Henry wants to cover a floor measuring 260 cm by 120 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 120: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 12, 15, 20, 24, 30, 40, 60, 120
Factors of 260: 1, 2, 4, 5, 10, 13, 20, 26, 52, 65, 130, 260
The highest common factor of 120 and 260 is 20.
Largest possible length of the side of each tile = 20 cm
(b)
Number of tiles arranged lengthwise
= 260 ÷ 20
= 13
Number of tiles arranged breadthwise
= 120 ÷ 20
= 6
Number of tiles to cover the floor
= 13 x 6
= 78
Answer(s): (a) 20 cm; (b) 78