Question

Mr. Arnold needs to repaint the outside of his house. He estimates that the area he needs to paint is about 1,600 square feet. Each gallon of paint will cover about 250 square feet. Mr. Arnold has 1 gallon of paint left over from the last time he painted that he can use this time. Will Mr. Arnold need to buy more than 5 gallons of paint? Use an equation to complete the explanation for your reasoning.

Answer 1

Area that needs to be painted=1600 sq.ft. 1 gallon of paint covers 250 sq.ft. Total area for which paint needs to be bought=1600-250 sq.ft=1350 sq.ft. [Since, Mr. Arnold already has 1 gallon of paint] Total paint that needs to be bought=1350/250=5.4 gallons Alternatively, Total paint required=(Area to be painted/Coverage of 1 gallon of paint)-1 [Since, Mr. Arnold already has 1 gallon of paint] Total paint required= (1600/250)-1 gallons =6.4-1 gallons=5.4 gallons of paint is required