Having recently purchased a home in Toronto, we were discouraged to learn that noise from passing buses on our otherwise fairly quiet street was much worse and obtrusive than originally thought.
After some initial scrambling, we began to look into options to address the situation. We came across marketing and reviews for Encore's bquiet soundproof window systems, and got in touch with Mike, one of their representatives. He visited our home that same week, and we quickly determined that the front ground floor window and door were the worst contributors, as well as the front bedroom window. Mike provided a number of options for addressing these and other windows in the house, and we were able to visit their offices to see demonstrations of the windows.
While Encore's estimates were fair for the scope of the work, they were not inexpensive and we were not certain that the technology would help. We decided to replace the front window with a new double-pane window (replacing the existing double-pane garden window) and a bquiet soundproof window, as well as the old panel door with glass insert with a new windowless steel door and aluminum storm door.
The manufacturing of the windows and doors took about 8 weeks, and installation was on schedule and completed within the 2 day period indicated. The first time we visited the house after the soundproof window was installed, we weren't impressed - we were AMAZED!
Despite our initial concerns, the bquiet window is worth every penny, and significantly exceeded our expectations. Regular motor traffic is inaudible, and a passing bus that previously drowned out conversations in the living room is little more than a muted background noise. I can comfortably read without distraction in a front room and hardly notice!
The bquiet windows and new doors from Monarch were among the best value for money investments we made during our renovation, and we're planning to similarly improve another window early in the New Year.