Ok Guys,

This will be quite a lengthy post, but I feel the more information the better. I will post this in three parts that can be answered in full or partial. First I will lay out a little background. I am currently in the process of renovating a house with the intentions to live in. It was built in the 50's and updated all the way to the late 80's when we bought it. It had carpet throughout. Upon inspection we discovered that the house had hardwood throughout while we were under it. I have to this point ripped all of the carpet out and sanded the floors completely. The floor is 3/4" white oak in 2 1/8" planks. I am in Texas and the weather is starting to get nasty. Here are my questions:

1.) Because of the weather (cold and Damp) should I use water based over oil based poly? I have central Heat, but the furnace is natural gas and does have an open flame when running. Oil based poly I know has a lot of fumes and is not wise to have open flames anywhere. I know I could open windows to let it ventilate, but I also don't want to heat the whole town (I'm trying to keep cost down). My intention was to use 2-3 coats of oil-based poly, but if I put it down with no heat on and windows up it will take a month to dry.It is currently 27 degrees outside at the moment I am considering putting 4-6 coats of water based poly down with the heat on in the house, and hope to get all coats down in 2 days or so. My goal is to be finished by christmas. Is this a reasonable alternative. I have heard mixed reviews of both forms of poly in regards to durability and ease of application. I do know water based is less fumey and dries faster but am unsure of performance caracteristics.

2.) what kind of cost am I looking at to have this contracted out? All I basically need is someone to come in and stain and put the poly on. I already have the stain and will buy the poly as soon as I figure out which one is my best bet. As stated above the floors have already been sanded and look great, but due to time constraints I may consider hiring this process out if it is not too expensive. It is roughly 1200 square foot of flooring that needs to be done.

3.) how much materials will I need to do this job? As mentioned above, it is roughly 1200 sq. ft. of flooring that needs stain and poly. I figured I will need around 5 gallons of stain, and 10-12 gallons of oil-based poly to do the 2-3 coats. Does this sound right? How much poly will I need if I use water based @ 4-6 coats?

I'm a rookie, so you might want to wait and see what some of the experts here have to say before you start. You can get some really good advice here.:D
I used water based on the floors I have refinished in my home. It goes down easy, just make sure you give it a light sanding between coats and tack cloth it after sanding. You can put your next coat on within a couple hours depending on temp & humidity, and the fumes aren't bad. Just make sure you give the final coat time to cure before putting heavy furniture in, or be careful when moving it. You should be able to do it yourself and save money, it's easier than the sanding job you already did. Use a lambswool applicator, and make sure you keep a wet edge. And work yourself to a door - not a corner.:p If you don't use a stain, make sure you use the sealer before you poly. I'm not sure how much you will need, I can't remember how much I used.

Good luck!