If you’re anything like me then you want to protect yourself, and your family members from violence in the home. There are hundreds of choices for the best home security gun, which can make it difficult to find the best option for your circumstances. This article will cover all the details you need to know, including finding the best firearm style for your purposes, as well practical home defense advice. Keep reading for more.
This is a very broad topic with a lot of detail, but it doesn’t have to be difficult to find the best home security gun for your needs. The principles are the same for everyone, and all that’s left for us to decide, is what suits our particular situation the best. Here’s a quick overview of what we’re going to cover in this article.
The Best Home Security Gun Overview
- Your Reasons For Owning A Gun Matter
- Buy a Quality Firearm and Put 500 Rounds Through It
- Long Guns Are More Accurate but More Cumbersome
- Home Defense Firearms Need to Be Equipped With a Weapons Light
- Maintain and Build Skill Through Reputable Realistic Training
Before we cover all the details on finding your best home security gun, I want to make a quick observation for those folks who may be on the fence about gun ownership. You can absolutely defend your family without a firearm. A firearm is a tool, and nothing more.
If you feel uncomfortably about bringing firearms into your house, I recommend reading the rest of this article to see if you still feel that way. If you do, that’s fine. You can always check out this article I wrote a while back. It covers the best less lethal tools (like stun guns and pepper spray) for self defense. Without further ado, let’s get to it!
Why Are You Looking for the Best Home Security Gun?
This is a pretty easy answer for most folks. They want to feel secure in their homes, and they think a firearm will help them do that. While owning a firearm is a good first choice. It’s imperative that you become proficient with that tool, if you want real peace of mind. I’ve got a piano in my house and I haven’t a clue how to use it. Needless to say, you won’t be seeing me on the concert circuit anytime soon.
Before we can talk about different types of firearms, ammunition, or their accessories, we need to take an honest assessment of your current skill level, and your willingness to work at becoming proficient with a firearm. These questions will determine what you should use for the best home security gun.
Current Skill and Experience With Firearms
Many readers of this website are professional users of firearms. Some of them are in the United States and foreign militaries, and others are police officers, or skilled amateur shooters. These folks probably have a good idea of what they want to defend their homes.
For those of you who are new gun owners, or perhaps bought your first firearm during the unrest in 2020, then this article should really help you out. As a general rule the smaller the firearm, the more difficult it is to shoot well. Consequently, the more time you need to devote to becoming proficient with its use.
Don’t go to a local gun shop, buying whatever the local Walter recommends and just leave it in your night stand. You can’t leave a loaded firearm unsecured in your house (that’s illegal in many states) and it’s a recipe for disaster. Now, let’s figure out which firearm is best for you.
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Choosing Between the Best Home Security Gun Styles
Broadly speaking there are two different types of firearm categories, pistols, and long guns. As I alluded to earlier, pistols are more difficult to shoot, and have less stopping power. Long guns are more powerful, and easier to aim and control, because you have more contact with the firearm.
I highly recommend you check out this article, where I review some amazing research on over 1800 shootings. I cover things like the percentage of one shot stops on bad guys, and the average shots per engagement. After reading the article, you should understand that most self defense encounters don’t look anything like the movies.
Home Defense With a Pistol
If you’re on a budget and need one firearm to perform multiple tasks, then a pistol might be a good choice for you. If you pick the right type of pistol, you can easily carry it concealed, or leave it secured as your home-defense weapon. Here are three of my top recommendations.
3 Best 9mm Handguns for Self Defense and Concealed Carry
These guns have all been around for many years and have bullet proof reliability. They can handle any type of ammunition you care to use. I’ve done reviews on the Heckler and Koch VP9, and the Sig P365. You can read those articles to see which is your best handgun.
The Glock 19 is a compact sized semi-auto pistol that’s been around for decades. It’s used by Navy SEALS, and Army Delta Force, and it happens to be fairly cheap as well. The HK VP9 series of firearms are very high quality, and are perhaps some of the best shooting polymer guns on the market. HK has legendary reliability, and I can personally attest that their reputation is well deserved.
The SIG P365 is your best weapon if you plan on carrying the gun concealed. It’s a has a slimmer profile, and will be more concealable than the other two firearms. If you plan on leaving the pistol secured at home, then the Glock or HK would be a better choice, as they’re a little easier to shoot. Now let’s talk about the ammunition and accessories you need.
Ammunition and Firearm Setup
The best ammunition for any home security pistol, is going to be a hollow point. This type of ammunition expands once it hits the target, effectively making a bigger wound channel. This expansion also keeps the bullet from over penetrating through your target and endangering other people behind them.
Read this article where I cover the details of 9mm vs 40 cal, and highlight the best hollow point ammunition for each type. For the purposes of this article I recommend most folks go with the 9mm. It’s easier to control, and the ammunition performs just as well as the .40 cal, without the excessive recoil.
More over, You need to mount a pistol light to your firearm. You cannot shoot at movements in the dark. Every years dozens of people are mistakenly shot by family members because they failed to identify their target.
