I also press open. That's from clothes sewing days!
To prevent burnt fingers I use a wooden iron which is half of a wooden clip clothespin. Open it up and run it down the seam. Voila! Pressed open. I do use iron for long seams.
As to whether a quilt will last: Clothes that I made for children 20-30 years ago are still hanging around with no popped seams. And those kind of seams undergo a lot of stress. A quilt that has extra protection (the quilting part!) would certainly last at least as long!