Get a Glock, or P320, something Tupperware with rails for a WML for your bedside gun.

Buy another flashlight to keep by the bed along with having a non daily use flashlight, solves the dead battery issue with others using one. I too have that issue so I put my better flashlight away from them. You just need another for dog walking or grandkids to play with.

The idea of having BT switches, plugs and lights is smart, since I have them LOL. All my outdoor spotlights are Ring Camera spotlights with BT connectivity, I can turn one or all on with a simple use of the Alexa app as a plus I can check each camera to see whats going on at any one, and they are motion lights that tell me what light is on and with AI what they see, man, animal, car.....

They have inside cameras as well, you might want to set one up in the Basement as it's a place where you are vulnerable as nobody is down there and someone could enter through it.

They have a 50% off sale on right now, and you can get that price locally at Lowes as well.

https://ring.com/

If you have lamps in the home you can turn them on using SmartPlugs and their app or Alexa and light up every one all while sitting on your bed without having to walk around in the dark with a flashlight as your only light.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B62LPR5Z

My go to is my MPX suppressed with multiple 30 round mags of 9mm ready as well as a 1911 commander Sig. I prefer a SBR over a handgun as I'll be able to shoulder it for more stability.

You could get a conversion kit that turns a pistol into a carbine too....

https://www.guns.com/news/revi...nto-an-sbr-with-kpos

Not that I'm trying to encourage a new gun and accessory purchase opportunity for you....

quote:

Originally posted by 4MUL8R:
I cleared my house a few times due to noises, and then I changed to a self-installed alarm with cameras. I determined that walking down a 'fatal funnel' stairway directly in line with the front door was not prudent. So, cameras and the app allow me to see if the police are needed.

Only took 15 posts to finally get to cameras.

For the cost of one years worth of shots for the German Shepard Dog, you can get a half dozen cameras. With motion sensing and strategic placement of outdoor cameras you can know what’s going on outside before anyone gets inside. Add a couple indoor cameras and you’ll know if anyone is in your garbage or basement before they reach the main home. Motion sensors armed in home mode can also be useful. For example, one in the basement would have given the OP some peace of mind.

A little pilot trick (probably stolen from elsewhere). When using the flashlight for a short time, close one eye. That eye will retain dark vision, the open eye will become blind in the dark when you turn the light off.

I like the idea of electronic earmuffs to both amplify any sounds of any intruder and to quiet any gunshots. Though "they" say in an actual home invasion you won't have time to don earmuffs or body armor. In the case of a stealthy burglar, they will likely flee as soon as lights start coming on.

Not a big fan of cameras in the living areas of the house unless they are pointed out a window. But my basement, stairways and chokepoints/doors all have them and if I hear something or they get set off, alert on the phone and I see what is going on without having to clear area. Just hunker down where I am at and watch. Also Dollar tree has these neat little door/window sensors ($1.25-$1.50)that you attach with double sided tape and if your door opens it sets off a pretty good little buzzer.

quote:

Originally posted by Fly-Sig:
There are light switches now that have remote controls. The main switch is installed where the regular switch is now. You use it just like any regular light switch. Then there is a second (or third or fourth) switch that looks like a regular switch but it is battery powered and not connected to wiring. You can put it anywhere.

Thus you can have remote switches in your bedroom for example, to turn on the lights elsewhere in the house. If you suspect an intruder, light up the basement and first floor while you're all upstairs. Chances are the intruders will leave, and meanwhile you're hidden in the dark while they're brightly exposed.

I control all my outdoor lights this way and several indoor lights with lamp modules. Between my phone and Alexa I have a lot of flexibility.

quote:

Originally posted by fischtown7:
Not a big fan of cameras in the living areas of the house unless they are pointed out a window. But my basement, stairways and chokepoints/doors all have them and if I hear something or they get set off, alert on the phone and I see what is going on without having to clear area…

There are indoor cameras with privacy shutters. Some of ours only record if an alarm is triggered so walking through the house when the alarm is set to “Home” won’t record unless a window or door sensor is triggered first.

quote:

Originally posted by Schmelby:
I've been chastised before here on my opinions on this. If I hear a bump in the night, I'm grabbing my flashlight and 1911 and investigating every inch of my home.
If I thought I heard a window breaking in one of my childrens bedrooms you couldn't stop me.
When I had my 75lb Boxer she was my first alarm.
If I thought I had an intruder in my home, I'm not going to cower inside my bedroom and call 911 especially if I have children in the home.
One of my main duties as a husband and father is to protect my family!

