1) – Walter and Helen are asked to paint a house.

Walter can paint the house by himself in 12 hours and

Helen can paint the house by herself in 16 hours. How long would it take to paint the house if they worked
together?

2 )– Tom and Jerry have to stuff and mail 1000 envelopes for a new marketing campaign. Jerry can do the job
alone in 6 hours. If Tom helps, they can get the job done in 4 hours. How long would it take Tom to do the job
by himself?

3 )– One pipe can fill a swimming pool in 10 hours, while another pipe can empty the pool in 15 hours. How
long would it take to fill the pool if both pipes were accidentally left open?

4.)It takes 1.5 hours for Tim to mow the lawn. Linda can mow the same lawn in 2 hours. How long will it take
John and Linda, work together, to mow the lawn?

5.)A tank can be filled by pipe A in 5 hours and by pipe B in 8 hours, each pump working on its own. When the
tank is full and a drainage hole is open, the water is drained in 20 hours. If initially the tank was empty and
someone started the two pumps together but left the drainage hole open, how long does it take for the tank
to be filled?

6.) A mother is 41 years old, and in seven years she will be four times as old as her daughter. How old is her
daughter now?
7.) John's age 13 years ago was 1/3 of his age nine years hence. How old is John?

8.) Peter is 24 years old. Peter is twice as old as John was when Peter was as old as John is now. How old is
John?

9.) A boy is one-third as old as his brother and eight years younger than his sister. The sum of their ages is 38
years. How old is his sister?

10.) Lisa is 16 years younger than Kathy. If the sum of their ages is 30, how old is Lisa?
Here are the steps required for Solving Problems Involving Work:

Step 1:
A problem involving work can be solved using the formula , where T =
time working together, A = the time for person A working alone, and B = the time for
person B working alone.
Step 2: Solve the equation created in the first step. This can be done by first multiplying the
entire problem by the common denominator and then solving the resulting equation.
Step 3: Answer the question asked of you in the problem and be sure to include units with
your answer.

Example 1 – Walter and Helen are asked to paint a house. Walter can paint the house by himself in
12 hours and Helen can paint the house by herself in 16 hours. How long would it take to paint the
house if they worked together?

Step 1: A problem involving work can be

solved using the formula , where T

= time working together, A = the time for
person A working alone, and B = the time for
person B working alone.

Step 2: Solve the equation created in the first

step. This can be done by first multiplying the
entire problem by the common denominator
and then solving the resulting equation. In
this case, the least common denominator is
48.

Step 3: Answer the question asked of you in

the problem and be sure to include units with
your answer.

Example 2 – Tom and Jerry have to stuff and mail 1000 envelopes for a new marketing campaign.
Jerry can do the job alone in 6 hours. If Tom helps, they can get the job done in 4 hours. How long
would it take Tom to do the job by himself?

Step 1: A problem involving work can be

solved using the formula , where T

= time working together, A = the time for
person A working alone, and B = the time for
person B working alone.

Step 2: Solve the equation created in the first

step. This can be done by first multiplying the
entire problem by the common denominator
and then solving the resulting equation. In
this case, the least common denominator is
6A.
Step 3: Answer the question asked of you in
the problem and be sure to include units with
your answer.

Click Here for Practice Problems

Example 3 – One pipe can fill a swimming pool in 10 hours, while another pipe can empty the pool
in 15 hours. How long would it take to fill the pool if both pipes were accidentally left open?

Step 1: A problem involving work can be

solved using the formula , where T

= time working together, A = the time for
person A working alone, and B = the time for
person B working alone. In this case, one pipe
is filling the pool and the other is emptying
the pool so we get the equation:

Step 2: Solve the equation created in the first

step. This can be done by first multiplying the
entire problem by the common denominator
and then solving the resulting equation. In
this case, the least common denominator is
30.

Step 3: Answer the question asked of you in

the problem and be sure to include units with
your answer.

Click Here for Practice Problems

Example 4 – One roofer can put a new roof on a house three times faster than another. Working
together they can roof a house in 5 days. How long would it take the faster roofer working alone?

Step 1: A problem involving work can be

solved using the formula , where T

= time working together, A = the time for
person A working alone, and B = the time for
person B working alone.

Step 2: Solve the equation created in the first

step. This can be done by first multiplying the
entire problem by the common denominator
and then solving the resulting equation. In
this case, the least common denominator is
3x.

Step 3: Answer the question asked of you in

the problem and be sure to include units with
your answer.
Click Here for Practice Problems

Example 5 – Triplets, Justin, Jason, and Jacob are working on a school project. Justin can complete
the project by himself in 6 hours, Jason can complete the project by himself in 9 hours, and Jacob
can complete the project by himself in 8 hours. How long would it take the triplets to complete the
project if they work together?

Step 1: A problem involving work can be

solved using the formula , where T

= time working together, A = the time for
person A working alone, and B = the time for
person B working alone. In this case, there
are three people so the equation becomes:

Step 2: Solve the equation created in the first

step. This can be done by first multiplying the
entire problem by the common denominator
and then solving the resulting equation. In
this case, the least common denominator is
72.

Step 3: Answer the question asked of you in

the problem and be sure to include units with
your answer.

