So, you suspect there’s an intruder in your home. It’s a nightmare scenario, but before you go all Rambo, let’s get one thing straight: clearing a house is not something you should be doing alone unless there are absolutely no other options. This isn’t a game, and it’s not as easy as Hollywood makes it look. In real life, close quarter battle (CQB) professionals clear buildings in teams for a reason. They rely on each other for 360-degree coverage because without it, you’re vulnerable to attacks from your blind spots.
If you’re home alone and think there’s an intruder, your best move is to stay put, lock the door, get in a corner with your firearm pointed towards the door and call the police. But if your loved ones are in another part of the house, and you have no choice but to act, here’s how to approach it with caution.
Note: The following are just some of the things you can do, not an exhaustive list of everything you should do. We stand on the rule that here’s no single perfect or "only" way. That said, let me make it absolutely apparent: clearing your home or workplace is the absolute last option and is rolling the dice to a suicide mission.
See snippets from our Protective Pistol Level 1: Homes and Office Structures Course. Here we teach how to to move through hallways, doors and rooms with your firearm.
Use Your Home to Your Advantage
Your house is more than just four walls and a roof; it’s an environment you know better than any intruder. Use that to your advantage. One of the most important concepts in room clearing is avoiding the “fatal funnel”. A fatal funnel is any narrow area, like a hallway or doorway, where there’s little to no cover. It’s basically a chokepoint where you’re exposed and vulnerable. You want to avoid these areas as much as possible or move through them quickly if you absolutely must.
Slicing the Pie
Moving through your home, you want to be strategic and methodical. One of the best techniques for this is called "slicing the pie." This means slowly revealing a little more of a room or hallway at a time as you move around a corner. It minimizes your exposure and helps you maintain control over what you’re seeing. This gives you a better chance to spot an intruder before they spot you.
Here’s how it works: instead of barreling around a corner exposing your whole body, you step slowly to the side, angling yourself bit by bit to reveal more of the room while keeping yourself concealed as much as possible. It’s like peeling back layers, giving you a few degrees more visibility with each step.
Home and Office Structures participant is seen here slicing the pie in a doorway.
Clearing Doorways and Stairs
Doors and stairs are tricky because they’re natural chokepoints, especially in your home. Remember doorways are fatal funnels because anyone coming through them is at a high risk of getting ambushed. When clearing a doorway, don’t just barge in. Instead, use the same pie-slicing technique, and only cross the threshold when you’re sure it’s safe. Once you do, move fast to avoid staying in the danger zone longer than necessary.
Stairs are even worse because you’re totally exposed while going up or down. Here’s where you want to take it slow. Stick close to the wall and slice the pie as you go up or down. It’s not ideal, but taking these small steps gives you a fighting chance of staying alive if there’s a threat on the other side.
Train to Defend, Not to React
The reality is, clearing your home on your own is risky business. You should only do it if there are extenuating circumstances, like getting to a family member who’s in danger. But you don’t want to wait until you’re in that high-stakes moment to figure it all out. That’s where training comes in.
At ISP, we offer the Protective Pistol Level 1: Homes and Office Structures Course, where we teach you how to use your environment to your advantage, move through structures safely, and respond to threats effectively. Our course is designed to give you the mindset and skills you need to protect yourself and your loved ones in real-world scenarios. Don’t leave your safety up to chance; train for it.
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About The Author
Hank Hayes is a Combat Arts Hall of Famer and inventor of the No Lie Blade. He is the founder and CEO of both Intuitive Self Protection and NLB Tactical and creator of the ISP/NLB viscous fighting system. Since 1998, he has trained well over 30,000 Military and Law Enforcement personnel via Government contract mainly at the elite special teams level and continues to train both civilians and MIL/LE how to come home safe.
