Laila is laying a path down for a new driveway. The store has three types of paver stones that will work for her space. She needs to know which paver is the best price. Paver 1 costs $1.49 each, and she will need twice as many as paver 2 and half as many as paver 3. Paver 2 costs $2.50 each. Paver 3 costs $0.75. Which paver will be the best buy

Answer 1

Let's denote the number of paver stones Laila needs for each type as follows:

• Let \( x \) be the number of paver 2 stones needed.
• Therefore, the number of paver 1 stones needed will be \( 2x \) (twice as many as paver 2).
• The number of paver 3 stones needed will be \( \frac{x}{2} \) (half as many as paver 1).

Now, let's calculate the total cost for each type of paver.

1. Cost of Paver 1:

   • Each paver 1 costs $1.49.
   • Total cost for paver 1: \[ \text{Total Cost for Paver 1} = 2x \times 1.49 = 2.98x \]

2. Cost of Paver 2:

   • Each paver 2 costs $2.50.
   • Total cost for paver 2: \[ \text{Total Cost for Paver 2} = x \times 2.50 = 2.50x \]

3. Cost of Paver 3:

   • Each paver 3 costs $0.75.
   • Total cost for paver 3: \[ \text{Total Cost for Paver 3} = \frac{x}{2} \times 0.75 = 0.375x \]

Now we can summarize the total costs for each paver in terms of \( x \):

• Total cost for Paver 1: \( 2.98x \)
• Total cost for Paver 2: \( 2.50x \)
• Total cost for Paver 3: \( 0.375x \)

Now we can analyze which paver has the lowest cost:

1. Paver 1: \( 2.98x \)
2. Paver 2: \( 2.50x \)
3. Paver 3: \( 0.375x \)

Since all costs depend on \( x \), we can compare them directly without needing a specific \( x \) value:

Clearly, \( 0.375x < 2.50x < 2.98x \).

Thus, the best buy is Paver 3.