A retail lumberyard plans to store lumber in a rectangular region adjoining the sales office. The region will be fenced on three sides and the fourth side will be bounded by the wall of the office. Find the dimensions of the region if 350 feet of fencing is available and the area of the region is 12,500 square feet.

Question

A retail lumberyard plans to store lumber in a rectangular region adjoining the sales office.  The region will be fenced on three sides and the fourth side will be bounded by the wall of the office.  Find the dimensions of the region if 350 feet of fencing is available and the area of the region is 12,500 square feet.

Steve · Answer

If the region is LxW then L+2W = 350 LW = 12500 L = 350-2W (350-2W)W = 12500 350W - 2W^2 = 12500 W = 50,125 L = 250,100 So, the area could be 50x250 or 125x100