Firearm Safety for the Family: Controlling Gun Access

Regardless of the politics surrounding the debate over firearms in America, statistics show that having a firearm in your home does increase your odds of gun-related injury or death. The reality is that unsafe firearm handling can result in people being killed, with thousands of deaths each year due to gun violence in the home.

A recent report highlights the risk of unintentional shootings and unintentional deaths among children of various ages, including teens and adolescents, emphasizing the need for prevention. The presence of firearms in a household also increases the risk of suicide, including firearm suicide, especially among teens and adolescents.

Further, over one-third of American households that contain a firearm also contain children. Gun owners and every gun owner have a responsibility to make safety a priority to protect lives. The reality of gun violence and violence in the home can have life-altering consequences for families and the community, and each household's circumstances may affect their safety needs.

Because of this, if you choose to keep a firearm at home for self-defense, you must take some precautions to ensure that it is not wrongfully used against you, your family members, or another loved one.

Firearm Safety Tips

First, one of the best things you can do to protect your family is to properly store your firearms. Safe storage, safe gun storage, and safe firearm storage are essential for keeping kids safe and your family safe. Making it difficult for family members (particularly children) to access the firearm will make your home much safer.

Children are naturally curious. Without the proper precautions, children may come across your firearm and hurt themselves, a friend, or others. By children, we mean children as young as three years old, as three-year-olds have the power to pull a firearm trigger. It is also important to secure your firearms if you live with a family member who is depressed or who has mental health issues.

Therefore, the best thing you can do is properly secure your firearm. To do this, make sure to lock up your firearm in a secure place, whether that is a cabinet, safe, lock box, or gun vault. Firearms should be locked, unloaded, and stored in lock boxes or other secure storage solutions, with ammunition stored separately. After locking up your firearm and ammunition, hide the keys from others.

Leaving an unlocked gun in the house, especially when children or friends visit or play, can lead to tragic accidents. BrickHouse Security also offers some gun safes to secure your weapons.

Next, it is important to have a discussion about firearm safety with your family—particularly your children. Ongoing conversations and open conversation about gun safety are important. Sit down with your family and explain the danger of firearms.

Remind parents to talk with their children and friends' parents before a playdate or visit to another house. If they come across a firearm in your home, tell them to stop what they are doing, do not touch the firearm (even if it looks like a toy), leave the area where the firearm is, and to quickly tell an adult about what they found. Parents should ask about gun safety and safe storage when their children visit a friend's house.

If you hunt with a child or teenager, you must still articulate the danger of firearms. Ensure that they understand to always be with a responsible adult when handling a firearm. It is also important to tell them to assume that every firearm they handle is loaded and that they should never point the firearm at another human.

Finally, consider gun safety training or additional safety features when purchasing your firearm. For example, many new firearms come with security that can make shooting virtually impossible. For example, you can purchase a firearm that contains a vise-like device that covers the trigger. You can also purchase a firearm containing a cable gun lock, which ultimately secures the trigger of your firearm. Storing guns unloaded and using lock boxes are best practices. Parents should focus on the importance of safe storage and personally remind all family members about safety rules.

If you have an older firearm that you want to secure, you can always purchase a trigger lock from a firearm retailer. Should you be confused about the process, you can also speak with local law enforcement to obtain a cable-style gun lock.

Training classes can help owners understand the best ways to handle, use, clean, and disable their weapon to ensure that they and others are safe. Resources and support are available for families and gun owners, and seeking advice from professionals is recommended.

Gun owners should take responsibility for safe storage and stand together to end family fire. Different perspectives and ongoing conversations with the community and friends can help reinforce responsible gun ownership.

Take Firearm Safety Seriously

Firearm safety is an extremely serious topic. Making firearm safety a priority can save lives and protect families. If you have a firearm in your home and have not yet taken some of the safety precautions listed above, you must act quickly to secure your weapons and your family’s safety.

Whether this means purchasing a gun safe, buying a trigger lock, speaking with your family about gun safety, taking a gun safety class, or all of the above, taking these precautions today can protect your family members from an accident. Anyone would gladly accept the minor inconvenience now in exchange for peace of mind and confidence that their family is safe.

Let’s stand together as a community to end family fire and support each other in promoting responsible gun ownership. Remember, the importance of responsibility and ongoing communication cannot be overstated—remind your loved ones about safe storage and focus on keeping safety a top priority. Resources and support are available for families seeking advice on firearm safety.

At BrickHouse Security, we are happy to help you secure your firearms. We offer a wide range of firearm security products. If you have any questions about our products or firearm safety in general, you can contact us. The information provided here is for informational purposes only and does not replace professional medical, legal, or safety advice.