Question

From a 20-foot roll of rubber hose, a person cuts lengths of 7 3/8 feet, 7 1/2 feet, and 2 1/4 feet. How much hose is left on the roll?The amount of hose left on the roll is ___ feet.

Answer 1

The amount of hose left on the roll will be

`=\text{amount originally on the hose - the amount of hose cut out}`

The amount of hose before usage = 20 feet

The amount cut out is

`\begin{gathered} =7(3)/(8)ft+7(1)/(2)ft+2(1)/(4)ft \\ =7+7+2+(3)/(8)+(1)/(2)+(1)/(4) \\ =16+(3+4+2)/(8) \\ =16+(9)/(8) \\ =16+1(1)/(8) \\ =17(1)/(8)ft \end{gathered}`

The amount left remaning will be

`\begin{gathered} 20ft-17(1)/(8ft) \\ =(20)/(1)ft-(137)/(8)\text{ft} \\ =(160-137)/(8)ft \\ =(23)/(8)ft \\ =2(7)/(8)ft \end{gathered}`

Hence ,

The amount of rubber hose left after cutting out from it is

`=2(7)/(8)ft`