One of our most frequently asked questions is, "How do I lower my flag to half-staff on my house?"
September 11 is Patriot Day and a National Day of Service and Remembrance. It is one of five annual flag holidays where flags across the nation are always lowered to half-staff to pay respect and memorialize the lives lost on these days in history.
We also lower flags to half-staff on National Fallen Firefighters Memorial Weekend in May, Peace Officers Memorial Day on May 15, and Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day on December 7. On Memorial Day, the flag is flown at half-staff until noon, and then raised to full-staff until sunset.
A house-mounted flag pole is not long enough to fly the flag at half-staff, so etiquette dictates that you fly a black mourning streamer atop your flag instead.
We’ve created a quick 3-minute video for everything you need to know about flying your flag at home with a mourning streamer on days when we honor and remember the fallen.
Watch our video for how to fly your flag half-staff on a house-mounted flagpole:
Step 1. Dismount your flagpole
Remove your flagpole off of the mount rather than trying to use a ladder to attach the streamer, for obvious safety reasons.
Step 2. Attach your mourning streamer
Find the clip at the top of your flagpole above your flag. The streamer has a grommet, which you simply attach your streamer to the clip. If your pole does not have a clip, you may use a zip tie, pipe cleaner or similar to securely attach the streamer. Some people choose to let their mourning streamer simply fly on top of the flag or you can choose to tie your streamer into a bow.
Step 3. Remount your flagpole
Once your streamer is attached to your pole, replace it back into the mount.
Step 4. Fly your flag from sunrise to sunset
Fly your flag half-staff with a mourning streamer from sunrise to sunset. On Memorial Day, fly your flag half-staff with the mourning streamer until noon.
Half-Staff Mourning Streamer
The Half-staff Mourning Streamer is considered an acceptable substitute for symbolizing mourning on flagpoles that cannot fly a flag at half-staff.
Purchase our 100% made-in-the-USA mourning streamer for your American flag here.