I recommend either a Surefire X300 pistol light, or a Streamlight TLR series light. I’ve carried both professionally, and put thousands of rounds through guns with both. Lastly, if you plan on carrying your firearm with a light attached, you should grab a high quality kydex holster like those from Bravo Concealment. Now that we’ve covered the the basics with the pistols, let’s move onto home defense with a shotgun.
Home Defense With a Shotgun
The shotgun is one of the best home defense tools you can own. It’s a large, heavy weapon, but it’s devastatingly effective at close ranges. Check out this chart below where I compare stopping power between various pistol, rifle, and shotgun calibers.
As you can see many situations are over with after one shot. I personally recommend a 12 gauge pump-action shotgun for most applications. If you’re smaller in stature, then a 20 gauge may be a little easier to handle, but you’ll find much less choices in application. There are a million more tactical shotguns in 12 gauge than in 20 gauge. Here are my top two picks for a pump shotgun.
Remington 870 with Brace
There are other good shotgun brands, apart from Remington, but I prefer them. They’ve been used by law enforcement officers for decades because they work so well. The 870 express is a longer barrel weapon, with the ability to carry 7 rounds in the magazine. The 14 in barrel version only carries 5 in the magazine, but has a much shorter overall length. Remington does make the 870 in 20 gauge as well, so follow the links and browse around.
Ammunition and Firearm Setup
For the shotguns, I recommend using 00 buck shot. Bird shot is too small to be effective against a bad guy, and slugs are a good option, but they don’t spread out like buck shot does. Check out this 00 buck shot from Hornady. You’ll find it works well in most home defense situations, at close range.
Just like our pistols we need to mount a light to the shot gun as well. No shooting at shapes in the dark! There are various ways to mount a light to your shotgun, however, the most common is mounting it on the fore end. Streamlight makes an excellent integrated light solution for the 870. It has a built in pressure pad and light on the fore end. Check it out below.
The shotgun is a great choice for those that don’t need a daily carry gun for self defense. If the recoil and overall weight of the firearm aren’t a factor for you, then you should strongly consider using a 12 gauge shotgun as your best home security gun. Now, let’s move towards defending yourself with a rifle.
Home Defense With a Rifle
This is my personal choice for home defense. I use a POF AR15 Renegade Plus in 300 Blackout for my bump in the night gun. I think it’s one of the best home defense set ups you can buy, but I’ve also been known to over do things a little bit. You don’t have to spend that kind of coin to find a solid home security rifle. Here are my two recommendations for a home security rifle.
PSA AR-15
FNH AR-15
These two options are more budget friendly. The PSA is like the Kia of AR15s. It doesn’t come with a lot of extras, but it works. This particular option has a 10.5 barrel, and is more compact than most rifles. This is a perfect gun for home defense and close quarters work. The draw back with this firearm is that it doesn’t come with any sights, so you’ll have to mount your own, and zero them. Luckily for you, I wrote a whole article on how to sight in your ar15.
The FNH is a higher quality rifle, and is the same rifle manufacturer that I carried while in the Marine Corps. This model comes with a 16 inch barrel, as well as a front sight and rear sight. This means that it can be used at longer ranges as well as close range. This might be important for those living in rural areas where attacking animals are also a serious consideration. Now let’s talk about some ammo and accessories for these two.
Ammunition and Firearm Setup
The most important thing you need to know about rifle ammo, is that there aren’t any magical rounds. There are some that perform better indoors, and there are others that do well against different types of intermediate barriers like exterior walls, and metal. Check out this article for an in depth review on the best ammo for 5.56mm AR15 rifles.
For home security I highly recommend using a red-dot optic. Check out this article where I cover one of the best red dot sights for an AR15, the Trijicon MRO. I also recommend checking out this article where I cover my favorite compact rifle light, the Surefire Mini Scoutlight Pro. While Surefire lights are top quality, they can be pricey. You can also check out this article for a review of the Inforce rifle light. They’re very durable and much cheaper. Next let’s talk about some practical considerations for home security.
Practical Considerations for Finding the Best Home Security Gun
We’ve covered the hardware for home defense, but we’d be remiss if we didn’t cover some practical considerations, as they might influence your choice. The most important consideration for any home defense situation is the layout of your home. If you live in an apartment, then you have some different constraints than someone who lives in the middle of the woods, without a neighbor in sight.
The Layout of Your Home
Contrary to popular belief, pistols, rifles, and shotguns will penetrate about the same through different types of walls. People think because a rifle bullet is moving a lot faster that it will go further through walls, but that isn’t true. It tends to break up more quickly due to the high pressures it encounters when hitting barriers at such speed.
I highly recommend walking through your house examining the directions you can, and can’t shoot in the event of a home invasion. For example, I know that my neighbors are on the sides of my house with siding, and any rounds aimed in that direction are likely to go into their houses. Consequently, I know I need to avoid shooting in those directions.
You can do this same calculation with your kids rooms, and other areas that you need to avoid firing into. Similarly, you shouldn’t go clearing your house in the middle of the night by yourself. If you truly believe that an intruder is in your house, I recommend securing your family members in a room, and then defending that room.
