Awoken by a noise...

Simon was my first line of defense during the night due to his nocturnal habits and superior night vision.
Unfortunately he wouldn't quit loading the rounds backwards in the H&K magazines.

Sadly Simon disappeared last November without a trace:(
 
When I hear my dogs, who sleep in doors with us, go off suddenly in the middle of the night, I always reach for my gun before investigating.
 
My household needs more practice.
Wife heard something while we were watching TV last night, I didnt hear anything but she swears it sounded like something sliding down one of the walls in the bedroom and hitting the ground. TV was turned up enough so my organic ears couldnt detect any such noise. But she has bionic hearing and heard something.
Had her so spooked she didnt even bother sending me in to go investigate, she stormed in on her own. I followed in saying "You're supposed to send the muscle in first!"

But when I hear bumps in the night, I grab the 1911 and clear the premises. If i hear something that I believe is outside, i grab the AR. Last time I did that, it wound up being two moose that were walking thru the yard, except it didnt sound like footsteps, it sounded like something was being dragged. Still dont know why those 8 hoofs sounded like that though.
 
At the risk of sounding like a certain presidential candidate my solution is simple: I AM going to WIN.

My house layout, and the location of the rest of my family, dictate that I clear the house when checking for noise. I do so with my handgun behind my leg and out of plain view to anyone who would look my way. Automatic motion sensor light switches, coupled with the direction they are facing, would leave me basically in the dark while anyone in the house would be in a lighted room.
 
Lohman446 said:
...I do so with my handgun behind my leg and out of plain view to anyone who would look my way....
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Why? Where did you get the idea to carry your gun that way when checking out your house for a possible intruder? What do you gain doing it that way? How does carrying your gun like that improve your chances of winning if there is a hostile intruder? Are there circumstances in which carrying your gun like that could put you at a disadvantage?

For another perspective, here are four videos of students going through a "shoot house" exercise at Gunsite: One; Two; Three and Four.
 
I believe in effectiveness of action vs speed of action. If someone's intents are pure aggression chances are I don't get time to get up and out of bed. Further it's likely the noise is one of the children. The gun, in that position, is very well retained. A threat, who will be in a lot area looking into darkness may not see the gun and take less aggressive action. If it's a pure speed drill I will loose though I probably lost by nature of being asleep when the conflict started. I see it as avoiding some risks while accepting others
 
Lohman446 said:
I believe in effectiveness of action vs speed of action....
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So I guess that means you thought this up all by yourself, and that you have no experience or training in clearing a house in which a hostile intruder might be present.

Lohman446 said:
...A threat, who will be in a lot area looking into darkness...
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Are you sure? He doesn't have to stand still. He can move, and being aware of your approach, from the lights tripped by the motion detectors, sound, or a combination, knows you're coming and from where. He can take a position from which to ambush you. And how do you know there's only one intruder?

Lohman446 said:
...may not see the gun and take less aggressive action...
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So someone who has already committed a serious crime by breaking into your house will be less likely to attack you if he thinks you're unarmed? How did you arrive at that conclusion?

Lohman446 said:
....I see it as avoiding some risks while accepting others
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But the risk is not only to yourself. If you are taken out of the picture by a hostile intruder, you family is left to his (or their) mercy.

It appears that you put together your home defense plan without having had any experience or training in the subject. On the other hand, the videos I posted show how experienced firearms and defensive tactic instructors at Gunsite (many of whom are retired LEOs) teach house clearing. And it's also why Kathy Jackson, a highly respected and very experienced firearms trainer (and moderator here under the screen name, pax) advised:
pax said:
Unless you have family that needs to be secured, lights on or off, I don't think going searching for the BGs is a great idea.
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The mistake is more likely to be going to investigate, not whether the lights are on.
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This. It bears repeating.

When a criminal breaks into your home, the smart thing to do is to get yourself and your loved ones into a locked room with your weapon out and ready to fire the moment the criminal comes through the door. Once your family is safe behind that locked door, don't go looking for trouble! Call the cops and let them find the intruder for you.

Waiting in a secure place while keeping your family behind your protective firearm is not cowardly. It is not an act of surrender, and it isn't even "hiding from the crooks!" It is simply setting up a well-planned tactical ambush.

This tactical ambush tilts the odds in your favor and puts you in the best position to directly protect the most valuable things in your house: your life, and the lives of the people you love.

Of course, you may surprise the intruder while you are moving to secure your family. That is why we train how to move through the house, how to "pie" corners, how to retain the firearm if attacked, etc. -- not because we will "clear the house" by ourselves, but because we may need to move through danger to protect family members....
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See also the links posted in post 12 in this thread.
 
The behind the leg, or what i call "Traffic stop ready", has been used by LEO's forever. I have used it countless times when approaching a suspicious vehicle or situation.

The benefit is not openly displaying your pistol ,BUT you want a full firing grip. It allows a lower profile approach then your hand on the holstered pistol and is much lower key then ANY other ready position.

It is NOT what i would recommend for ANY bulding clearing.

Ive taught weapons and tactics for a while now. I think you need to switch between different readies as you move thru or around obstacles and people. Never would "traffic stop ready" be one of those.

There is NO NEED to be low profile when clearing a structure, especially your own home.
 
