Liam wants to cover a floor measuring 240 cm by 160 cm with square tiles of the same size. Given that he uses only whole tiles, find
- the largest possible length of the side of each tile.
- the number of tiles that are needed to cover the floor.
(a)
Factors of 160: 1, 2, 4, 5, 8, 10, 16, 20, 32, 40, 80, 160
Factors of 240: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 12, 15, 16, 20, 24, 30, 40, 48, 60, 80, 120, 240
The highest common factor of 160 and 240 is 80.
Largest possible length of the side of each tile = 80 cm
(b)
Number of tiles arranged lengthwise
= 240 ÷ 80
= 3
Number of tiles arranged breadthwise
= 160 ÷ 80
= 2
Number of tiles to cover the floor
= 3 x 2
= 6
Answer(s): (a) 80 cm; (b) 6