Why would you be chastised? That’s basic common sense.

The rule of thumb is never clear if you are with all of your loved ones, just set up in a defensive manner and call 911.

If your house is configured with occupied bedrooms that are apart, then you have no choice but to clear - but no one is saying that.

If you are alone, or with your spouse, and no one else is in the house, or if your house setup has all the bedrooms in a connected area (a wing, etc), you do not clear. You account for everyone, and defend them:

Because if in “clearing”, you get overwhelmed - there’s no one else coming. Call 911, and protect the people that can’t be replaced.

quote:

Originally posted by reloader-1:

quote:

Originally posted by Schmelby:
I've been chastised before here on my opinions on this. If I hear a bump in the night, I'm grabbing my flashlight and 1911 and investigating every inch of my home.
If I thought I heard a window breaking in one of my childrens bedrooms you couldn't stop me.
When I had my 75lb Boxer she was my first alarm.
If I thought I had an intruder in my home, I'm not going to cower inside my bedroom and call 911 especially if I have children in the home.
One of my main duties as a husband and father is to protect my family!

Why would you be chastised? That’s basic common sense.

The rule of thumb is never clear if you are with all of your loved ones, just set up in a defensive manner and call 911.

If your house is configured with occupied bedrooms that are apart, then you have no choice but to clear - but no one is saying that.

If you are alone, or with your spouse, and no one else is in the house, or if your house setup has all the bedrooms in a connected area (a wing, etc), you do not clear. You account for everyone, and defend them:

Because if in “clearing”, you get overwhelmed - there’s no one else coming. Call 911, and protect the people that can’t be replaced.

When I wrote my post I was probably thinking of this post from a few years ago. https://sigforum.com/eve/forum...935/m/3450081984/p/2

Going outside to investigate is different from searching the inside of your home. But I'll still search inside and out for any bump in the night.

Cameras are in selected living areas, inside. Dining room, on top of the china cabinet, pointed at the front door. Family room, on the shelf over the fireplace, pointed at the rear door. Garage, on a file cabinet, pointed at the door. Upstairs, on the landing, pointed down the stairs at the front door. High over the driveway, watching the cars. Low on the deck, pointed at the back door. Doorbell camera. It all works for me. Quick scan through the "live view" and I can see essentially all my potential ne'er-do-wells.

I can also see sinks and potential leaking water.

I can also verify WHEN those dadgum smoke detectors go off, remotely, and see if there is indeed smoke or fire.

Cameras are your friend. Or so Flock thought.

Regarding clearing an occupied house, we can all recognize the potential for friendly fire incidents. A simple rule we followed was that I had to touch my loved ones before clearing the house. I never assumed they were in bed, based on the clock time.

Most people do not possess the hard skill of shooting well enough to clear a house successfully. With processing being a subset of shooting. That’s how family members wind up getting hurt.

Best you can hope for is running unopposed.

I process and shoot faster that most SWAT cops out there. I’m not clearing my house.

Short subject derailment… concerning alarms. Do those of you that have them set them to “go off” if any door / window is breached or broken while you sleep? Is there a silent alarm setting you take advantage of that still wakes you somehow? I have a Ring system, I can set it to “Home” and it will go berserk if a door is opened, etc… but it would scare the shit out of me so badly… being woken up to the alarm, it would take me several seconds to think clearly. I guess my biggest question is, how can I be alerted without having to be pealed off the ceiling due to the screaming alarm. I recognize that the whole alarm going off is also the point to scaring someone off. Just curious what y'all do. I have cameras around the house and am thinking of putting a spare Amazon echo device by my bed so I can instantly see all the cameras.

Only thing I'd add is that the bump in night light should NOT be the same light as the light that everyone plays with and uses every day. I've got plenty of EDC lights, but I've got a dedicated surefire for uses similar to this. It stays in it's place, and the batteries get replaced every year even if it never gets used (well, I put fresh batteries in it, and the batteries I take out get rotated to a different, non-critical light that gets used more frequently.)

Me personally just get camera's that cover all the spaces and motion detectors and cameras in remote places like a basement. I don't get the anxiety about cameras in living spaces, just use camera's on a private network and no connection to the outside world. If there is a noise in my basement I'm looking at a full view via a camera and evaluationg the motion detectors as well before I decide what action(s) to take.