Security Camera Installation in Lewiston & Clarkston
Hardwired cameras that record 24/7 to a box in your house, no monthly fee, no batteries to swap, no video sitting on someone else's server. RD Electric installs and wires security camera systems for homes, shops, and businesses across the LC Valley.
Why we hardwire every camera
The battery cameras from the big-box store are easy to hang and easy to hate six months later: batteries dying in January, a Wi-Fi signal that doesn't reach the shop, a subscription that goes up every year, and video that lives on a company's cloud until they change the terms. And the one time you actually need the footage, the camera was asleep to save power.
We run a single Ethernet cable to each camera that carries both power and video (PoE), back to a recorder in your house. That means continuous recording, not motion clips, storage you own, and a system that works whether or not the internet is up. It's the same kind of installation we do for panels and lighting: right cable, right path, sealed where it enters the wall.
/ MONTH
No subscription. Ever.
Your footage records to the NVR in your house. Viewing it from your phone is free. There's nothing to renew and nothing that stops working if you skip a payment.
The Bronze package: the system most homes start with
Four cameras, a recorder, the wiring, and the setup, as one price. Enough to cover the driveway, front door, back yard, and the side of the house.
Bronze Package
4 cameras · installed4 Ultra HD turret cameras
G5 Turret Ultra. Sharp enough to read a face at the front door and a plate in the driveway, day and night.
Network video recorder, 1 TB
Protect NVR Instant. Records all four cameras around the clock; roughly a few weeks of footage before it starts overwriting the oldest.
Up to 75 feet of cable per camera
Run through attic, soffit, or conduit and sealed at the entry point. Longer runs and detached shops are quoted on the site walk.
Professional mounting & aiming
Placed where they actually see the approach, not just where the cable was easiest, and tilted so headlights and sunrise don't blind them.
Full setup, testing & training
Motion zones, notifications, user accounts. We hand you a working system and show you how to pull a clip.
Phone & desktop app
Live view and playback from anywhere, no monthly charge.
Need more than four cameras?
Bronze is a starting point. Most of what we build is custom to the property.
License plate cameras
Long-lens cameras at the driveway or gate that read plates at distance, day or night, and log them so you can search by plate later.
Smart detection
Alerts for a person or vehicle, not a cat or a shadow. Fewer notifications, and the ones you get matter.
Video doorbell, wired
Hardwired to your existing chime transformer so it never needs charging, recording to the same NVR as the rest of the house.
Shops, barns & detached garages
Trenched conduit or a point-to-point wireless bridge to an outbuilding, with cameras and Wi-Fi out there too.
Business & commercial
Storefronts, warehouses, ag operations, parking lots. Sixteen-plus camera systems with longer retention. See our commercial work.
Tied into your lights
A camera that sees a person after dark can turn the driveway lights on. Pairs with our smart home and lighting installs.
What good camera placement looks like
The cameras matter less than where they point. This is what we're thinking about on the site walk.
See them before they reach the house
A camera that catches the vehicle and the walk-up gives you a plate and a face. One pointed at the doormat gives you the top of a hat.
Every way in, covered
Front door, back slider, garage man-door, and the side gate. Mounted high enough to be out of reach, low enough to see a face.
The side yard nobody watches
Most break-ins in the valley happen at the side or back of the house, out of view of the street. That's usually camera three and four in a Bronze system.
How an install works
Free site walk
We walk the property with you, talk about what you want to see, check cable paths and where the recorder will live. No obligation.
Written quote with a camera map
Each camera numbered on a sketch of the property, with the recorder, cable, and labor in one price.
Install day
Cable pulled and sealed, cameras mounted and aimed, recorder set up. Most four-to-eight camera homes are done in a day.
Setup & walkthrough
App on your phone, motion zones tuned, users added. We show you how to find and save a clip before we leave.
The cable is the part that fails. We don't let it.
Camera systems that die young almost always die at the cable: a run pinched under a shingle, a connector left in the weather, a hole never sealed. Our journeymen pull it the way they pull any other circuit, through the attic and soffit, in conduit where it's exposed, sealed at the wall, and labeled at the recorder. It's boring, and it's why the system still works in five years.
Security camera questions we get every week
Is there a monthly fee?
No. The systems we install record to a recorder in your home and the app is free. The only recurring cost is your existing internet connection if you want to view remotely.
Wired or wireless?
Wired. Battery and Wi-Fi cameras are fine for a peek at the porch, but they sleep to save power, miss events, drop off the network, and need charging. A hardwired PoE camera records continuously and is powered by the same cable that carries the video.
How long does it keep footage?
It depends on the number of cameras, resolution, and drive size. A four-camera Bronze system on 1 TB typically holds a few weeks before it overwrites the oldest video. Larger drives are available if you want longer.
Can I see the cameras on my phone?
Yes. Live view, playback, and clip export from the app, anywhere you have a signal. We set it up on your phone before we leave.
Do the cameras work at night?
Yes. The cameras we install have infrared night vision and, on most models, a low-light mode that keeps color at dusk. We aim them to avoid headlight glare and reflections off eaves.
Can you add cameras to a shop or barn?
Yes. Either a trenched conduit run or a point-to-point wireless bridge, depending on distance and what's between the buildings. It's a routine add for rural properties in the valley.
Do you install systems I've already bought?
Usually, if it's a wired system. Bring it to the site walk and we'll tell you if it's worth installing or if you'd be happier with something else.
Often added at the same time
Where we install security cameras
RD Electric installs camera systems for homes and businesses across the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley and the surrounding area:
Contact
Need Electrical Services Help?
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