Expert: Sherman D. - 7/31/2007

Question
Good Day!!

Here's the problem:
One painter can paint an entire house in ten hours.
A second painter takes six hours.
Working together, how long would it take them to paint a house?

Algebra says:
1/10+1/6=1/t
4/15=1/t
t=15/4 or 3.75

I say:
[(10+6)/2]/2=4
(Averaged then divided by number of workers)

With larger numbers, the disparity grows smaller.

Which one is the correct answer?  My teacher told me my method was blasphemy.  ¦)

Thanks!!!
--Bennett the juggler

Answer
the Algebra Says is correct.

since it takes the first one 10 hours to do one house, his average is 1/10 of the house each hour. and the second one would be 1/6 of the house each hour.

then just add the 2 together to find out how much they can do 1 house in t hours, which would be 4/15 of the house each hour, so they would take 3.75 to do the entire house.

Are your doing is totaling their average rate and finding out how long it will take to do the entire house.