Hi every one I am a little more than new as I have never done any thing with a kiln other than burn out wax from investment for lost wax casting. I have been thinking of trying my hand at metal clay and maybe some other clay projects. I ran across a Duncan Kiln The Hobbyist db609 that has a little damage but works for $50.00 so I bought it. Now the damage is a small bit of the brick at the top broken off, the brick is cracked in one spot and the round plate shelf that sits on the bottom is broken in half. See image....


Now my questions
1. is the broken shelf still usable and is it just there to set stuff on?
2. Will the broken brick cause heating problems like heat being too hot in a given area?
3. Does anyone know if the Duncan Kiln "The Hobbyist db609" is, for practical purposes, the same as the "Paragon S-11-9-3"? I have looked at the specs/images and they seem the same to me as far as size, power requirements and location of switches.
4. Should I clean out the kiln and if so how?
5. Is there an easy way to test the temperature it reaches in a given amount of time? Note: at present I have no cones.
6. Is there anything I should check when checking to see that it really does work right?