What polyurethane for a floor?

I want to sand and refinish a maple hardwood floor. I would like to use water-based polyurethane, because I am told it does not drive you out of the house with fumes, and I won't even have to open the windows. (It's still Winter, after all!) Probably in a satin (less than gloss) finish.

Are they all the same, or is there a brand you would recommend? Any tips for how to get good results? I've never done this before.

I used minwax water based polyurethane varnish on my hardwood floors in our living room. It's a fairly high traffic area. It's been on about 8 years now with not much signs of wear. I put 3 coats down, sanded with 220 grit paper between coats. Are your floors stained and sealed already?

I would go with the old stinky toxic stuff, it is the best!

billw wrote:Are your floors stained and sealed already?

They are not stained. They were sanded and refinished with the old-style poly, 20 years ago. Without stain, the floor was very light at first. Heavy traffic areas are now down to the bare wood, or close to it. No-traffic area around the edges have yellowed pleasantly and are in good condition. Would a little stain make it easier to re-do and blend in just the traffic areas in a few years? To do just part of the floor now, would not look good, due to the aging/yellowing.

Gymseal does smell but its the best.

http://www.valsparglobal.com/val/resident/gymseal.jsp

Oil gloss is the hardest.
3 coats of the gloss oil would last 1 season in my old retail store.
Put 2 top coats of the satin which is softer to get the non-glare look you want.

I'm no expert but I just used Zar Ultra Max, the price tag may give you a heart attack. The stink is nearly non existent and it dries really quick. You could probably do 4 or 5 coats in a day if you really wanted. The finish came out really nice, no bubbles, paint brush lines etc. Flawless like I knew what I was doing . I'm not sure about durability, I'll let you know in twenty years.

One thing to note is it goes on really thin, I probably put three or four coats on a 40X4 foot hallway and used less than half a gallon. Get the biggest foam brush you can because basically you only need to spread it around.

I have a Clarke/Alto 12x18 sander. I've done quite a few floors. You will be better off doing the whole floor, nothing but trouble if you try to touch-up worn areas. If you sand the whole floor it will become uniform and you can just apply the finish throughout. I don't think water-based will ever be as durable as oil-based. My sander takes forever to totally refinish a floor, I really need to suppliment it with a faster acting drum sander. It takes a lot of caution though, if you sneeze you can end up putting a deep gouge in the floorboards. If you're going to stain make sure the stain cures completely before you put a finish over it. Minwax stains take days to cure, especially if you're going dark. A lot of guys use shellac as an initial sealer, otherwise your first coat of poly will really soak in.
You might want to consider getting a few estimates. It always seems like a good idea, but it is tedious hard labor every time.

Heavy duty stuff.

http://www.supercoproducts.com/Product-pdf/TECH-GYM-SEAL.pdf

Guess I`m showing my age but I always use the minwax or spar oils, just can`t get over that water is woods worst enemy.