My mother's house has recently gone under renovation for the past year. One of the rooms that has been overhauled is the attic.

The attic was once a lost, musty, humid space in her house. At one point, the only access point was through a moveable ceiling piece in a bedroom closet, but even then it was just a show space. There was no where to walk except for the joists as it had open insulation throughout its "floor."

Our HVAC specialist recommended moving the heating unit from the garage to the attic. He put in a new hallway entrance to the attic, switched out the old, dusty insulation, changed the ducts, and installed new, rudimentary flooring. He was even cautious enough to but 2x4's to cross the joists in some areas, so flooring wouldn't crush wires. (See the first few pictures).

She really loves the new, extra room. I am very careful not to store too many boxes and chotchkies up there to ruin the aesthetic feel of a large space. It would be a nice place to just sit if she so chooses.

The flooring only covers about half of the attic. The other half is still barren with new insulation. I was interested in putting down the flooring myself. There are some wires that run across the attic floor and I want to follow pattern by putting down 2x4's over joists so the platform is raised.

There is probably about 700-800 sqft of flooring that can be installed but I doubt I would do it all. I really just need a subset or another corner of the attic for extra things. Working around ducts can also be cumbersome and as you can see, the new insulation in popping out. PIctures below.

With this I have a few question that more seasoned renovators can hopefully answer:

1. If I cross 2x4s over the joists, can I use wood glue to stabilize them or do I need to use wood screws for better stability and longevity? I know I need to use wood screws for the platforms/flooring over the 2x4s but I am curious if using wood glue would lead to the work dangerously deteriorating over the years. Or is there another more permanent glue I should be considering?

2. Are 2'x4' wood platforms that are .75" thick adequate dimensions to work with? WIll they provide enough support for these needs?

3. If I need to fit a platform around pipe or vertical joist, can a jigsaw cut a .75" thick or 1" thick piece of wood?

4. Is it correct thinking that each wood platform will need to share a 2x4 with its neighbor? Basically one 2x4 will accommodate the edges from two floor platforms?

5. Are there any major/minor pieces of advice you can pass along to me that you have learned through consequence or watched someone else commit when doing a job like this?

If you read this, thank you for your patience. Hope you can answer my questions and offer some advice.