[JustPiper]

weapons such as rifes/shotguns

The best kind to use for effectiveness

[Oorang]

For "household personal defense" I would recommend a 12 gage shotgun. Not too expensive but very effective. Because it's a shotgun, as opposed to a rifle, your aim does not have to be dead on, and the "thunk-thunk" sound of loading a cartridge into the chamber is enough to scare most intruders. Just my 2 cents.