As given, let Jim's rate = x
Let Pete's rate =y
Jim completed half the floor in 12 hours so it's [tex]12\times rate[/tex]= 12x
Pete completed the other half of the floor in 10 hours so its [tex]10\times rate[/tex]=10y
As floor area is equal so,
[tex]12x=10y[/tex] .............(1)
Now, given is that Pete can lay 25 more tiles per hour than Jim, this gives=
[tex]y=x+25[/tex] ...... (2)
Putting the value of y from equation (2) in equation (1) , we get
[tex]12x=10(x+25)[/tex]
So, the equation is : [tex]12x=10(x+25)[/tex]
If you want to solve it, it becomes:
[tex]12x=10x+250[/tex]
[tex]2x=250[/tex]
[tex]x=125[/tex]
Hence, Jim can lay 125 tiles and Pete can lay 25 more so 125+25=150 tiles.
