document.write( "Question 84663: The width of a room is 3 feet shorter than its length. The perimeter of the room is 62 ft. What is the length and width?
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Algebra.Com's Answer #60988 by liz_gcmama(8) $\"\"$ $\"About$

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Let's give the room a length of n.
\n" ); document.write( "The width of the room is z.
\n" ); document.write( "The perimeter of the room would be n+z+n+z or 2n+2z.\r
\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "We know that the width is 3 feet shorter than the length so we know that z=n-3.
\n" ); document.write( "If we substitute that into the above perimeter formula we find that the perimeter equals 2n+2(n-3). We know that the perimeter equals 62ft so we can say that
\n" ); document.write( "2n+2(n-3)=62
\n" ); document.write( "subtract 62 from each side
\n" ); document.write( "2n+2(n-3)-62=0
\n" ); document.write( "expand the brackets
\n" ); document.write( "2n+2n-6-62=0
\n" ); document.write( "simplify
\n" ); document.write( "4n-68=0
\n" ); document.write( "divide both sides by 4
\n" ); document.write( "4n/4-68/4=0/4
\n" ); document.write( "n-17=0
\n" ); document.write( "add seventeen to both sides
\n" ); document.write( "n=17\r
\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "Now n is the length. So we know the length is 17.
\n" ); document.write( "The width is n-3, so the width is 17-3 = 14.\r
\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "Let's check that our answer is correct.
\n" ); document.write( "17+17+14+14=62.\r
\n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( "Therefore length=17, width=14. \n" ); document.write( "

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