Smart home installation
on Mercer Island

Which system goes in first on Mercer Island?

Security, and on this island that layer includes the gate. An Ajax hub, sensors on doors and windows, MotionCam detectors and a video doorbell go in before anything else. MotionCam delivers its first photo within 9 seconds of a trigger1. Where there is a gate, an Akuvox video door station is answered from a phone anywhere, and guests and deliveries get codes or QR passes. Control4 listens to the alarm state, so arming the house drops the shades and shuts off the lights.

A waterfront lot has two fronts. The dock is an entry as much as the driveway, so the shore side gets outdoor MotionCam detectors and a camera of its own. The hardware is yours, and monitoring comes month to month from Becklar, a UL-listed central station. The platform is described on the home security page.

Where on Mercer Island do we install?

The whole island, about 18 miles from our office at 415 Railroad Ave S in Kent by I-405 and I-90. The island sits inside the 20-mile band on our pricing page, so visits carry no travel fee. The north end and the west shore face Seattle across the lake: water-facing glass, docks and long driveways. That calls for gate intercoms, motorized shades, perimeter cameras, outdoor audio and Wi-Fi that reaches the water.

First Hill and Mercerwood are mid-century and 1970s to 1990s houses, and wireless-first design suits them. Dimmers replace the switches already in the boxes, Ajax sensors go on the frames, shade motors recharge, and the drywall stays intact. On the south end, older houses sit beside replacement builds; the new ones get a pre-wire at framing and a second visit at trim.

Gates, driveways and guest access

Many Mercer Island homes have a gate and a callbox older than the smartphone that should be answering it. The fix is an Akuvox video intercom, usually over the existing wiring, so the driveway is never trenched. You answer from your phone, guests get a code or a QR pass, and the gate lives on the same app as the alarm and the lights. Rivas Technology Group is an Akuvox certified intercom installer. A Sentex callbox on the island became an Akuvox X912S this way; the Mercer Island case study walks through it. Properties with a guest house, a boathouse or grounds get one system for all of it, described on the estate technology page.

What does Control4 add to a Mercer Island home?

A single app, remote and keypad layer for lights, shades, audio, TV, climate, locks, the gate and the alarm. Island households often arrive with good gear already, and Control4 is what ties it together; it runs in over 500,000 homes and works with 25,000+ third-party products2. Rivas Technology Group is a Control4 Authorized Dealer, listed on Control4's integrator map, and every system is programmed, documented and supported by the people who installed it. Josh.ai adds voice, processed inside the house. Cost drivers: the Control4 page.

Why does the network come first?

Because the cameras, the keypads, the gate intercom and the speakers all ride on it. A lot that steps down to the water is exactly what a consumer mesh kit cannot cover. Two or three wired access points, one of them placed for the dock and the yard, cover it permanently. We size Wi-Fi by counting devices, run Cat6A to everything fixed, and choose Ruckus or Alta Labs access points for the spots the floor plan dictates. Under them sits the Island Router, a wired router without a subscription3. Details on Wi-Fi and networking.

Theater, audio, shades and exterior lighting

On the west shore the request is shades that tame afternoon glare off the lake and still leave the view, and outdoor audio that stops at the property line. We do both, on schedules that share the lighting scenes. Inside, a media room that starts from one button and music zones through the house. Soffit lighting that is permanent handles holiday colors and everyday accent light from the same app. Pages: motorized shades, outdoor living, home theater and audio and smart lighting.

What drives the cost?

How many rooms, how many systems, how hard the walls are to reach, and what you already own. One system gets a fixed price after we walk the house; whole-home Control4 is quoted room by room so an island project can be phased. A Mercerwood retrofit stays lean because the platforms are wireless. A south end replacement build lets us pull cable once, while the framing is open. The smart home installation cost page walks through what moves the number; the instant quote gives you a first figure.

Where we work

Mercer Island and Bellevue across the lake are the two places north of the office we publish pages for. The rest of the map is south King County and Pierce County from Kent. King County: Kent itself, Tukwila, Renton, Federal Way, Auburn and Covington and Maple Valley. Pierce County: Tacoma, Puyallup, University Place and Gig Harbor. The Olympic Peninsula is by appointment, and the residential hub describes the whole service.

Why Rivas Technology Group

Rivas Technology Group is a Control4 Authorized Dealer, listed on Control4's integrator map, an Ajax Systems dealer, listed on ajax.systems, and an Akuvox certified intercom installer. Our WA electrical contractor license is RIVASGL799DR, active, bonded and insured4, and the crew that wires the island answers afterward, with the optional CURATOR care plan. Who we are, CEDIA and the BBB A+ rating are on the about page; book a walk-through below or contact us.