Let me note a couple things. The way I do it is not the most tactically sound way of doing it. I'll be right up front and admit that.

However, if I clear the house once a month, in the 20 years my children are likely to be here that will be roughly 250 times. I hope that is 250 false alarms. Chances are, if I attempted a way above my comfort, I would make mistake in the majorities of those that would result in a way that was less sound than the way I do it now. Not because of the theory of doing it "right" but because of my failure to do so in practice.

I am not good at reacting quickly. This is an issue with myself that I readily acknowledge. Being awoken from a sleep does not make it better. If there are two of us it is likely that the other person gets the first movement. If he (or she) is intent on violent action there is a good chance I never make it from the bed. Even with my gun up that split second I pause to assess the situation is also going to create an issue. The good news is that given the moment to react I react to most situations very well and very effectively. If I had my gun up the second thought of "is that one of the kids" would actually slow action more.

My hope is that, while clearing my house (which is really going to check on the children), the fact that someone is in the house will be enough to remove anyone else who may be. Truth be told I hope the presence of a small dog and the alarm is enough.

Because I expect to do it 250 times I would rather do it in a manner that I believe is better suited to me as an individual even if it is tactically inferior because I do not believe with my level of expertise and the level of training I am willing to undergo that the method used by experts would be best suited to me.

Anyone willing to take direct, considered, and planned action against me is likely to do so in a manner that is more effective than what I can respond to. I am most likely dealing with someone who accidentally entered the wrong house (I live out far enough this is not likely), is not sober, is looking for an "easy" score, or is looking for shelter. I hope, in reality, that none of those ever happen. Am I as prepared as some of you are? No. Am I willing to invest the time and training to be that prepared? Apparently not. However I am willing to be more prepared than most and to operate in a manner consistent with my own limitations.
 
Lohman446 said:
Let me note a couple things. The way I do it is not the most tactically sound way of doing it. I'll be right up front and admit that.....
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As long as you understand that, fine. Also, of course, others should realize that your way of doing things should not be taken as a model.

As far as how to clear a house, as long as no one is there any way you do it will be fine. But if there is a hostile intruder, how you go about clearing your house (or checking on your children) is now a matter of great significance -- to you and to your family you're trying to protect.

Clearing a house when there is one or more hostile intruders is a highly dangerous activity. It's especially dangerous to do solo -- even if you're well trained. It's even dangerous when done as part of a group of trained people working together. It's most dangerous for the untrained person to do alone.

What we are taught at places like Gunsite are way to maximize the possibility of being able to survive doing a dangerous and difficult thing. Even with that training there are no guarantees, and it's possible for a proficient person to fail.

So once again, consider the links and pax' advice in post 12.
 
When I hear strange noises at night, I simply check my alarm system to see what's going on.

If my alarm starts barking and growling, I can get my gun out of my Fas1 safe in about 3 seconds in total darkness...

My high tech alarm system can tell the difference between a deer, a racoon, or a person before they get within 25 to 50 yards of the house.
 
I was reading this forum shortly before bed last night. At about three in the morning I was awoken by a huge bang on the other side of my small house. My utterly charming, but worthless dog continued snoring on his bed next to mine.

Stayed awake in bed silently for several minutes and listened, no more noise. Got up and looked around without a gun. Noted that none of the outdoor motion detector lights were on. The cats were up and alert, but I couldn't identify the source of the sound. So I went back to bed.

When I got the paper in the morning I saw that an old attic window had fallen out of its frame, must have landed on the ceiling above the kitchen.
 
What would I do?? Well that will depend on a number of things. If I am going downstairs for a snack or a final cup of coffee, then no gun. If there is a strange noise downstairs, I ALWAYS have a gun in my hand to check. If the dogs go off and there is strange sounds downstairs, the family takes a defensive position upstairs and 911 is called letting them know that we are armed and waiting for their help to arrive. There is no reason for any property of possessions that are worth putting yourself or your family at risk without obtaining professional help in clearing the house of any intruder.

Just my view and what we do.
Stay safe.
Jim
 
Bring you gun and flashlight every time as a habit at night! If the noise would have been and intruder waiting in the garage, you would have been in immediate danger. Also, if you are CCW, always carry except in federal buildings, and the like.
 
This has happened to me twice recently. Both times were due to alarm system problems that have now been fixed.

A few things:

It's hard to go from a dead sleep to a full adrenaline charge.
You will make mistakes.
You might be confused. On the second incident, I thought it was my wife's phone
All of this "house-clearing-is-for-the-professionals" is nonsense. Get up and handle your business
If it is a home invasion, you will not have time to barricade the family and turn your bedroom into the Alamo
I encourage taking your weapon and a light. Finger forward
 
If you're that worried about bumps in the night today's technology allows you to give yourself a camera angle on every vulnerable point in your home from the relatively secure position of your bedroom.
 
However, if I clear the house once a month
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And I thought I was a light sleeper...
I might clear the house in response to a provocative event once every six months. Probably less often. Maybe once a year. Maybe I should track it on the calendar.
If I was waking up once a month and going to condition orange, I would make adjustments in my life. Either move, see a psychiatrist, or both.
I've previously lived in situations outside the US where condition orange/red was a daily norm, but never when I was in a place I would have called "home".
 
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