parkhydel
Terry needs to purchase some pipe for a plumbing job that requires pipes with lengths of 1 ft 4 in, 2 ft 8 in, 3 ft 4 in, 3 ft 8 in, 4 ft 8 in, 5 ft 8 in, and 9 ft 4 in. The store from which Terry will purchase the pipe sells pipe only in 10-ft lengths. If each 10-ft length can be cut into shorter pieces, what is the minimum number of 10-ft pipe lengths that Terry needs to purchase for the plumbing job?
(Note: 1 ft = 12 in)
A. 3
B. 4
C. 5
D. 6
E. 7
PS80871.02
The total length of pipes Terry needs is:
(1 ft 4 in) + (2 ft 8 in) + (3 ft 4 in) + (3 ft 8 in) + (4 ft 8 in) + (5 ft 8 in) + (9 ft 4 in)
27 ft 44 in = 27 ft + 36 in + 8 in = 27 ft + 3 ft + 8 in = 30 ft 8 in
Therefore, he needs to buy at least four 10-ft long pipes (since three 10-ft long pipes are just short of the total length of pipes he needs).
Let’s verify that four 10-ft long pipes can indeed be cut into the required lengths.
1) The 9 ft 4 in pipe will be cut from one of the 10-ft pipes. The remaining 8 inches of pipes cannot be used and will be wasted.
2) The 5 ft 8 in pipe will be cut from another 10-ft pipe. The remaining 4 ft 4 in pipe can be used to cut the 3 ft 8 in pipe or any shorter pipe. If it is used for the 3 ft 8 in pipe, the remaining 8 inches of pipe will be wasted.
3) The 4 ft 8 in pipe will be cut from another 10-ft pipe. We see that we have 5 ft 4 in of pipe left over. We can use this pipe to form either a 3 ft 4 in pipe and a 1 ft 4 in pipe, or a 2 ft 8 in pipe and a 1 ft 4 in pipe.
4) The remaining pipe (either 3 ft 4 in or 2 ft 8 in) will be cut from the last 10-ft pipe.
We see that it is possible to cut the pipes of required lengths from four 10-ft pipes.
Answer: B