Decks, Patios, Porches and Docks - Building a deck in the Garage.

There is a deck in my garage right now. It is use to store stuff. I will be taking it down soon because the engineer of that deck is extremely lousy. Part of it is hanging down and it really bugs me.

Anyway, after I take it down, I like to build a new one back up. Anyone has plans to build a strong deck?

The current deck has 3 long 2x4. In between those 2x4, they cut small sections of wood and nailed each end to hold the long 2x4 together. The problem is, they did not use those metal strong tie and one of the long 2x4 has cracked.

What is the best way to prevent the long 2x4 from breaking if I decided to put new one up.

I took physics in high school and I remember the construction of a bridge is to use as many small 2x4 as possible. By having small 2x4 about the size of 3 feet each, it would create a more durable situation.

What I am planning to do is create square shapes out of the 3 feet 2x4 and use strong tie to strap each of the square together.

If you think this sounds wrong, please feel free to point out a better solution.

Thanks for reading this thread and any of your recommendation.

Put a post under the long 2X4 (joist) to support it. If having a post in the middle of the garage seems too inconvenient, then use a 2X4 that ties to the rafters or ridge beam and hangs down to support the outer most 2X4 joist.