Question

Red and gray bricks were used to build a decorative wall. The number of red bricks number of gray bricks was Start Fraction 5 over 2 End Fraction . There were 175 bricks used in all. How many red bricks were used?

Answer 1

The number of bricks per color can be expressed with variables.

Red = 5x
Gray = 2x

The total is 175 bricks, right?

5x+2x=7x

7x=175
x=25

The value of x is 25. Now, substitute that into the expression for red bricks, or 5x

5x=5(25)=125

There were 125 red bricks used. Hope this helps!