HELP ME! I need help on this

Question

Keone is starting a painting business. It will cost $15,650 for everything. He determines that it will cost him 3.35 per hour for expences. If he charges $18 per hour, how many hours will he work to break even?

Answer 1

Let x = the hours needed to work and solve for x.  $15,650 is the needed amount.  We know that 3.35 will need to be subtracted from the $18 for each hour to see gross profit. The equation would read as follows:

 

x= 15650/(18-3.35)

x = 15650 / 14.65

x = 1068.26 hours to break even

 

 

Answer 2

Unless your word problem is missing information, the calculation is as follows:

Rate per hour minus expenses per hour = net payment per hour
$ 18.00 - $ 3.35 = $ 14.65

$ 14.65 per hour x  (n - the number of hours he must work to break even) = $ 15,650

$ 15,650 / $14.65 = 1068 hours, 15 minutes (0.25/hour)