I'm building a 'shelf' in a damp area of the basement out of 4x4 PT wood. The shelf sits on a ledger board in the corner of the basement. The ledger board is supported by 5 posts, three on the long dimension (4') and two more on the short dimesnion (2'). The ledger boards and the suport posts are all screwed to the block wall with Tapcon cement screws. The posts are attached to the ledger boards with Simpon StrongTie post caps. There are also two more free standing support posts supporting the free edge of the shelf, also connected using Simpson connectors. This may seem like overkill, but the shelf has to support 1000 lbs and failure is not an option.
Now for the bad news. As I was attaching the free legs I hit some knots near the front corner of the shelf. A crack has apeared down the length of the shelf's front edge (4x4). It's doubtful that this beam will separate, since the there are 6" lag bolts holding the crossers to the front and back beams. But I assume this would seriously weaken the strength of the front beam. Replacing the beam will mean a complete tear down, but I may have no option.
Any labour saving solutions would be appreciated.