Question

You buy tea light candles and mints as party favours for a baby shower. the tea light candles come in packs of 12 for $3.50. The mints come in packs of 50 for $6.25. What is the least amount of money you can spend to buy the same number of candles and mints?

Answer 1

The least amount of money it can be spent is $125.

Explanation:

First, we write the prime factorization of each number:

12= 2·2·3

15= 2·5·5

Then, we search each different factor which appears the greater number of times. The factor 2 appears in both factorizations so least common multiple is:

LCM= 2·2·3·5·5=300

Hence, the total quantity of packs of each thing is:

Candles: 300÷12=25

Mints: 300÷50=6

The least amount of money it can be spent is:

T=25×$3.50 + 6×$6.25= $87.5 + $37.5= $125