A group of college students is volunteering for Homes for the Community during their spring break. They are putting the finishing touches on a house they built. Working alone, Wade can paint a certain room in 4 hours. Rhonda can paint the same room in 3 hours. How long will it take them working together to paint the room? Round your answer to the nearest hundredth if necessary.

3.5 hours

12 hours

1.71 hours

0.14 hours

1 answer

To solve this problem, we can use the formula:

1/Time taken by Wade + 1/Time taken by Rhonda = 1/Time taken by both

Let x be the time taken for both of them to paint the room together.

1/4 + 1/3 = 1/x

Multiplying both sides of the equation by 12x (the common denominator):

3x + 4x = 12

7x = 12

x = 12/7

Therefore, it will take them approximately 1.71 hours to paint the room together. So the answer is 1.71 hours, rounded to the nearest hundredth.