I read your note about "clearing" a house, and am not sure what you mean.
My advice to my wife which I would hopefully also follow would be to leave whatever room you and you gun are in only to get to a loved one. Cops have told me that going after a thug through halls etc is only likely to get you killed. It's your house. If you stay still and quiet you will likely have the element of surprise and have the weapon ready. Deciding if you want to give your position away in exchange for scaring them off is a judgement call and I will have to trust my instincts at that point. But I'm not going AFTER anyone.
Center of mass, at least two shots. KISS.
JMHO
SAGE advice..
If you are on the second floor, and have to get a child or older person from a room down the hall, have someone cover the stairs with a shotgun while you go down the hall, sidearm and surefire in hand.
Collect the loved ones, get them in the safe room, call 911, lock door and cover said door with scattergun.
Anything coming through there is potentially fair game...unless its a family member or a police office...Just wait for the cavalry to arrive.
Interesting discussion. I bought a pump shotgun so I could get THAT SOUND it makes when you pump it. At the top of my stairs in the foyer, you can hear a soft-spoken word all over the first floor.
SO - I'm going to pump my shotgun right there, and listen to them break their legs getting out of my house, instead of having to kill them. (Which I will do, if they don't run away...)
This is an extremely complex subject. There are several things to keep in mind.
First and most important (to me), anyone or anything you think is a threat may be your children, the paperboy, a drunk, a kid sneaking in to visit your daughter (you may not like him but you do not want to hurt him) or any one of a thousand other harmless but scary to you people. So make sure (absolutely sure) that what you decide to shoot is the real McCoy. PS I am not a descendant of the Hatfields.
Second, equipment familiarity is most important. An 18" barrel or a 28" barrel, either is equally as effective. You must know the different strategies on how to use them, be able to figure out what the psychological effects will be on the "enemy" as well as the physical effects. Remember that most uses of a handgun are accomplished without bloodshed. So do you just want to display the firearm with the option to shoot..., I do. The chances are that you will be successful if you get the opportunity to show your firearm and warn someone off.
Third, you need to be prepared as well as you can. I almost always have a handgun within reach day or night. 9 MM either Glock or the CZ, 357 cal revolver (Security Six in stainless), the 45 cal H&K or the Sig, or the MK 11 Reuger in 22 cal. They are all quite effective depending on the particular situation. Of course the Damascus steel (hammered and turned 500 times) samurai sword is real good for a close up type of situation and is almost always at hand. The rifles and shotguns are available within two minutes if need be. The compound bows are available within one minute if silence is desired, and the crossbow is available if I have three minutes to get it ready. There are other self-defense options available for the specific need.
My point is that there are not optional weapons for home defense, there are a myriad of options depending on the situation. Practice and knowing how to use different things for their particular uses is where it is at. Know your weapon, know your enemy, and you decrease the possibility that you will harm someone in order to defend yourself.
EXCELLENT advice. Someone moving in the dark makes noise. Noise locates the target. If the intruder is armed, your movement reveals yourself to him. If you wait, you are prepared and he doesn't have a chance.
Besides, I don't own anything I value enough to kill someone over - except my family!