Project: alarm upgrade and Control4 integration
A Tacoma waterfront home,
from Clare to Ajax inside Control4
The house had a Clare intrusion system and a Control4 system that did not talk to it. We replaced the alarm with Ajax, kept what was already in the walls, added wireless door contacts, and put the whole system on the Control4 keypads and app. Each door got its own siren chime, so the owner knows which door opened without looking.
Rivas Technology Group upgraded a Tacoma waterfront home from a Clare intrusion system to Ajax Systems, integrated into the existing Control4 system. The wired detectors stayed on an Ajax MultiTransmitter, new wireless DoorProtect contacts went on the doors, and HomeSirens were assigned to specific doors with a unique chime count, so the owner hears which door opened.
- Client
- Private waterfront home
- City
- Tacoma, WA
- Before
- Clare intrusion system, separate from Control4
- After
- Ajax hub, MultiTransmitter for the existing wired zones, wireless DoorProtect contacts, HomeSirens, Control4 integration
- Detail
- Each HomeSiren is assigned to a door with its own chime count, so the door announces itself
- Result
- One system on the Control4 keypads and app, monitored month to month
What was the problem?
A waterfront home in Tacoma with two systems that ignored each other. The Clare intrusion system did its job, but it lived on its own keypad and app. The Control4 system ran the lights, shades and audio and knew nothing about the doors. The owner wanted one interface, an alarm the family would use, and a way to know which door had opened without picking up a phone.
What did we design?
An Ajax system that reused the wiring and added radio where it helped. The wired detectors that still worked stayed in place and landed on an Ajax MultiTransmitter, which mounted where the Clare panel had been and carries its own backup battery. The doors the family uses got wireless DoorProtect contacts, paired to the hub in minutes and good for up to seven years on a battery1. Then the hub went into Control4 through the published driver, so arming, disarming and alarm events live on the keypads and app the house already used.
What did we install?
An Ajax hub, the MultiTransmitter for the wired zones, DoorProtect contacts on the sliders and entry doors, and HomeSirens indoors. Each HomeSiren is assigned to a specific door and set to a unique chime count. When a door opens, the siren chimes that door's number, so the owner in the kitchen knows it was the lakeside slider and not the front door. The chime function is a setting on each door detector in the Ajax app2; the assignment and the counts are the programming. Monitoring is month to month through Becklar, a UL-listed central station.
What changed?
One system instead of two. The family arms and disarms from the Control4 keypads and app, or the Ajax app when they want it. A Goodbye scene arms the house. A door opening announces itself by its chime count. The old panel's wiring is still earning its keep, and nothing that worked was thrown away. When something needs attention, the hub reports it before anyone notices.
Where is this project?
Tacoma, WA, about 25 minutes from our office at 415 Railroad Ave S in Kent. Tacoma homes are covered on the Tacoma security page, including the city's alarm rules, and the smart home side on the Tacoma smart home page.
What drives the cost of a project like this?
How much of the old wiring is worth keeping, how many doors and windows need new contacts, and whether Control4 is already in the house. A home with a working wired panel and a Control4 controller is the cheap case: the hub, the MultiTransmitter, the new contacts, the sirens and the driver. A home with neither needs the alarm designed from scratch, on the home security page, and the Ajax cost page shows what that runs.
Similar project?
Older wired alarms from Clare, Honeywell, DSC and others get the same treatment across Tacoma, Gig Harbor, University Place and south King County. Keep what works, add radio where the old system had gaps, put it on one interface, monitor it month to month. The Control4 page covers the rest of the house.
Why Rivas Technology Group
WA electrical contractor license RIVASGL799DR, active, bonded and insured3. Ajax Systems dealer, listed on ajax.systems, and Control4 Authorized Dealer, so both sides of the integration are installed and supported by the same team.
Questions we hear
Why replace the Clare system instead of repairing it?
Because the owner wanted the alarm inside Control4, and a platform with a future. Ajax puts the hub on the Control4 keypads and app through a published driver, sends a photo with every motion alarm, and is monitored month to month with no contract. Repairing the old panel would have kept it separate.
Did the old sensors go to waste?
No. The wired detectors already in the walls landed on an Ajax MultiTransmitter, which brings up to 18 wired zones onto the Ajax hub and carries a 12 V backup battery inside its casing4. It mounted where the old panel had been. New doors got wireless DoorProtect contacts.
How does a siren tell you which door opened?
Each HomeSiren is assigned to a specific door and set to a unique chime count. A HomeSiren chimes when a protected door opens, with the chime function enabled on the door detector in the Ajax app2. One chime is the front door, two the slider, and so on, so the owner knows without a phone.
What does Control4 do with the alarm?
Arm and disarm from the keypads, touch screens and app, and run scenes on alarm events. A Goodbye scene arms the system; an intrusion turns the exterior lights on. The driver page explains what runs in Control4 and what stays in the Ajax app.
Would this work for my house?
If you have an older wired alarm from Clare, Honeywell, DSC or another panel, and a Control4 system or plans for one, yes. We keep the wired detectors that still work, add wireless where the old system had gaps, and put it all on one interface. The Tacoma security page covers monitoring and the city's alarm rules.
Similar house? Start with a walk-through.
Tell us the address, what alarm is in the house now and whether you have Control4. We walk it with you and send a fixed proposal. We call or text back within one business day.