How safe is heating equipment?

Question
Hello!  I am getting a baby/young marginated tortoise next thursday and am about to purchase the setup today.  I am wondering how safe it is to leave heating on all day while I am away... I am sort of paranoid of fire.  also i have heard horror stories of somebody's home burning down because of an animal heating pad.  What extra precautions can i take to make me feel safer about this?  can i get away with having the heat lamp/ heat pad off for four hours during the day?  i am getting the setup for my little gut from a well known vivarium.  so it should already be safe but just knowing more would ease my mind. (nothing flammable around)
also... i have heard i should leave the tort in his cage for a week before handling so he can get used to it.  is this true?  how often should a tort be handled?  and if i live in a colder climate what is the appropriate amount of time he can run around my house?  (live in sf... house is room temp most of the time.)

Answer
Heating- avoid pads, they cause problems- mostly with overheating the tortoise accidentally.

I use ceramic emitters, effective and good safety record. You need to use a good ceramic socket, and it is safer for both your piece of mind and the tortoise if it is run through a thermostat to allow you good temp control.

Handling- handle all tortoises as little as possible. Handling a tort is about the same thing as a 50' tall alien creature picking you up. Even if it is not threatening, it is stressful.

Running loose- this is very much a personal call. I used to let mine run loose, but don't any more. Drafts, 'tasty debris', droppings, poor temp/humidity control, etc. A lot of people do this with no concerns, but I am not a fan of it anymore.

Try http://www.tortoisetrust.org or http://www.tlady.clara.net/id16.htm for ideas.