SOLUTION: I have been trying this question for 45 minutes and have looked at many examples. My teacher gave out his personal worksheet so I cannot check my homework answers. The question is

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Question 164836: I have been trying this question for 45 minutes and have looked at many examples. My teacher gave out his personal worksheet so I cannot check my homework answers. The question is: 3 square root sign 18 + 3 square root sign 32.
I tried breaking it down and and I just get more confused. I know you have to break it down though..? but how to I add the number outside originally? the number outside the square root sign is not an exponet.
Found 2 solutions by stanbon, Mathtut:
Answer by stanbon(75887) (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
3 square root sign 18 + 3 square root sign 32.
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3sqrt(18) + 3 sqrt(32)
= 3[sqrt(9)sqrt(2) + sqrt(16)sqrt(2)]
= 3[3sqrt(2) + 4sqrt(2)]
= 3[7sqrt(2)]
= 21sqrt(2)
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Cheers,
Stan H.

Answer by Mathtut(3670) (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
If I understand the problem correctly it is 3*sqrt(18)+3*sqrt(32) breaking down the square root of 18 we get sqrt of 9*2 or 3*sqrt(2) but we must multiply this by 3 so we end up with 9*sqrt(2) in the 1st term.....like wise in the second term we break down sqrt(32) into sqrt(16*2) and we get 4*sqrt(2) which we must also multiply by 3 and end up with 12 sqrt(2)....so we end up with 9*sqrt(2) + 12 *sqrt(2) and we know that since that if the radicals have the same index and radicand that we can combine in the same way algebraic terms are combined so that we get (12+9)sqrt(2) or 21sqrt(2)