this. If it does, contact Tabletop... or 911.)Auberins manufactures the programmable unit that comes with the kiln. The instructions they send out are technical and hard to follow. I had to read them over and over. Even after that, I wasn't convinced I really understood everything I had read. Fortunately, there is a video at YouTube entitled "Tabletop Instructional Video" by David Babich. It was invaluable and enabled me to program the burn off procedure without too much trouble. After the burn-off, there were black marks all over the kiln and on the kiln furniture. I fired again, programming the kiln to run at 1600 degrees for 30 minutes. (I included the furniture.) After that, my kiln and kiln furniture were white again. The area around the door turned black as well, and that doesn't go away. Perhaps that is why there is no cash refund. If the unit is sent back at that point, there is no way they could sell it again.It doesn't get as hot around my kiln as I expected it to. I do keep it a couple feet away from drapes and furniture. However, it's only about a foot off the floor on a cement block for now. The carpet below the block does not even get warm. Still, those distances are not what the manufacturer recommends. They recommend keeping it six feet away from anything, including the ceiling and the floor, which calls for a pretty tall room. My work room is not that tall.I fired bronze in mine using the no flake foil from Cool Tools, and that worked great. The first time I used the no-flake-foil box, there was no mess in my kiln afterward. The second time I used the box, a little charcoal leaked out at the back of my kiln, but it was far enough away from my thermocouple not to harm it. I use PMC + silver, and that can be fired on an open shelf. The kiln gets hot enough to burn if you touch it while it's firing. If you touch or open it while it's hot, you'll need gloves. I wait until it reaches ambient temperature to open it, so I haven't needed to use gloves or tongs to remove either my shelf or my no-flake foil box. If I opened it while the kiln was hotter, I'd use the gloves and the tongs to remove anything. Just make sure you turn off the kiln and unplug it before you take anything out with the tongs. You might accidentally touch one of the metal coils.Because this kiln is small, it maintains a more uniform temperature, and I really like that. The more I use this, the more I love it. I recommend this kiln if you are only doing small projects. For larger pieces, you'd need something larger. The one big drawback to this, besides the small work area, is that the coils and thermocouple are exposed. I don't like that, but they do sell replacement coils and insulation. They also do a rebuild for a reasonable price.I plan to stack shelves, and I've had some ceramic tiles cut to fit my kiln. However, they're heavy, and I worry they might put stress on this particular kiln and shorten its lifetime. It would double the amount I can load, but I'm not sure it's worth the risk. I asked Dave about stacking ceramic tiles, and he said those inserts can hold a decent amount. It would be okay, as long as they fit and were not super heavy. He also said they'll have a new website up in a couple of weeks, and I'll be able to buy additional kiln furniture through the site when it's finished. So I think I'll hold off on stacking shelves until I can buy more kiln furniture from Tabletop.I hope this helps you decide if this is the right kiln for your purposes. I do like my kiln now, and I'm happy I bought it. (I paid too much through Amazon, though. They were cheaper at the Tabletop Furnace website, and they had a sale a few days after I bought this one. I kicked myself for that.) I do recommend this kiln for people who only fire small objects. I have included a photo of one of my necklaces. It is a large piece, but I built it with a series of small pieces. I plan to put it on Etsy.I would not have believed I'd say this after first opening that box, but I love my tiny little kiln now.