SOLUTION: The floor of a hall is covered by 480 pieces of square tiles of a certain size. If 3 inches were added to the length of a side of each tile, the floor could be covered by 270 tiles

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Question 1167614: The floor of a hall is covered by 480 pieces of square tiles of a certain size. If 3 inches were added to the length of a side of each tile, the floor could be covered by 270 tiles. Find the length of a side of the tile on the floor.
Answer by greenestamps(13200) About Me  (Show Source):
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The ratio of the numbers of square tiles of the two sizes required to cover the floor is 480:270 = 16:9.

That means the ratio of the areas of the two sizes of square tiles is 9:16; and that means the ratio of the side lengths of the two sizes of tiles is 3:4.

So let the two side lengths be 3x and 4x. Then knowing that the side length of the larger tile is 3 inches more than the side length of the smaller,

4x-3x=3
x=3

ANSWER: The side length of the tiles on the floor is 3x=9 inches.