Smart home installation
without opening the walls.

Can a finished home become a smart home without renovation?

Yes, and most of our residential work is exactly that. The platforms we install were chosen for finished houses. Ajax security runs on an encrypted radio instead of wire, and Control4 dimmers and keypads replace the switches already on the wall. Shade motors run on rechargeable batteries, and Wi-Fi is fixed with ceiling access points on short cable runs to the attic or a closet.

Where a cable earns its place, for a camera, a rack or a keypad, we plan the run with you and open nothing you have not agreed to. Rivas Technology Group is the South Sound's security-first integrator, based in Kent since 2020. Our own team designs and installs in homes, and the people who program your system are the people who answer the phone.

Start with security

Ajax goes in during one visit and protects the house that night. Detectors talk to the hub over Ajax's Jeweller radio, rated to 2,000 m in open space (Hub 2 manual), so nothing is chased through a finished wall. MotionCam detectors deliver the first photo of an alarm within 9 seconds (Ajax MotionCam). Hub 2 Plus keeps reporting over Ethernet, Wi-Fi and two cellular SIMs (Hub 2 Plus). Leak detectors under the sinks report the same way a forced door does.

You own every device, self-monitoring through the app is free, and professional monitoring through Becklar, a UL-listed central station, is month to month with no contract. A wireless install typically takes four to five hours against one to two days for a wired panel (SatFocus). Details on home security and why we build on Ajax.

Start with the network

Or start with the network, because every camera, keypad, speaker and shade will ride on it. We size Wi-Fi by device count, not square footage, and put access points in ceilings where the coverage map says they belong. We replace the carrier router with an Island Router, a wired, subscription-free router (Island Router). Then we load-test the result before any security or audio hardware goes on it. In most finished homes the cable to an access point is a short run through the attic or a closet, not a wall. Read Wi-Fi and networking and the Island Router page.

Or design the whole home

Control4 puts lighting, shades, audio, climate, locks and the alarm on one app, one remote and engraved wall keypads. It runs in over 500,000 homes and works with 25,000+ third-party products (Control4), so the thermostat and garage opener you already own usually come along.

In a finished home the pieces are wireless dimmers on existing wiring and rechargeable shade motors that run 6 to 12 months per charge (Seattle Blinds). A controller and a small rack go where cable can reach, and speakers go where a ceiling is accessible. We are a Control4 Authorized Dealer, listed on Control4's integrator map. Pages: Control4, smart lighting, motorized shades, home theater and audio and Josh.ai voice control.

What drives the cost?

Room count, the number of systems, wall access and what you already own. A single system, Ajax security, a lighting package for the main floor, a Wi-Fi rebuild, is scoped in a walk-through and quoted as a fixed price before work begins. A whole-home Control4 system is quoted room by room so you can phase it over a year or two.

Wireless platforms keep retrofit labor down; a camera on the far side of the house or a rack in a closet is where cable, and cost, come in. Published ranges are on smart home installation cost, and the instant quote gives you a number in a few minutes.

How does the process work?

Walk-through, fixed proposal, install, then support from the same people. The walk-through is free within 20 miles of Kent. We look at the house with you, ask how you live in it, and note where the Wi-Fi drops and which door everyone uses. Then we send a proposal you can read at the kitchen table.

On install day our own team mounts and programs every device and walks each room with you until the scenes feel right. Afterward you have a 90-day workmanship warranty, support at published rates and the optional CURATOR remote care plan. If a remodel is on the calendar, read smart home for remodelers first, because open walls change what is worth hardwiring.

Where we work

South King County and Pierce County from our office at 415 Railroad Ave S in Kent. That includes Kent, Renton, Tukwila, Federal Way, Auburn, Covington and Maple Valley, Tacoma, Puyallup, Sumner, Bonney Lake, Tehaleh, University Place and Gig Harbor. Olympic Peninsula by appointment. Licensed as WA electrical contractor RIVASGL799DR, active, bonded and insured (L&I lookup); BBB accredited, A+; 5.0 from 49 Google reviews. The whole residential offer is on residential.