The smallest or largest repair work cannot be accomplished without the use of math. Even though minor repairs might require simple math, complex repairs call for complex math formulas. If your student’s room demands some repair work, you cannot escape simple math like surface area, volume, average cost, speed/time for repair, and angles.
Without math, you will cut wrong angles that cannot fit the area you are repairing or buy less or too much material. Below are the main math calculations you will require when repairing your student’s room.
You have to start with the area you want to repair and calculate the total surface area before anything else. Let’s assume that your student’s room window is broken and you want to repair it immediately. You will require a tape measure and measure the length and the breadth of the window if the entire window needs repair.
If it’s just a small portion, take the portion’s measurements. You might have measurements like L = 3ft and W= 2ft. The total area will be 3 x 2 = 12ft2. If it’s a windowpane you want to repair, that’s the measurement you will give to the windowpane retailer.
Many students fear math because they think the subject is complex and hard to tackle. On the contrary, it’s very easy to gain mathematic skills by putting in more effort and allocating more time to practice.
It is easy to gain skills required for repair work or to count costs by trying to solve trigonometry questions on PlainMath and these will be very helpful for practice use. If you can attempt a few questions a day, you will gain experience within a short period.
Now that you know the total area to be repaired, your next calculation will be the total material to be used. We shall use the same example of window panes and calculate the total quantity of material needed for the repair. Again let’s assume four window panes are broken and they are equal in size.
You first need to be sure they are all the same size by measuring the L and W of each. Next, get the total surface area of one pane, then multiply by the number of broken panes and you have the total material needed. Calculate the amount of putty or silicon required for all four.
You have the surface area and the quantity of material needed and the next step is to calculate the cost of the material. In your list of materials, you have panes and putty/silicon as the main materials needed. You may call a hardware store near you to confirm the cost of each.
Assume that the store owner gave you the cost of panes at $3 per square foot and putty at $2 per kilo. Each pane is 12ft2 and you have four panes which will be 12 x 4 = 48ft2. Each square foot is costing $3 x 48 = $144. Do the same with putty/silicon and get the total cost, and then add to the cost of panes.
Your next mathematical calculation will be related to time/speed. Because you don’t want to interrupt your lesson time or study time, you must calculate the amount of time needed to complete the repairs. You might not be able to calculate the exact time, but you can work on approximate time. Calculate the approximate time you need to visit the store and back, then the cost of removing the broken panes, cleaning, and fixing.
In every project, no matter the size, there has to be a miscellaneous cost. These are costs that come up during the repair. Another window pane might break as you repair the others or you might require a tool you hadn’t thought about.
The miscellaneous cost has to be a percentage of the total cost of your project. Let’s assume the total cost is $250. You can add 20% as a miscellaneous cost. You will take 250 x 20/100 or 250 x 0.2 = 50 and your miscellaneous cost will be $50.
Math is science and is important in every sphere of life, like construction, travel, cooking, and doing school assignments. You need to calculate time, cost, quantities, angles, and so on. Math calculations range from simple to complex but if you get used to practice, not a single math calculation should be a problem to you no matter how complex the formulas are. You should get acquainted with using your scientific calculator and learn all its features to make your calculations easier.
Alina Boskar works for a technology company as their lead web content and technical documentation writer. She provides academic writing help to students as well in the field of science and technology and her expertise is in crafting winning essays. Her free time is for cycling, watching films and reading popular novels.