Have been researching this for hours and am not getting anywhere. I need some advice on the best choice for finishing my bedroom fir original floor. The floor is in decent shape and we have no intention of staining it. Our criteria are this:
1. price - we are moving soon and at this point further upgrades wont be met with returns so we'd like to do this as cheap as possible.
2. I'm (very) pregnant and have a 3 year old so VOC is an issue.
3. Durability: this is a bedroom so low traffic, however, we have a 100lb dog that sleeps in our room so some protection would be good. Also, no plumbing upstairs so water damage is low priority.
4. We would like to do this as quickly as possible. Not having a bedroom is a bit tough.

Right now I feel like water based poly is probably going to be our best bet but am concerned about the price and the color since we are not staining. I am quite intrigued by the idea of using wax or wax +oil but don't know how long or if that would be more costly. I am open to any suggestions though.
Thanks for any help!!

Also, any ideas as to what price points on different finishes and brand suggestions would be great. I'm having trouble finding any $$ references. We live in IL if that helps.

If you are pregnant, I'd recommend that you go away while this is done, regardless of what type of poly you use. The saw dust is not good.

I'm not sure what to advise you because you definitely have competing priorities here, so you will need to make choices. Fir is very soft, so using a more durable poly is better, but that will have higher VOC's. Oil will last longer and look better and cost less, but have higher VOC's.

The water with no stain can look rather dull.

I'd stay away from wax. It generally won't do you much good and you'll need to reduce it every month or so, and as a result you'll be spending more not less.

I'd see if you can stay somewhere else regardless of what you do.

Prices vary by region so call some local places. I'd recommend Angie's list as a good starting place.

Debbie Gartner, aka The Flooring Girl
http://TheFlooringGirl.com
Westchester County, NY