I would have another adult call 911, while I made some loud announcements that I was armed and that I’d called the police. If you’re the only one home you should call the police and give them a quick update on the situation. They will most likely stay in contact with you while police arrive.
If you continue to hear intruders in your house, continue to tell them to leave the house, and that you’re armed. All 911 lines are recorded. If you have to defend your self with a firearm, then there is evidence that you told them to leave, and that you were armed.
Home Construction Materials and Bullet Penetration
Most home materials won’t stop a bullet or buck shot. Stone, brick, and adobe can stop these rounds, provided it’s not just a facade. Siding, wood, and insulation are no hinderance to bullets. Check out this article where I cover bullet penetration through interior structures in some detail.
Legal Considerations
I’m not a lawyer, and I certainly don’t know the laws in your state or country. This isn’t legal advice. It’s your responsibility to know the laws that pertain to you. I can offer a few resources, like concealedcarry.com. They have some excellent legal resources for your specific state. However, I will cover some general legal considerations.
In order to use deadly force you must reasonably be in fear for your life, or your loved ones lives. Most folks don’t actually understand that, and consequently, use force incorrectly, or illegally. In this article I covered some research where a panel of judges were provided real life self defense examples that were obtained via anonymous phone survey. They rated them on their legality, and determined that half the folks using firearms did so illegally!
A Legal Example
Let me give you a quick example to prove a point. You’re sleeping and awaken to hearing a window break in your garage. You hear voices coming from your attached garage, and you foolishly take a gun and try to handle the situation yourself. You open your garage door, and see two bad guys getting into your car. You fire a warning shot over their heads. They flee, and your car is safe. That’s a win right? Not so fast.
In some states that might be ok, however in other states, you just used deadly force as a warning. If you can’t give a detailed reason why you felt in jeopardy, then you can’t use deadly force. Firearms aren’t noise makers. In certain states you might face prosecution for discharging a firearm unlawfully. Learn your state’s laws!
Secure Firearm Storage Options
More over, you absolutely should not store your firearm in a drawer, or other unsecured area. If you have kids you are most likely criminally negligent if you do so. I don’t care how well behaved your kids are, they will disobey your rules at some point.
Each year many children are shot by accident, either by themselves, or by other children playing with firearms. Think about how you’d feel if this happened to your child. If you own a firearm, then you need to keep it in a secure location.
There are any number of firearms storage methods, from gun safes, to lock boxes, to hidden lockable shelves. Some of these safes have biometric locks, and can even text your phone if they’re opened. Find a storage solution that works for you.
Learning to Defend Yourself
If you’re brand new to firearms, then you need to seek training first. A quick google search can find some local firearms trainers in your area. Similarly there are often Facebook groups for local folks that do various types of training.
If you’re truly brand new to firearms, steer clear of any tactical training. This might be good at a later date, but you need to learn the basics before you learn the finer points. It’s a good idea to obtain your concealed carry permit, provided your state actually issues them. Even if you don’t want to carry a firearm all the time, it does make transporting, and purchasing firearms easier in most cases.
Find a Reputable Trainer
Finding a reputable trainer has become fairly hard in recent years. Everyone has thrown their hat into the ring, and the internet is replete with buffoons peddling nonsense. I recommend finding someone who’s been in business for a few years, and has more than one type of qualification. If they only have NRA qualifications they might be ok, but they’d probably be better if they’d also qualified as a law enforcement instructor as well.
If you don’t mind traveling for instruction, I recommend checking out the American Warrior Society. Rich and Mike are top quality instructors with decades of self defense and firearms training under their belt. They also have a great website with actionable self defense training as well. Check them out.
Dry Fire Practice
Once you learn the basics of firearm usage, you can build a large portion of your skill through dry fire practice. It’s of utmost importance to insure that you clear your firearm of ammunition, and have no sources of ammunition (loaded magazines/rounds) nearby. Check out this article where I cover some great dry fire tools you can use.
Live Fire Practice
For most folks, that are self defense minded, I recommend shooting at least once per month. Dry fire should comprise the bulk of your training, and live fire confirms that your practice has been worthwhile. Check out the Tier Three Tactical Pistol standards for a good objective test with your firearm.
Final Thoughts
You’ve got a lot to think about, and this is just the beginning. I recommend browsing around this website for a while, as I’ve got dozens of articles that can help you with your shooting. Remember, just owning a firearm isn’t enough to increase your safety.
You need to seek quality training, and put the time and energy into becoming proficient with your firearm of choice. I personally don’t recommend using a firearm for self defense until I’ve put at least 500 rounds through it without malfunction. At that point, it’s reliable enough, and you should have confidence in your skills with that gun.
If you have any comments or questions, put them in the comments section below, and I’ll get you an answer. Now get out there and get training.
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It certainly was helpful information when you informed us that pistols, rifles, and shotguns penetrate about the same through different types of walls. I need a handgun to keep at home now that I have my license since I live alone and I want to use it for self-defense during emergencies. I’ll take note of this while I look for where I can buy a wheel-lock pistol soon.