Question: It took Dad 5 more than twice as long to vacuum upstairs then to vacuum downstairs. He vacuumed for a total of 38 minutes. How many minutes did he vacuum upstairs? Think carefully first, then make a decision:
Let D = time in minutes to vacuum downstairs. Upstairs = 2D + 5 minutes. 3D + 5 = 38. 3D = 33. D = 11 minutes. Upstairs = (2 * 11) + 5 = 27 minutes. Dad took 27 minutes to vacuum upstairs. So the answer is 27.