Problem 3:
A tank can be filled by pipe A in 5 hours and by pipe B in 8 hours, each pump working on
its own. When the tank is full and a drainage hole is open, the water is drained in 20
hours. If initially the tank was empty and someone started the two pumps together but left
the drainage hole open, how long does it take for the tank to be filled?

Solution to Problem 3:
Let's first find the rates of the pumps and the drainage hole
pump A: 1 / 5 , pump B: 1 / 8 , drainage hole: 1 / 20
Let t be the time for the pumps to fill the tank. The pumps ,add water into the tank
however the drainage hole drains water out of the tank, hence
t ( 1 / 5 + 1 / 8 - 1 / 20) = 1
Solve for t
t = 3.6 hours.

Problem 4:
A swimming pool can be filled by pipe A in 3 hours and by pipe B in 6 hours, each pump
working on its own. At 9 am pump A is started. At what time will the swimming pool be
filled if pump B is started at 10 am?

Solution to Problem 4:
the rates of the two pumps are
pump A: 1 / 3 , pump B: 1 / 6
Working together, If pump A works for t hours then pump B works t - 1 hours since it
started 1 hour late. Hence

t × (1 / 3) + (t - 1) × (1 / 6) = 1
Solve for t
t = 7 / 3 hours = 2.3 hours = 2 hours 20 minutes.
The swimming pool will be filled at
9 + 2:20 = 11:20

Problem 1: Father and Son's Ages

Two times the father's age is eight more than six times the son's age. Ten years ago, the sum of their ages was 36
years. The age of the son is:

Solution
a. Let x be the age of the son and y be the age of the father.

?
2y = 6x + 8
y = 3x + 4
b. Create a mathematical relation between the father's age and the son's age ten years ago.

?
(x - 10) + (y - 10) = 36
x + y = 56
c. Substitute the value of y into the equation x + y = 56.
?
x + y = 56
y = 3x + 4

x + (3x + 4) = 56
4x + 4 = 56
4x = 56 -4
4x = 52
x = 13
Final Answer: The son's age is 13 years old.

Problem 2: A Person's Age

John's age 13 years ago was 1/3 of his age nine years hence. How old is John?

Solution
a. Let x be the age of John now. His age 13 years ago was x- 13 and his age nine years hence is x + 9.
?
x - 13 = (1/3) (x + 9)
x - 13 = (1/3) x + 3
x - (1/3) x = 3 + 13
(2/3) x = 16
x = 24
Final Answer: Therefore, John's age is 24 years old.

Problem 3: Mother and Daughter's Ages

A mother is 41 years old, and in seven years she will be four times as old as her daughter. How old is her daughter
now?

Solution

a. Let x be the age of the daughter and y be the age of the mother.
?
4 (x + 7) = 41 + 7
4x + 28 = 48
4x = 48 - 28
4x = 20
x = 5
Final Answer: The daughter is five years old.
Problem 4: Father and Son's Ages
A father is four times as old as his son. Six years ago, he was five times as old as his son was at that time. How old
is his son?

Solution
a. Let x be the present age of the father and y be the age of the son.
?
x = 4y
b. Create a mathematical relation between the father's age and the son's age six years ago.
?
(x - 6) = 5 (y - 6)
x - 6 = 5y - 30
x - 5y = -30 + 6
x - 5y = -24
x = 5y - 24
c. Substitute the value of x = 5 to the first equation.
?
(5y - 24) = 4y
5y - 4y = 24
y = 24
Final Answer: The son is 24 years old now.

Problem 5: Father and Son's Ages

The ages of the father and son are 50 and 10, respectively. How many years will the father be three times as old as
his son?
Solution
a. Let x be the required number of years. Create a mathematical relation between their ages.
?
50 + x = 3 (10 + x)
50 + x = 30 + 3x
50 - 30 = 3x - x
20 = 2x
x = 10
Final Answer: After 10 years, the father will be three times as old as his son.

Problem 6: Comparison of Ages

Peter is 24 years old. Peter is twice as old as John was when Peter was as old as John is now. How old is John?

Solution
a. Let x be the present age of John. The table shows the relationship between their past and present ages.
. The difference between the ages of two persons is constant.

?
x - 12 = 24 -x
x + x = 24 + 12
2x = 36
x = 18 years
Final Answer: John is 18 years old now.

Problem 11: Sum of Ages

A boy is one-third as old as his brother and eight years younger than his sister. The sum of their ages is 38 years.
How old is his sister?
Solution
a. Let x be the age of the boy. Create a mathematical equation for the ages.
?
3x = age of the brother
x + 8 = age of sister

x + 3x + (x + 8) = 38
5x = 30
x = 6 years (age of boy)

x + 8 = 14 years
Final Answer: The age of the sister is 14 years old.

Example 2

Lisa is 16 years younger than Kathy. If the sum of their ages is 30, how old is Lisa?

First, circle what you must find— how old is Lisa? Let Lisa equal x. Therefore, Kathy is x + 16. (Note
that since Lisa is 16 years youngerthan Kathy, you must add 16 years to Lisa to denote Kathy's age.)
Now, use the problem to set up an equation.

Therefore, Lisa is 7 years old.