Cheryl and her damned potatoes

Question

Cheryl bought 2 bags of potatoes. The first bag weighted twice as much as the second. The bags weighted 20 pounds altogether. Find the weight of each bag.

Answer 1

Let x = the weight of the second bag of those dam*ed potatoes.  The first bag weighs twice as much as the second, so it weighs 2x.  The bags weigh 20 pounds altogether, so:

 

x + 2x = 20

 

 

Solve for x.  You will get a mixed number as the answer.  Bag 1 weighs 2x.